W
#6 Best Public Universities in Kentucky

WKU Salaries

Bowling Green, Kentucky

 0 Reviews

Salaries by Major at Western Kentucky University

How much money do Western Kentucky University graduates make and which majors earn the most upon graduating? Six years after enrolling, alumni who are working have average earnings of $30,000 per year. After ten years, graduates earn $37,100 on average.

In terms of specific areas of study, the following is a ranking of degree programs by the median first-year starting salaries for WKU graduates.

The undergraduate degree which initially pays the highest is Mechanical Engineering with a median starting salary of $60,000 followed by Construction Engineering Technologies paying $57,600 and Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing graduates who have a median starting income of $56,300 .

Looking at post-graduate and doctorate students, those completing the Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degree) program rank first with a median initial income of $85,200 followed by Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degree) at $74,400 and Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) who earn $55,000 .

Note about salary data: First year earnings data are aggregated by the US Department of Education and analyzes IRS reported income for Western Kentucky University graduates who received federal financial aid in the form of grants or loans. Not all graduates or fields of study are represented as data for some degree programs are omitted for privacy purposes.

Median first-year earnings for Western Kentucky University graduates ranked by degree type and major
Major Earnings
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degree) $85,200
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degree) $74,400
Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) $60,000
Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor’s Degree) $57,600
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor’s Degree) $56,300
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) $55,000
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor’s Degree) $54,900
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degree) $51,800
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degree) $50,400
Civil Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) $50,100
Computer and Information Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) $45,200
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions (Bachelor’s Degree) $43,900
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) $43,300
Library Science and Administration (Master's Degree) $42,400
Parks, Recreation and Leisure Facilities Management (Master's Degree) $41,400
Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor’s Degree) $41,200
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degree) $40,000
Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degree) $39,900
Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor’s Degree) $38,000
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology (Master's Degree) $37,700
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor’s Degree) $37,500
Psychology (Master's Degree) $36,800
Social Work (Master's Degree) $36,200
Marketing (Bachelor’s Degree) $34,900
Health and Medical Administrative Services (Bachelor’s Degree) $34,300
Mathematics (Bachelor’s Degree) $32,500
Social Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) $32,400
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor’s Degree) $32,200
Public Health (Bachelor’s Degree) $32,200
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor’s Degree) $32,100
Social Work (Bachelor’s Degree) $32,100
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor’s Degree) $31,600
Agriculture (Bachelor’s Degree) $31,500
Political Science and Government (Bachelor’s Degree) $31,300
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor’s Degree) $30,300
Sociology (Bachelor’s Degree) $30,200
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) $30,100
Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) $29,400
History (Bachelor’s Degree) $29,200
Journalism (Bachelor’s Degree) $28,700
Parks, Recreation and Leisure Facilities Management (Bachelor’s Degree) $27,300
Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) $26,600
Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor’s Degree) $26,500
Hospitality Administration/Management (Bachelor’s Degree) $26,300
Criminology (Bachelor’s Degree) $25,400
Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities (Bachelor’s Degree) $25,100
Music (Bachelor’s Degree) $24,400
Psychology (Bachelor’s Degree) $23,900
English Language and Literature (Bachelor’s Degree) $23,700
Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) $23,300
Radio, Television, and Digital Communication (Bachelor’s Degree) $22,000
Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degree) $18,100

Primary data source, U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?id=157951 IPEDS survey and College Scorecard data for Western Kentucky University.