Biology in its most basic conceptualization is the study of living organisms, including the structure, and chemical and electrical processes of life. The field includes not just plants and animals, but also microorganisms, such as bacteria and viruses. In ranking the best colleges for biology degrees, we expect the college to imbue in its students the core principals of dispassionate scientific inquiry, unbiased by non-scientific trends of the day.
Ranking the Best Colleges for Biology Majors
The table below lists the top colleges in biologal sciences, with the college name, city, state and a relative scoring of our ranking analyses. If the name is underlined in this ranking, we have created a profile for that institution, which you can find by tapping on its name.
| Rank | College | City | State | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stanford University | Palo Alto | CA | 97.46 |
| 2 | California Institute of Technology | Pasadena | CA | 96.28 |
| 3 | Massachusetts Institute of Technlogy | Cambridge | MA | 96.03 |
| 4 | University of Chicago | Chicago | IL | 93.48 |
| 5 | Harvard University | Cambridge | MA | 90.29 |
| 6 | Princeton University | Princeton | NJ | 88.47 |
| 7 | University of Washington | Seattle | WA | 88.29 |
| 8 | Cornell University | Ithaca | NY | 88.03 |
| 9 | Yale University | New Haven | CT | 87.47 |
| 10 | Columbia University | New York | NY | 84.51 |
| 11 | University of California - Los Angeles | Los Angeles | CA | 82.80 |
| 12 | Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore | MD | 82.51 |
| 13 | University of California - Berkeley | Berkeley | CA | 82.06 |
| 14 | Duke University | Durham | NC | 82.01 |
| 15 | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia | PA | 81.50 |
| 16 | Indiana University | Bloomington | IN | 80.94 |
| 17 | University of Texas | Austin | TX | 79.65 |
| 18 | University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign | Champaign | IL | 78.45 |
| 19 | University of California - Davis | Davis | CA | 77.88 |
| 20 | University of California - San Diego | San Diego | CA | 77.67 |
| 21 | Georgia Institute of Technology | Atlanta | GA | 77.65 |
| 22 | University Of Wisconsin - Madison | Madison | WI | 77.64 |
| 23 | University of Michigan | Ann Arbor | MI | 77.25 |
| 24 | University of Florida | Gainesville | FL | 74.73 |
| 25 | The Ohio State University | Columbus | OH | 73.92 |
| 26 | Nortwestern University | Evanston | IL | 71.56 |
| 27 | Michigan State University | East Lansing | MI | 71.35 |
| 28 | Texas A&M University | College Station | TX | 71.15 |
| 29 | Penn State | University Park | PA | 69.89 |
| 30 | New York University | New York | NY | 68.15 |
| 31 | Washington University in St. Louis | St. Louis | MO | 67.75 |
| 32 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh | NC | 66.29 |
| 33 | Emory University | Atlanta | GA | 64.55 |
| 34 | University of Minnesota | Twin Cities | MN | 64.42 |
| 35 | Vanderbilt University | Nashville | TN | 64.19 |
| 36 | Arizona State University | Tempe | AZ | 63.76 |
| 37 | University of Georgia | Athens | GA | 61.24 |
| 38 | Purdue University | West Lafayette | IN | 60.93 |
| 39 | University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill | NC | 60.86 |
| 40 | Colorado State University | Ft. Collins | CO | 58.96 |
| 41 | University of Colorado - Boulder | Boulder | CO | 58.57 |
| 42 | Iowa State University | Ames | IA | 57.99 |
| 43 | Rice University | Houston | TX | 57.85 |
| 44 | University of Arizona | Tuscon | AZ | 57.27 |
| 45 | University of Maryland | College Park | MD | 55.94 |
| 46 | Florida State University | Tallahassee | FL | 55.83 |
| 47 | University of Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh | PA | 54.71 |
| 48 | Boston University | Boston | MA | 53.71 |
| 49 | University of Kansas | Lawrence | KS | 52.39 |
| 50 | University of Tennessee - Knoxville | Knoxville | TN | 52.22 |
You can find more information on the methodology used in creating this ranking in our About page.
What is a Biology Major?
Biology is a broad field covering numerous different concentrations or specialties. For undergraduate students, a major in biological sciences typically invovles an exposure to the core areas, such as biochemistry and genetics, as well as a concentration in one or more of the various areas. Courses may include offerings such as:
- Genetics
- Biochemistry / Organic chemistry – which deals with chemical processes in living things.
- Inorganic chemistry – which deals with chemical processes anywhere in the environment.
- Cellular Biology
- Molecular Biology
- Microbiology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Ecology
- Bioinformatics
- Physiology
- Biotechnology
Biology Careers
For many students, an undergraduate degree in biology serves as a stepping stone for further academic study. Typically, about half of students with this undergraduate major also go on to further education. This further education may include medical school, dental school, graduate biology (advanced degree), or even law school For those wishing to stay in the field, such as in biotech, typically an advanced degree is required. Examples of careers utilizing biology degrees are:
- Medical Doctor, Nurse or other medical professional
- Dentist
- Biotech research
- Genetics engineering
- Pharmacological Research
- Government Agencies
- Environmental Specialist
- Ecologist
- Public Health
- Hospital Management
- Patent Attorney
Related Ranking: Best Colleges for Chemistry.