Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods at Oral Roberts University

Oral Roberts graduates start strong in teaching—earning $46,531 in their first year puts them above 85% of teacher education programs nationwide. But here's the puzzle: by year four, those earnings drop to $42,259. While earning declines in teaching aren't unusual (they often reflect career changes or part-time work as teachers start families), the 9% decrease here is notable, especially when the small sample size (under 30 graduates) means a few career switchers could skew the picture significantly.

Within Oklahoma's competitive teacher preparation landscape, ORU lands solidly in the middle—ranking 60th percentile statewide and trailing programs like Oklahoma Christian ($47,801) and UCO ($45,974). The $26,500 debt load sits slightly above Oklahoma's typical $24,750 for education majors, though it's manageable with a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.57. For context, teacher education programs nationally carry a median debt of $26,000, so this is fairly standard.

The small sample size demands caution here. If your child is committed to teaching in Oklahoma and values ORU's faith-based environment, the first-year earnings are genuinely competitive. Just recognize that other in-state options deliver similar or better outcomes with potentially less debt, and the earnings trajectory raises questions that merit a direct conversation with the education department about graduate outcomes.