Health and Physical Education/Fitness at Glenville State University

Starting at $25,138 puts Glenville State's physical education graduates in the bottom 10% nationally—but here's the twist: that's actually middle-of-the-pack for West Virginia, where this field pays substantially less than the national norm. The state's top program, American Public University System, pays nearly double, but most West Virginia schools cluster in the $24,000-$30,000 range. For context, these earnings are low enough that someone making minimum wage full-time would earn nearly as much.

The debt load of $29,072 compounds the challenge. While this exceeds both state and national medians for the program, graduates are taking on more than a full year's salary in loans—a troublesome ratio for any career, but especially one where raises may be limited by public school salary schedules. The small sample size (under 30 graduates) means a few outliers could skew these numbers, but the pattern aligns with what physical education typically pays in West Virginia's economy.

If your child is passionate about coaching or teaching PE specifically in West Virginia, understand they're looking at a difficult financial start regardless of which in-state school they choose. The question becomes whether Glenville's lower cost of attendance (suggested by the 42% Pell grant population) offsets the modest earnings, or whether targeting Fairmont State or WVU might offer better initial salary prospects worth pursuing.