The living world — from cells to ecosystems — is what you teach and research, guiding college students through biology while pursuing questions of your own. Where life science gets taught and explored.
The role splits across lecturing, running labs, advising, and your own research, all on the academic calendar. You move between classroom, lab, and writing grants and papers. Research and teaching constantly compete for your hours, and the grant-and-publish cycle runs quietly underneath everything, especially before tenure.
How much you teach versus research depends heavily on the institution — a research university and a teaching college are different jobs. The path to tenure is long and competitive, funding shapes what you can pursue, and keeping intro students engaged is its own skill. The pay rarely matches the training.
It tends to suit people who are curious, rigorous, and genuinely energized by teaching. If you'd rather do pure research or want fast results, the teaching load and slow timelines can wear. But if the moment a concept lands for a student keeps you going, the work tends to be deeply rewarding.
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Where this role sits in the broader career landscape — and where it can take you.
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Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
The living world — from cells to ecosystems — is what you teach and research, guiding college students through biology while pursuing questions of your own. Where life science gets taught and explored.
Median pay for a Biology Professor is about $83K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $51K to $170K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Core skills for this role include Speaking, Learning Strategies, Instructing, Reading Comprehension, and Active Learning.
Most people in this role hold a professional degree.
Employment in this field is projected to grow about 7.3% through 2034, with roughly 53,250 people working in it today (BLS).
Closely related roles include Biology Teacher, Life Sciences Teacher, and Science Professor.
Your job belongs to your employer.
Your career belongs to you.