Psychology at Concord University

This program's small sample size makes drawing definitive conclusions difficult, but the available data points to significant financial challenges. Concord's psychology graduates earn just $20,993 one year after graduation—less than half the national median of $31,482 and roughly $8,000 below West Virginia's state median. Even within West Virginia, where psychology earnings trail national averages, this program ranks in just the 25th percentile. To put it bluntly: three-quarters of psychology programs in the state produce better initial outcomes.

The debt burden compounds the problem. At $15,648, graduates owe relatively little in absolute terms (the national median is $25,500), yet this represents 75% of their first-year income—a ratio that typically signals repayment struggles. The strong earnings growth to $32,751 by year four is encouraging and suggests graduates eventually find better footing, but those early years matter enormously for loan repayment and financial stability.

With Concord's 90% admission rate and nearly half of students on Pell grants, this serves an access mission for first-generation and lower-income West Virginians. That's valuable. But parents should understand their child would likely be starting $10,000+ behind peers at Marshall, Shepherd, or American Public University System—schools charging similar tuition. If psychology is the goal, other in-state options appear to offer meaningfully better returns on investment.