Our graduates get jobs—good ones. Starting salaries vary. Those whose highest degree is a bachelor’s represented the largest group of survey
respondents in the 2024 IFT Compensation and Career Path Report, earning a median salary of $96,500. Salaries for those with advanced
degrees are higher.
You may work for a small company or a large corporation—or start your own business. You may work in a government laboratory or for a university. Our graduates work in Oregon as well as throughout the United States—even internationally. Some have jobs that keep them close to home, while others travel extensively.
You may be developing new foods or beverages, improving packaging or processing techniques, ensuring food safety, producing more convenient or nutritious foods, or any number of other exciting possibilities.
Whether you like to be around a lot of people or just a few—whether you enjoy working more with machines or people, whether you are interested in things at the cellular or molecular level, or dealing with issues at the corporate level, food science and fermentation science offer a wide variety of job settings, with plenty of upward and lateral mobility.