{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"EducationalOccupationalProgram","data_version":"1.0","generated_from":"2026-10-11","license":"Free to reuse with attribution: cite \"EducationGuide.com\" with a link to the page URL. Most figures are U.S. government data (public domain); loan default rates and athletics come from the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By 1.0, attribution required) and founding years from Wikidata (CC0).","url":"https://educationguide.com/colleges/university-of-houston-downtown/majors/biological-and-physical-sciences","ids":{"ipeds_unitid":225432,"cip4":"30.01","school_slug":"university-of-houston-downtown","major_slug":"biological-and-physical-sciences"},"school":{"name":"University of Houston-Downtown","city":"Houston","state":"TX","control":"Public","url":"https://educationguide.com/colleges/university-of-houston-downtown","data":"https://educationguide.com/data/colleges/university-of-houston-downtown.json"},"major":{"name":"Biological and Physical Sciences","area":"Science & Math","credential":"Bachelor's degree"},"outcomes":{"median_earnings_1yr":35952,"median_earnings_4yr":56995,"median_debt":25162,"debt_to_earnings_4yr":0.441,"year":{"earnings_1yr":"Treasury AY2018-19, AY2019-20 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2020, CY2021, inflation adjusted to 2022 dollars","earnings_4yr":"Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars","debt":"NSLDS pooled AY2018-19, AY2019-20 cohort"},"source":"College Scorecard field of study (graduates who received federal aid)"},"national":{"colleges_reporting":33,"median_earnings_4yr":63018,"median_debt":26000},"compared_with_same_major":{"calculated_by":"EducationGuide","state":null,"us":{"colleges_reporting":33,"median_earnings_4yr":63018,"difference":-6023},"note":"State and U.S. medians are the median of each covered college's graduates in this major (4 years after graduating); a state median is published when at least 3 colleges in the state report earnings."},"value":{"calculated_by":"EducationGuide","time_to_finish":{"average_years_among_graduates":4.75,"finished_in_4_years":0.1454,"finished_within_6_years":0.3376,"cohort":853,"entering_class":"Fall 2017","source":"IPEDS Graduation Rates (bachelor's-seeking cohort)"},"baseline":{"median_earnings_high_school_graduates":33516,"geography":"TX","ages":"25-34","years":"2020-2024","respondents":29337,"description":"high school graduates ages 25-34 in TX (Census ACS 2020-2024)","source":"U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year PUMS (microdata): ages 25-34, high school diploma or GED as highest level, not enrolled, earnings > 0; EducationGuide calculation"},"earnings_used":56995,"earnings_basis":"median earnings of this major's graduates 4 years after graduating (College Scorecard field of study); school-wide net price","by_family_income":{"0-30k":{"net_price_per_year":9439,"cost_to_finish":44835,"payback_years":1.9,"payback_status":"ok","payback_text":"1.9 years"},"30-48k":{"net_price_per_year":10048,"cost_to_finish":47728,"payback_years":2,"payback_status":"ok","payback_text":"2.0 years"},"48-75k":{"net_price_per_year":11247,"cost_to_finish":53423,"payback_years":2.3,"payback_status":"ok","payback_text":"2.3 years"},"75-110k":{"net_price_per_year":15488,"cost_to_finish":73568,"payback_years":3.1,"payback_status":"ok","payback_text":"3.1 years"},"110k+":{"net_price_per_year":19380,"cost_to_finish":92055,"payback_years":3.9,"payback_status":"ok","payback_text":"3.9 years"}},"method":"cost_to_finish = max(0, net price per year) x average years graduates took; payback_years = cost_to_finish / (earnings_used - baseline), one decimal; status over_cap above 20 years, no_premium when earnings do not exceed the baseline. 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