Is Biology a useless degree without the medical field?

Isn’t the problem (from the job applicant’s point of view) with the BA/BS biology job market the fact that there are so many BA/BS biology graduates competing for the biology-related jobs?

I think (?) that many biology majors go for an additional degree…which may not be in medicine.

New biology grads can do TFA or NYC Teaching Fellows ( less competitive than TFA). Following the two year commitment they can stay with the DOE if they want to ( they are considered DOE employees).

NYS gives you 5 years to get a masters, but if you come in through these alternate routes you must get it in 2 years. If you are part of TFA the degree will cost about $6000. If you establish residency you can also get your degree through CUNY at a very reasonable cost.

With a BA in biology…as a new grad…working for the DOE:

  • you will start at $56,000 ( possibly more depending on the contract and when you begin)
  • you can do summer school for an additional $10,000 for 6 weeks. This $ goes up every year.
  • you will be an employee of the DOE and get raises etc.
  • you will have a pension and free health insurance
  • once you get your masters you will receive a pretty decent salary increase

Not everybody wants to teach, and not everybody wants to be an accountant. The starting salary with a BA may not be as high as some other fields, but it’s enough to live in NYC with a roommate at the age of 22…if you budget yourself wisely.

A quick search found the following:
Research Assistants/Technicians ( bio or chem degree) varying entry level salaries
Clinical Lab Supervisor- BS in one of the sciences, one year lab experience, $65,000-75,000 a year
Entry Level Sr. Manufacturing Tech …BA/BS in biology, chemistry

There are more…

Problem is, you have no idea what kinds of jobs will be available in 10, 15, or 20 years. The most important goal of a college education is to learn how to think. That will get you very far.

Which jobs available in 10 to 20 years? deb111 will possibly be needing a good job in -4- years.

Read and think about:

https://www.collegeconfidential.com/articles/want-to-earn-more-after-college-check-these-3-tips/

@ucbalumnus:
“Isn’t the problem (from the job applicant’s point of view) with the BA/BS biology job market the fact that there are so many BA/BS biology graduates competing for the biology-related jobs?”

Another problem is that there are so many other BA/BS liberal arts/sciences graduates competing for all of the other NON-biology-related jobs too.

@leigh22:
"But not everyone wants to be an accountant, thankfully. "

The accountant will be making enough money to be able to study and enjoy biology or many other subjects, perhaps with a second bachelor’s, night school, eco-tourism vacations…

Or the accountant might be wealthy enough to pursue interests he or she didn’t have in high school or college… general aviation, boating, skiing, art collecting…

The accountant could still get that $10/hour biology lab job, if she really wanted it… if accounting turns out to be boring.

Accounting is great, unless you hate accounting. I would never want my kids to have a career that makes them miserable.

I am of the belief that you can choose any major and be successful…much of it depends on the individual.

Most people are less miserable when they have more money in their pockets, even if they had to be bored or miserable while working to earn it. It’s better to be miserable for only 40 hours per week, instead of 128 hours per week or even 168 hours per week.

An old classmate of mine went on to get a PhD, but works as an adjunct professor.

deb111 would not have asked the question unless she already suspected that there could be a problem.

Thank you twogirls - exactly. So should a student who truly enjoys a major forgo it because it won’t make her wealthy enough? Not everyone has an interest in accounting computer science etc. IMO selecting a career path just for the wealth isn’t the brightest idea, but to each his own. And obviously when done one is truly dedicated and passionate about a path, great things can happen.

@Leigh22:
“So should a student who truly enjoys a major forgo it because it won’t make her wealthy enough?”

Yes, she probably should if it can mean the difference between $30,000/year as an adjunct versus $80,000/year as an accountant, for example. There are plenty of things that she can enjoy doing with that extra cash, maybe even taking a few college-level courses in that “major she [would have] truly enjoyed.”

You have to recognize the potential downside of majoring in some subjects.

Yes, obviously. But for many people it isn’t going to sway them from their desired profession. Not everyone can be an engineer or an accountant. Selecting a career you have no interest in is a recipe for a life of dissatisfaction.
“Better to be miserable for 40 hours a week?” Really?? Amazing that you believe this has to be a choice.
To the OP - no, it is not useless.

@Leigh22:
Being miserable because of a lack of money or job opportunities is not a good thing. Being “miserable” at work can be made up for with a solid paycheck, believe it or not.

Short of fortifying that BS Bio degree with Med School, an MS or a PhD, (and lots of luck,) no one here has presented any ideas on how a BS Biology degree gets you a good job or a career that you could not get just as easily, or perhaps more easily, with some other undergrad degree or even no degree at all.

It also has not occurred to anyone so far, that maybe the OP doesn’t want to major in biology anyway, but is being fed the idea that it is the best route to Med School. And if she doesn’t get there, she asks, “What then?”

And she might soon have loans to pay off.

Not in this accounting major/CPA’s experience. I had great jobs at a great company, promoted annually for 8 years straight and I was miserable…I can assure you making good $ is not worth spending time in a job that one does not like.

Further, as you have mentioned the desirability of accounting as a major, I would encourage anyone considering that route to do their research…accounting is high on the list of initial jobs to be replaced by AI, and according to many sources, likely within the career spans of current college students.

We haven’t heard from OP, so don’t know additional details. Hopefully OP has heard loudly and clearly that a biology major is definitely not useless, and that OP should study what s/he likes.

Nothing is useless. The firm I work for currently has several positions open for biology major with a starting salary of 33K (no experience needed). We are in a high cost area and we don’t pay for relocation. I think if you are willing to work overtime at ALDI, you get more than 33K. If you get a M.S. and have experience, you definitely can get more than 40K.

@Mwfan1921:
Your promotions netted you money and experience that made your transition out of accounting happen a little more smoothly than it might have otherwise. Your education also qualified you for other good jobs or careers. A equally miserable biology major trying to transition out of a $10/hour McJob in a lab is not going to have those options.

If AI is really about to obliterate accounting, then maybe an accounting degree is about to become useless too? What about a biology degree? What are the current and long-term job prospects for that?

I don’t think that there are only two options… #1 - a well paying career that you hate…or…

2- a low paying job that you love

A driven individual can major in biology, develop a resume, and have an enjoyable career.

FYI: There is no useless degree. I used to think some majors fell into this category. Women’s studies raised my eyebrows until I met a woman who had a degree in women’s studies and then went on to get a degree in developmental economics and now works for a GMO developing programs for women in the third world. What is useless is not having a plan A, B and C. Or, not researching the opportunities (of lack of) in your chosen field. Do the research. Think about what motivates you. Look at the industry esp. pay and number of people being hired. Do not shy away from something because there is competition. That often means there are lots of opportunities ( CS for example).
Bio is a great degree. One can go down many career paths.
Before you spend a ton of dough on college have a plan for what you want to do when you grow up.

To be sure, you can definitely change career. I have known two persons who went to UK business schools after undergraduate and have great job now. One has an undergraduate engineering degree from Cornell. On the other hand, my niece has computer science degrees from UCSD (she stayed for a master degree), the starting salary is 105K.

This person (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBY1qkJPOKE&index=47&list=LLV2cA5C9PtyxnIgxJy7SlKA&t=0s) also went to an UK business program (one year) and she is currently in consulting. She has a humanity degree from UC Berkeley.

Let’s hear about some solid examples of well-paying jobs for biology majors ($33K doesn’t qualify) that don’t require further education or plenty of luck. If some other major can get the same job, at the same pay, then it doesn’t count. If someone with no college degree can get the same job, at the same pay, it especially doesn’t count.

Not sure why you’re so confrontational, but in three seconds I found an entry level job for a biology major, 0-2 years experience, starting salary 42k-60k. This was first on the list .
And you don’t need to educate me on whether or not a paycheck can make one happy. Believe it or not, we all aren’t motivated by the same things.