Best universities for life sciences degrees in the US

By Joy.Hunter@tim…, 30 October, 2023

Top 10 universities in the US for life science degrees 2024

Scroll down for the full list of best universities in the US for life science degrees

US life sciences rank 2024	Life sciences rank 2024	University	State
1	1	Harvard University	Massachusetts
2	4	Stanford University	California
3	5	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Massachusetts
4	6	Yale University	Connecticut
5	7	Princeton University	New Jersey
6	8	Johns Hopkins University	Maryland
7	9	University of California, Berkeley	California
8	11	California Institute of Technology	California
9	14	Columbia University	New York
10	=15	Cornell University	New York

View the Times Higher Education's World University Rankings for Life Sciences 2025 here.

The life sciences cover a wide range of subjects including biology, zoology, agriculture and many others.

Due the multiple skills that students learn on a life sciences degree, graduates will be able to use their degree to enter a range of industries and jobs.

If you’re interested in a life sciences degree that offers flexibility and breadth, the US could be a good fit. You can choose to study across a range of courses in the life sciences and then home in on your interests in the third and fourth years.

Most veterinary medicine courses in the US are offered at the postgraduate level, and you will be expected to have completed an undergraduate degree already.

Famous US scientists include biologist Lynn Margulis, who transformed our understanding of evolution through her work on symbiosis, and Barbara McClintock, who was awarded a Nobel Prize in 1983 for her discovery of genetic transposition.

These are the best universities in the US for a life sciences degree.

Best universities in the world for life sciences degrees
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5. Princeton University

Princeton University follows a liberal arts curriculum, with students opting to study either a bachelor of arts or a bachelor of science. Students can choose to study across a range of these subjects and declare their major in their first or second year.

Undergraduate programmes within the life sciences discipline available at Princeton include molecular biology, ecology and evolutionary biology and environmental studies.

At a postgraduate level students can choose to undertake research in a range of subjects including molecular biology and cellular biochemistry.

Princeton University is also one of the world’s foremost research universities with connections to more than 40 Nobel laureates, 17 winners of the National Medal of Science and five recipients of the National Humanities Medal.

4. Yale University

Yale University was founded in 1701 and is the third oldest university in the United States.

Yale University in Connecticut is a member of the prestigiously known Ivy League

Students have the option to study a range of courses covering liberal arts and science. Once you have completed your first year, you can then declare your major for your second year. This provides students with the ability to try an array of subjects before they find the perfect fit.

Postgraduate students have the ability to join the school of the environment or the graduate school of arts and science.

3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Founded in 1861, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is an independent, co-educational, private research university based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Among its 89 Nobel winners is current MIT professor H. Robert Horvitz, known for his research analysing the role of genes in animal development, and how this could be useful in tackling human disease.

At MIT you can choose between eight interdisciplinary undergraduate life science programmes, including chemistry and biology, molecular biology, and humanities and science. Within these programmes you can take an array of classes in the life sciences, covering everything from human physiology to experimental biology and biostatistics.

There are also many options for a minor, and a range of graduate programmes specialising in the life sciences.

Scientific discoveries and technological advances accredited to MIT also include the first chemical synthesis of penicillin and the development of radar.

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2. Stanford University

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Stanford University was founded in 1885, and has one of the largest college campuses in the US, with 18 interdisciplinary research institutes and seven schools on a single site.

Stanford’s curriculum offers considerable flexibility through its liberal arts approach.

All undergraduate students are required to take classes in writing, ways of thinking and a foreign language, alongside a major or joint major.

Within this structure, you can take courses across a range of life sciences disciplines, including kinesiology, marine biology, human biology, physiology, ecology and many more. Undergraduate students pursuing a biology major are encouraged to undertake research, either by working in a research lab on campus or taking part in the Biology Summer Undergraduate Research Programme.

The coterminal master’s programme is designed for undergraduates who want to participate in graduate-level programmes and refine their research skills.

Stanford University is also home to many leading research institutes in the life sciences, including Bio-X, a pioneering interdisciplinary biosciences research centre, the Baxter Laboratory in Stem Cell Biology, and the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

1. Harvard University

Founded in 1636, Harvard University is the oldest university in the US and a member of the prestigious Ivy League.

At undergraduate level, the university offers a four-year liberal arts and sciences programme. You can study a range of courses and only need to declare your major or concentration in your second year.

Concentrations in the life sciences include biomedical engineering, human developmental and regenerative biology, human evolutionary biology, integrative biology and molecular and cellular biology among others.

The university also offers a master of science in a number of areas, including biostatistics, immunology and biophysics. The Harvard Integrated Life Sciences programme covers 14 different PhD programmes, which offers students the flexibility to conduct research in the areas they are most interested in.

Harvard University has one of the largest endowments of any university in the world and is well known for its generous financial aid programme.

Top universities in the US for the life sciences 2024

Click each institution to view its World University Rankings 2024 profile

US life sciences rank 2024	Life sciences rank 2024	University	State
1	1	Harvard University	Massachusetts
2	4	Stanford University	California
3	5	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Massachusetts
4	6	Yale University	Connecticut
5	7	Princeton University	New Jersey
6	8	Johns Hopkins University	Maryland
7	9	University of California, Berkeley	California
8	11	California Institute of Technology	California
9	14	Columbia University	New York
10	=15	Cornell University	New York
11	17	University of Pennsylvania	Pennsylvania
12	18	The University of Chicago	Illinois
13	21	University of Washington	Washington
14	23	University of California, Los Angeles	California
15	24	University of California, San Diego	California
16	25	Duke University	North Carolina
17	26	University of California, Davis	California
18	29	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	Michigan
19	37	Washington University in St Louis	Missouri
20	39	New York University	New York
21	=44	University of Wisconsin-Madison	Wisconsin
22	50	Northwestern University	Illinois
23	57	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	North Carolina
24	=65	University of Minnesota	Minnesota
25	67	Emory University	Georgia
26	70	University of Massachusetts	Massachusetts
=27	=72	Boston University	Massachusetts
=27	=72	University of Florida	Florida
=27	=72	Vanderbilt University	Tennessee
30	75	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	Illinois
31	80	University of Southern California	California
32	=84	Purdue University West Lafayette	Indiana
33	95	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh campus	Pennsylvania
34	96	Michigan State University	Michigan
=35	101–125	Brown University	Rhode Island
=35	101–125	University of California, Irvine	California
=35	101–125	University of California, Santa Barbara	California
=35	101–125	Dartmouth College	New Hampshire
=35	101–125	Texas A&M University	Texas
=35	101–125	University of Texas at Austin	Texas
=41	126–150	University of California, Riverside	California
=41	126–150	University of California, Santa Cruz	California
=41	126–150	Ohio State University (Main campus)	Ohio
=41	126–150	Penn State (Main campus)	Pennsylvania
=45	151–175	University of Colorado Boulder	Colorado
=45	151–175	Rice University	Texas
=47	176–200	University of Arizona	Arizona
=47	176–200	Arizona State University (Tempe)	Arizona
=47	176–200	University of Hawai’i at Mānoa	Hawai'i
=47	176–200	Iowa State University	Iowa
=47	176–200	University of Maryland, College Park	Maryland
=47	176–200	University of Rochester	New York
=47	176–200	University of Virginia (Main campus)	Virginia
=54	201–250	Case Western Reserve University	Ohio
=54	201–250	Colorado State University, Fort Collins	Colorado
=54	201–250	University of Georgia	Georgia
=54	201–250	University of Iowa	Iowa
=54	201–250	University of Miami	Florida
=54	201–250	North Carolina State University	North Carolina
=54	201–250	Northeastern University, US	Illinois
=54	201–250	Rutgers University – New Brunswick	New Jersey
=54	201–250	University of South Florida	Florida
=54	201–250	Stony Brook University	New York
=54	201–250	Temple University	Pennsylvania
=54	201–250	Tufts University	Massachusetts
=66	251–300	University of California, Merced	California
=66	251–300	University of Connecticut	Connecticut
=66	251–300	George Washington University	Washington DC
=66	251–300	University of Illinois Chicago	Illinois
=66	251–300	Indiana University	Indiana
=66	251–300	University of Notre Dame	Indiana
=66	251–300	University of Utah	Utah
=66	251–300	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	Virginia
=66	251–300	Washington State University	Washington
=75	301–400	University of Central Florida	Florida
=75	301–400	University of Delaware	Delaware
=75	301–400	Florida International University	Florida
=75	301–400	Florida State University	Florida
=75	301–400	Georgetown University	Washington DC
=75	301–400	University of Kansas	Kansas
=75	301–400	Kansas State University	Kansas
=75	301–400	University of Kentucky	Kentucky
=75	301–400	Mizzou - University of Missouri	Missouri
=75	301–400	University of Nebraska-Lincoln	Nebraska
=75	301–400	The University of Tennessee-Knoxville	Tennessee
=75	301–400	Virginia Commonwealth University	Virginia
=75	301–400	Wake Forest University	North Carolina
=88	401–500	University of Alaska Fairbanks	Alaska
=88	401–500	University of Arkansas	Arkansas
=88	401–500	Auburn University	Alabama
=88	401–500	Brandeis University	Massachusetts
=88	401–500	University at Buffalo	New York
=88	401–500	George Mason University	Virginia
=88	401–500	Georgia State University	Georgia
=88	401–500	Montana State University	Montana
=88	401–500	University of Nebraska Medical Center	Nebraska
=88	401–500	University of Oregon	Oregon
=88	401–500	Saint Louis University	Missouri
=88	401–500	University of Wyoming	Wyoming
=100	501–600	Louisiana State University	Louisiana
=100	501–600	University of Maryland, Baltimore County	Maryland
=100	501–600	San Diego State University	California
=100	501–600	University of South Carolina-Columbia	South Carolina
=104	601–800	Florida Atlantic University	Florida
=104	601–800	University of Houston	Texas
=104	601–800	University of Memphis	Tennessee
=104	601–800	Mississippi State University	Mississippi
=104	601–800	University of Nevada, Las Vegas	Nevada
=104	601–800	New Mexico State University (Main campus)	New Mexico
=104	601–800	Ohio University (Main campus)	Ohio
=104	601–800	Oklahoma State University	Oklahoma
=104	601–800	University of Rhode Island	Rhode Island
=104	601–800	Syracuse University	New York
=104	601–800	University of Texas at Arlington	Texas
=104	601–800	University of Texas at El Paso	Texas
=104	601–800	University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	Texas
=104	601–800	The University of Texas at San Antonio	Texas
=104	601–800	Texas State University	Texas
=104	601–800	Texas Tech University	Texas
=104	601–800	Wayne State University	Michigan
=104	601–800	William & Mary	Virginia
=122	801–1000	Central Michigan University	Michigan
=122	801–1000	Georgia Southern University	Georgia
=122	801–1000	Rowan University	New Jersey
=122	801–1000	University of South Dakota	South Dakota