Is a Food Science and Technology degree worth it?
Across 28 schools, graduates of Food Science and Technology earn a median $70,437 five years out on $20,945 of debt — most often working as Food Batchmakers. Every figure is a real, published federal number.
Median 5-yr pay
$70,437
Median debt
$20,945
Years to pay off
3.3
at 10% of pay
AI task exposure
17%
GPT-4-era overlap
10-yr job growth
+4.2%
BLS 2024–2034
Gender pay gap
-2.5%
$68,732 vs $70,436
Net price
$17,552/yr
Debt-test failures
0%
of programs
'Real' premium
−$3,185
vs avg, adjusted
See where this degree leads, who's hiring, and whether the pay covers the rent.
Explore Food Science and Technology in full →Data: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, O*NET, AI-exposure measures (Eloundou/AIOE), Zillow. Earnings reflect federally-aided graduates; see the full story for methodology and limitations.