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Career outcomes brief

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# West Virginia University Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

[Overview](/school/west-virginia-university/)[Cost & aid](/school/west-virginia-university/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/west-virginia-university/admissions/)[Majors](/school/west-virginia-university/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/west-virginia-university/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do West Virginia University graduates earn?

The reported median is $64,952 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is \-$658 per year.

West Virginia University's strongest pillar is mobility, while its return figures sit close to the model's expected level. Azimuth places the return pillar in the 69th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $731 more than the model expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level. [Earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/), the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sits in the 58th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,118. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $8,387.

Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $64,952 four years after completion, in the 66th percentile. That is $658 below the $65,610 peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Near-expected model earnings and below-peer median earnings point to a mixed return picture.

The university’s earnings range depends heavily on program choice: the downside scenario is $50,277 and the upside scenario is $91,063 four years after completion. They are earnings scenarios built from the program mix, not observed groups.

At the program level, median earnings four years after completion are $109,619 in Mining and Mineral Engineering, $99,542 in Electrical Engineering, and $99,180 in Industrial Engineering. These program medians give the modeled range a more specific field-by-field reading.

Further study affects how to read the four-year earnings figure: an estimated 29.2% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. Those who continue studying are outside the earnings measure, which covers completers who are working and not enrolled.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$64,952

**Rank for difference from expectations**
58th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**West Virginia University reported median**
$64,952

**Peer schools comparable schools · $658 above West Virginia University**
$65,610

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $731 below West Virginia University**
$64,221

School and program earnings use pooled 2017–18 and 2018–19 completion cohorts, measured in 2022 and 2023 and expressed in 2024 dollars. [How the model works](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

## How many West Virginia University students return and finish their degrees?

First-time, full-time bachelor’s cohorts · CDS 2024-25

**Completed within six years**
63.9%

**Pell recipients completed within six years**
52.2%

Source: West Virginia University Common Data Set 2024-25, B4–B11 six-year completion.

## How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $50,277 to $91,063, around the reported median of $64,952. Compare the lower scenario with [West Virginia University borrowing and monthly payments](/school/west-virginia-university/cost/) to see how a smaller income could change your plan.

Modeled from the school’s program mix; not salary percentiles or a forecast for one graduate.

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

**Lower estimate**
$50,277

**Median · reported**
$64,952

**Higher estimate**
$91,063

Downside shows a lower-earning scenario based on the college’s mix of programs; upside shows a higher-earning scenario. Typical is the school’s reported median four years after completion. These are planning scenarios, not a forecast of your salary or percentiles of individual graduates.

[Why the downside matters](/analysis/median-roi-hides-a-harsh-reality/) explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. [Read about the move to four-year earnings](/analysis/college-scorecard-2026-4-year-vs-10-year-earnings-2-2/).

## Do West Virginia University graduates earn more than expected?

Azimuth models what we would expect graduates to earn based on who the college enrolls, how selective it is and its local economy. The difference between that expectation and reported earnings is what Azimuth calls [value added](/methodology/#value-added).

West Virginia University graduates’ reported earnings are $731 above that expectation, the 58th percentile for this measure. Unlike a peer comparison, it adjusts for who enrolls.

The breakdown separates the contribution attributed to observed factors from the remaining difference. Neither component establishes how much attending West Virginia University caused a student to earn. [Read how expected earnings are estimated](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

What explains value-added earnings?

**Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.**
+$9,118

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
\-$8,387

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
+$731

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

## Which fields at West Virginia University report the highest earnings?

At West Virginia University, median earnings four years after completion vary markedly across the fields shown here. Industrial Engineering recorded $99,180 and 105 degrees awarded; [Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) it #26 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences had median earnings of $70,165 across 167 degrees awarded, with an Azimuth national rank of #8 among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. Nursing posted $83,750 with 223 degrees awarded; Azimuth places it #202 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

At a more moderate earnings level, Kinesiology and Physical Education recorded $57,359 and 200 degrees awarded, ranking #79 nationally by Azimuth among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. The figures show distinct earnings levels even among programs with substantial numbers of degrees awarded.

The program picture spans 43 nationally ranked bachelor’s fields, with markedly different earnings across them. [Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy #1 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions; it awarded 26 degrees, and completers had median earnings of $75,022 four years after completion.

Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences ranks #8 nationally in Azimuth among nonprofit four-year institutions, with 167 degrees awarded and median earnings of $70,165 four years after completion. Azimuth ranks Security Science and Technology #8 nationally; it awarded 69 degrees and had median earnings of $62,455 four years after completion.

Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management ranks #11 nationally, with 54 degrees awarded and $45,348 in median earnings four years after completion.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Mining and Mineral Engineering**
$109,619

**Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering**
$99,542

**Industrial Engineering**
$99,180

**Computer Engineering**
$99,048

**Computer Science**
$98,277

**Chemical Engineering**
$96,503

**Management Information Systems and Services**
$95,324

**Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering**
$94,750

[Explore West Virginia University program cohorts and field ranks](/school/west-virginia-university/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Program mix yields earnings scenarios of $50,277 on the downside, $64,952 in a typical case, and $91,063 on the upside. Mining and Mineral Engineering anchors the high end at $109,619 four years after completion, while Kinesiology and Physical Education is the lowest-earning large program at $57,359. The spread shows that field choice shapes the earnings range.

The central earnings picture at West Virginia University is close to what the model anticipates for similar students. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $64,952 four years after completion.

Azimuth places the school's earnings in the 66th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 5,591 completers. Graduates earn about $731 more than the model expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level.

Earnings scenarios from the program mix put typical earnings at $64,952, with a downside scenario of $50,277 and an upside scenario of $91,063. An estimated 29.2% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The observed median and modeled typical scenario give a consistent central picture.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).