Molecular Biology & Genomics
What you'll do in college
This is biology zoomed in on the molecular machinery of life—DNA, proteins, cells. Coursework covers genetics, biochemistry, cell biology, and molecular techniques, plus chemistry and often physics.
Labs are demanding: you'll learn to run gels, clone genes, image cells under fluorescent microscopes, and analyze sequencing data. Research with a professor is almost expected, and many students publish papers as undergraduates.
What you'll do after college
Grads work in biotech (think Genentech, Moderna, CRISPR Therapeutics), pharmaceutical companies, academic and medical research labs, and increasingly in synthetic biology startups. Many continue to medical school or to PhD programs.
Day-to-day lab work involves running experiments, analyzing data, and sharing results with the team. Pay at the bachelor's level is modest, but advanced degrees—especially PhDs in molecular biology—lead to leadership roles in some of the fastest-growing parts of the economy.
Famous graduates
- Jennifer Doudna — Nobel laureate for CRISPR gene editing; B.A. in Biochemistry from Pomona College
Selectivity vs. earnings
By acceptance rate
By SAT median
Earnings vs. selectivity rank
Majors in this category
| Major | Colleges | Degrees ▼ | Male/Female | Intl | 5yr Earn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Molecular Biology & Genomics | 711 | 17,145 | 41% / 59% | 6% | $72,373 |
| Biochemistry | 568 | 8,567 | 43% / 57% | 5% | $70,196 |
| Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | 63 | 1,202 | 42% / 58% | 7% | $72,201 |
| Molecular and Cell Biology | 4 | 1,105 | 38% / 62% | 10% | $83,230 |
| Biotechnology | 69 | 819 | 41% / 59% | 5% | $74,796 |
| Molecular Biology | 53 | 809 | 40% / 60% | 6% | $70,563 |
| Molecular and Cellular Biology | 5 | 626 | 36% / 64% | 6% | $75,800 |
| Cellular and Molecular Biology | 24 | 469 | 32% / 68% | 5% | $67,516 |
| Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology | 2 | 455 | 39% / 61% | 3% | $63,818 |
| Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology | 3 | 352 | 36% / 64% | 6% | $74,967 |
| Bioinformatics | 37 | 308 | 50% / 50% | 10% | $117,369 |
| Genetics | 11 | 253 | 28% / 72% | 4% | $70,080 |
| Molecular Biochemistry | 3 | 197 | 42% / 58% | 8% | $69,390 |
| Molecular Genetics | 7 | 195 | 27% / 73% | 2% | $67,979 |
| Cell and Molecular Biology | 7 | 187 | 35% / 65% | 6% | $77,874 |
| Genetics and Genomics | 2 | 171 | 25% / 75% | 12% | $71,302 |
| Cell Biology | 9 | 163 | 31% / 69% | 6% | $57,469 |
| Cell Biology and Neuroscience | 1 | 153 | 41% / 59% | 6% | $66,617 |
| Computational Biology | 17 | 136 | 43% / 57% | 10% | |
| Biophysics | 41 | 128 | 52% / 48% | 9% | $73,032 |
| Computational and Systems Biology | 1 | 85 | 45% / 55% | 8% | |
| Cell Biology and Genetics | 1 | 67 | 25% / 75% | 1% | $72,165 |
| Cell, Molecular, and Developmental Biology | 1 | 64 | 34% / 66% | 3% | $64,955 |
| Cell Biology and Histology | 1 | 59 | 37% / 63% | 0% | $77,357 |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology | 3 | 58 | 31% / 69% | 5% | $86,644 |
| Molecular Engineering | 1 | 52 | 62% / 38% | 12% | |
| Biochemistry-Molecular Biology | 1 | 51 | 55% / 45% | 4% | $80,350 |
| Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry | 1 | 46 | 41% / 59% | 7% | |
| Molecular Biology and Biochemistry | 1 | 30 | 40% / 60% | 10% | |
| Biotechnology and Molecular Bioscience | 1 | 29 | 28% / 72% | 0% | $58,835 |
| Biological Chemistry | 1 | 26 | 42% / 58% | 4% | |
| Genetics and Genomic Sciences | 1 | 24 | 29% / 71% | 0% | |
| Cellular Biology and Anatomy | 1 | 22 | 14% / 86% | 0% | $69,754 |
| Computer Science and Molecular Biology (Course 6-7) | 1 | 22 | 27% / 73% | 0% | |
| Cellular Biology | 1 | 20 | 30% / 70% | 0% | $58,686 |
| Chemical Biology | 1 | 20 | 20% / 80% | 5% | |
| Molecular Biosciences and Biotechnology | 1 | 19 | 63% / 37% | 16% | $65,943 |
| Biochemistry/Molecular Biology | 2 | 17 | 35% / 65% | 0% | $64,628 |
| Cancer Biology | 1 | 16 | 25% / 75% | 6% | |
| Molecular Biosciences | 1 | 16 | 25% / 75% | 6% | |
| Evolutionary Biology | 2 | 15 | 33% / 67% | 0% | $69,582 |
| Genome Sciences/Genomics | 2 | 12 | 8% / 92% | 17% | |
| Structural Biology | 1 | 12 | 8% / 92% | 8% | $72,025 |
| Chemical and Physical Biology | 1 | 11 | 73% / 27% | 9% | |
| Cell and Developmental Biology | 1 | 10 | 40% / 60% | 10% | |
| Biomolecular Science | 1 | 8 | 25% / 75% | 12% | |
| Mathematical and Computational Biology | 1 | 8 | 38% / 62% | 25% | |
| Microbiology and Molecular Biology | 1 | 8 | 25% / 75% | 12% | |
| Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology | 2 | 6 | 50% / 50% | 0% | |
| Bioinformatics and Computational Biology | 1 | 6 | 0% / 100% | 0% | |
| Genomics | 2 | 5 | 40% / 60% | 0% | |
| Chemistry and Biochemistry (CCS) | 1 | 5 | 40% / 60% | 0% | $70,317 |
| Population Biology | 1 | 1 | 0% / 100% | 0% |