Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology at North Carolina State University at Raleigh

NC State's biochemistry program demonstrates exactly why STEM degrees from research universities can justify moderate debt loads. Graduates start at $44,101—already above the national median for this major—but then see their earnings surge 74% to nearly $77,000 by year four. That trajectory places this program in the 75th percentile nationally and solidly above North Carolina's state median of $40,442. With debt under $24,000, graduates owe just half of their first-year salary, a manageable burden that becomes even more favorable as earnings accelerate.

The strong earnings growth suggests graduates are successfully moving into higher-paying industry roles or professional school pathways after gaining initial experience. Among the 16 North Carolina schools offering this program, NC State performs notably better than competitors like UNC Greensboro (which reports $36,783 in first-year earnings). The moderate sample size means these figures represent a meaningful cohort, not an outlier year.

For families weighing this investment, the numbers tell a clear story: graduates enter the workforce at competitive salaries and quickly advance to earnings that make the debt quite manageable. This is a practical launching pad for science careers, particularly for students targeting pharmaceutical, biotech, or research positions in North Carolina's growing Research Triangle economy.