---
title: Western Kentucky University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Bowling Green, KY
control: Public
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY · Public · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $43,889 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $27,981 – $62,583 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $14,702 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $9,343 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 56% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $24,188 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 64% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.34× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $15,889 | derived |

**56% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $14,702 (≈ 34% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $18,221 to $89,539 across 63 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Doctoral Degree | $89,539 | $55,511 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Master's Degree | $76,015 | not reported |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Doctoral Degree | $71,960 | $97,736 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $65,193 | $26,688 |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $62,199 | not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $56,172 | $22,647 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Associate's Degree | $53,729 | $11,395 |
| Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians. | Bachelor's Degree | $53,704 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $52,607 | $25,269 |
| Civil Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $50,759 | $21,200 |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $50,723 | $18,836 |
| Construction Engineering Technology/Technician. | Bachelor's Degree | $49,992 | $26,502 |
| Psychology, General. | Master's Degree | $47,548 | not reported |
| Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,701 | $21,000 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Master's Degree | $45,606 | $42,706 |
| Library Science and Administration. | Master's Degree | $43,683 | $17,684 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,030 | $21,500 |
| Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities Management. | Master's Degree | $42,006 | $41,000 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Master's Degree | $40,939 | $25,360 |
| Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. | Master's Degree | $40,761 | $41,000 |
| Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,663 | not reported |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Master's Degree | $40,164 | $21,593 |
| Architectural Sciences and Technology. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,150 | $23,750 |
| Management Information Systems and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,708 | not reported |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,676 | $19,500 |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,657 | $22,772 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Master's Degree | $39,477 | $30,207 |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,467 | $21,500 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,143 | $20,820 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $38,123 | not reported |
| Social Work. | Master's Degree | $37,187 | $24,648 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $35,676 | $27,000 |
| Mathematics. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,675 | not reported |
| Public Health. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,104 | $22,086 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,830 | $22,168 |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,727 | $26,000 |
| Agriculture, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,377 | $22,500 |
| Social Work. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,481 | $21,827 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,267 | $25,000 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,197 | $26,000 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,770 | $23,000 |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,337 | $19,500 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,110 | $20,500 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,036 | $26,887 |
| Social Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $28,785 | not reported |
| Journalism. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,337 | $23,250 |
| Criminology. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,074 | $25,815 |
| Apparel and Textiles. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,816 | $27,000 |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,618 | $26,000 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,359 | $22,870 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,462 | $21,125 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,281 | not reported |
| Hospitality Administration/Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,076 | $23,527 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Associate's Degree | $25,040 | $15,303 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,666 | $22,337 |
| Chemistry. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,565 | not reported |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,392 | $27,000 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $22,896 | $20,822 |
| English Language and Literature, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $20,734 | $20,500 |
| Anthropology. | Bachelor's Degree | $20,144 | not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $19,816 | $21,500 |
| Music. | Bachelor's Degree | $19,447 | $25,000 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $18,221 | $27,044 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Western Kentucky University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?157951

---

Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/western-kentucky-university-ky.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`