Skip to main content

Cheapest Biological and Biomedical Sciences Colleges in Pennsylvania

Ranked by lowest net price after financial aid. See our methodology.

Swarthmore College delivers an unusual combination for biological sciences students: a 6.93% acceptance rate paired with an $18,686 net price that beats schools with far higher admission rates. This creates a rare opportunity in Pennsylvania, where major pharmaceutical employers like GSK and Johnson & Johnson drive strong demand for biological sciences graduates. The state's six most affordable programs span from Mount Aloysius College's 85.95% acceptance rate to University of Pennsylvania's elite 96.80% graduation rate, showing that low net costs don't always correlate with accessibility.
6
Programs
$18,686 – $31,671
Net Price Range
75.6%
Avg. Graduation Rate

6 Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other Programs

Program rankings
# School Net Price In-State Tuition Graduation Rate Acceptance Rate
1 $18,686 $62,412 94.1% 6.9%
2 $20,748 $26,156 55.6% 86.0%
3 $25,885 $37,420 56.0% 63.2%
4 $28,329 $42,810 58.5% 59.0%
5 $31,229 $66,104 96.8% 6.5%
6 $31,671 $63,829 92.5% 11.3%

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes Swarthmore College such an outlier in biological sciences affordability?

Swarthmore combines an extremely selective 6.93% acceptance rate with the lowest net price at $18,686 among Pennsylvania's most affordable biological sciences programs. The college's substantial endowment enables generous financial aid packages that bring costs below many less selective institutions.

How do graduation rates vary among Pennsylvania's most affordable biological sciences programs?

Graduation rates range dramatically from 55.60% at Mount Aloysius College to 96.80% at University of Pennsylvania. The three most expensive programs on this list also have the highest graduation rates, all exceeding 92%, while the three cheapest show rates between 55% and 58%.

Does net price reflect admission difficulty for these biological sciences programs?

Not necessarily. Swarthmore has the lowest net price at $18,686 despite accepting fewer than 7% of applicants, while Mount Aloysius costs just $2,062 more but accepts 85.95% of students. The most expensive program, Carnegie Mellon at $31,671, actually accepts more students than Penn or Swarthmore.

More Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other Rankings

Best Value Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other in Pennsylvania Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other Under $20,000 in Pennsylvania

Related

All Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other Programs Best Colleges in Pennsylvania Best Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other in Pennsylvania

Net price reflects the average cost after grants and scholarships for first-time, full-time students. See our methodology for details.