Microbiology is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #224 most popular degree program in the country. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.
In 2024, College Factual analyzed 84 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Microbiology Schools ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 2,911 degrees in microbiology to qualified students.
The microbiology program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Microbiology rankings. We derive our Best Overall Microbiology School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Microbiology Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.
More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.
To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you.
Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Best Schools for Microbiology in the United States
If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the microbiology degrees they offer, see the list below. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a good choice for students interested in a degree in microbiology. UW Seattle is a fairly large public university located in the city of Seattle. A Best Colleges rank of #37 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW Seattle is a great university overall.
There were roughly 83 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent year we have data available.
It is hard to beat University of Chicago if you wish to pursue a degree in microbiology. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UChicago is a great university overall.
There were about 4 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent year we have data available.
It is hard to beat University of California - Berkeley if you wish to pursue a degree in microbiology. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.
There were approximately 39 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent year we have data available.
University of Wisconsin - Madison is a great decision for students interested in a degree in microbiology. UW - Madison is a fairly large public university located in the city of Madison. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.
There were approximately 105 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent year we have data available.
UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Davis. This university ranks 13th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 78 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent data year.
UMass Amherst is a very large public university located in the large suburb of Amherst. This university ranks 11th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Massachusetts.
There were about 80 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at UMass Amherst in the most recent data year.
Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #22 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Cornell is a great university overall.
There were about 5 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at Cornell in the most recent year we have data available.
Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Columbia is a great university overall.
There were roughly 11 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent year we have data available.
Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #19 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Vanderbilt is a great university overall.
There were about 6 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at Vanderbilt in the most recent year we have data available.
Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.
There were about 47 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent data year.
Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 3rd out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.
There were approximately 48 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at NC State in the most recent data year.
Michigan State is a fairly large public university located in the city of East Lansing. This university ranks 2nd out of 57 colleges for overall quality in the state of Michigan.
There were approximately 67 microbiology students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent data year.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
college factual
The microbiology program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Microbiology rankings. We derive our Best Overall Microbiology School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.
