Biological and Physical Sciences at City Colleges of Chicago-Harry S Truman College

Truman College's biological and physical sciences associate's degree starts graduates at $24,111—nearly $2,500 below Illinois's median and roughly $10,000 behind the state's top performers like College of Lake County. While the debt load is modest at $9,500, ranking in the 32nd percentile nationally, the earnings gap is harder to overlook when you're comparing programs within the same metro area.

The 40th percentile placement among Illinois programs suggests this sits squarely in the middle-to-lower tier. For context, City Colleges of Chicago's own Malcolm X and Daley campuses produce graduates earning $6,000-$9,000 more annually with similar associate degrees in the sciences. That difference compounds quickly—an extra $30,000-$45,000 over just the first five years after graduation.

The real question is what comes next. If this degree serves as a stepping stone to a four-year program where institutional prestige matters less than completion, the affordable debt makes sense. But as a terminal credential, the earnings trajectory lags behind both state and national peers. Students staying in the Chicago job market might explore whether other City Colleges campuses or nearby community colleges offer better placement outcomes in these fields.