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Natural Sciences at Dominican University

River Forest, IL · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's Degree
33 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
37
Optimistic
33
Base Case
29
Pessimistic
Earnings $27,081/yr (-14% vs median)
AI Risk Moderate (24% exposed)
Job Market Medium (24,400 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Natural Sciences graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption		 Base Case
Gradual AI		 Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $866K $437K $239K
Earnings Multiple 5.7x 2.9x 1.6x
Viable Career Paths 4 of 4 4 of 4 4 of 4
DegreeWorth Score 37 33 29

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition
$151,376
Median Debt at Graduation
$25,109
11.1 months of Year 1 earnings
Reported Earnings (5 Year)
$64,442
138% growth from Year 1

Career Paths

Where Natural Sciences graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 24,400 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Natural sciences managers $161,180 8,500 +3.7% 50%
Physical scientists, all other $117,960 2,000 +0.6% 46%
Life scientists, all other $87,800 400 +3.7% 0%
Postsecondary teachers, all other $78,490 13,500 +1.8% 0%

Compare & Explore

Natural Sciences at Other Schools

Harvard University ($69,242) Temple University ($45,910) California State University-Los Angeles ($39,870) Loyola Marymount University ($33,647) Christian Brothers University ($33,145) Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Metro ($30,631) Kansas State University ($28,107) Harrisburg University of Science and Technology ($22,252)

Other Majors at Dominican University

Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing ($70,530) Accounting and Related Services ($57,187) Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods ($45,924) Business Administration, Management and Operations ($45,045) Criminology ($31,758) Sociology ($31,657) Psychology, General ($30,846) Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations ($29,907)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Natural Sciences at Dominican University?
This program scores 33/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 37 (optimistic) to 29 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Natural Sciences career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Natural Sciences graduates retain 4 of 4 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $239,359 (pessimistic) to $865,534 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Natural Sciences graduates?
The career paths mapped to Natural Sciences have roughly 24,400 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a medium job market.
Is Natural Sciences at Dominican University worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 2.9x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 1.6x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.