Health and Physical Education/Fitness at Bethel University

Bethel's Health and Physical Education program beats both Tennessee and national medians for first-year earnings, placing in the 60th percentile statewide—though you should know these figures come from a very small graduating class. At just under $32,000, graduates earn about $3,500 more than the typical Tennessee grad in this field, putting them within striking distance of larger programs like Austin Peay State and not far behind Tennessee Tech's $33,170.

The debt picture looks particularly favorable: $29,677 sits in the 5th percentile nationally for borrowing, meaning 95% of comparable programs saddle graduates with more debt. That translates to a debt-to-earnings ratio under 1.0, which is manageable for a first-year teaching or coaching salary. Many Bethel students come from lower-income backgrounds (31% receive Pell grants), so this relatively modest debt load matters.

The critical caveat is sample size. With fewer than 30 graduates reporting, a few outliers could skew the picture considerably. These numbers might look quite different with a larger cohort. That said, if your child is drawn to Tennessee's rural McKenzie campus and plans to teach or coach in the region, the combination of competitive starting pay and below-average debt presents a reasonable launchpad—just understand you're making this decision with limited data points.