Major Rankings

Best Colleges for Health and Physical Education/Fitness

Ranked by graduate earnings. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard — updated 2026.

Programs tracked: 529

Avg grad salary: $42,556

Total graduates: 36,265

Top Colleges for Health and Physical Education/Fitness — Ranked by Graduate Earnings

Showing schools with reported earnings data. Earnings reflect median graduate salary 4 years after graduation (or 1 year where 4-year data is unavailable).

#	School	Median Salary (4yr)	Starting Salary (1yr)	Graduates	Median Debt	Admit Rate
1	Pepperdine University Malibu, CA	$72,554	$34,388	32	$23,336	49.9%
2	Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX	$70,754	$45,519	47	$20,475	61.2%
3	University of Delaware Newark, DE	$69,499	$26,555	156	$25,336	65.1%
4	University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI	$68,944	$43,506	205	$19,135	17.9%
5	Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC	$68,083	$21,192	36	$23,250	21.6%
6	Simmons University Boston, MA	$67,028	$48,876	22	$27,000	66.0%
7	University of New England Biddeford, ME	$66,824	$31,749	41	$27,000	88.8%
8	University of Wisconsin-Parkside Kenosha, WI	$62,261	$30,655	29	$25,349	72.6%
9	Rice University Houston, TX	$62,105	$51,110	46	$10,000	7.9%
10	Citadel Military College of South Carolina Charleston, SC	$62,053	$43,727	36	$22,250	98.1%
11	NC State Raleigh, NC	$61,801	$33,717	88	$21,500	39.9%
12	Carroll University Waukesha, WI	$60,982	$33,333	34	$27,000	58.4%
13	UIUC Champaign, IL	$60,121	$31,187	99	$21,425	43.7%
14	Rutgers University New Brunswick, NJ	$59,290	$28,820	272	$26,000	65.3%
15	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	$59,233	$34,821	149	$27,000	41.7%
16	University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst, MA	$59,208	$36,419	99	$26,227	57.8%
17	University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI	$58,500	$29,866	50	$26,000	43.4%
18	Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ	$58,423	$39,333	31	$24,125	78.9%
19	Texas A&M University College Station, TX	$58,417	$37,044	331	$20,414	63.2%
20	Illinois State University Normal, IL	$58,378	$30,051	40	$21,250	89.0%
21	Alma College Alma, MI	$58,303	$25,445	16	$27,000	65.7%
22	University of Maryland College Park, MD	$58,292	$31,403	147	$23,138	44.8%
23	William & Mary Williamsburg, VA	$58,114	$27,114	57	$21,413	32.7%
24	Roanoke College Salem, VA	$58,080	$27,304	40	$27,000	80.1%
25	University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA	$57,937	$26,496	37	$24,905	50.8%
26	University of Wyoming Laramie, WY	$57,692	$31,326	36	$22,101	97.4%
27	Endicott College Beverly, MA	$57,662	$30,338	92	$27,000	72.3%
28	University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	$57,522	$33,891	109	$22,125	88.2%
29	UT Austin Austin, TX	$57,339	$35,583	119	$22,361	29.1%
30	Washington State University Pullman, WA	$57,273	$30,815	119	$20,981	85.4%
31	University of Minnesota-Duluth Duluth, MN	$56,819	$33,055	38	$23,629	81.8%
32	James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA	$56,742	$35,955	188	$21,500	76.3%
33	Utah Valley University Orem, UT	$56,514	$31,905	89	$15,252	N/A
34	CUNY Brooklyn College Brooklyn, NY	$56,437	$25,101	57	$13,629	53.7%
35	University of Massachusetts-Boston Boston, MA	$56,255	$37,703	139	$26,808	83.0%
36	Marshall University Huntington, WV	$55,966	$20,682	37	$24,000	96.5%
37	Elon University Elon, NC	$55,945	$21,440	35	$23,250	67.3%
38	University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC	$55,909	$40,702	213	$25,000	61.5%
39	Abilene Christian University Abilene, TX	$55,898	$27,898	33	$21,948	63.9%
40	Abilene Christian University-Undergraduate Online Addison, TX	$55,898	$27,898	33	$21,948	100.0%
41	University of Evansville Evansville, IN	$55,141	$34,809	23	$24,031	77.6%
42	University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Norman, OK	$54,694	$30,903	52	$21,657	76.5%
43	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA	$54,654	$31,956	115	$23,000	74.0%
44	University of Georgia Athens, GA	$54,482	$33,108	165	$22,250	37.2%
45	University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN	$54,452	$36,050	98	$23,000	77.0%
46	Immaculata University Immaculata, PA	$54,324	$26,236	29	$27,000	78.5%
47	University of Dayton Dayton, OH	$54,248	$38,011	34	$26,000	61.7%
48	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	$53,919	$27,376	35	$27,672	77.5%
49	Iowa State University Ames, IA	$53,773	$36,492	192	$25,425	89.1%
50	University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL	$53,754	$28,874	139	$16,750	78.5%
51	Harding University Searcy, AR	$53,747	$29,178	33	$26,054	100.0%
52	University of Northwestern-St Paul Saint Paul, MN	$53,550	$30,176	20	$23,562	91.9%
53	Purdue University West Lafayette, IN	$53,337	$26,687	33	$20,500	50.3%
54	Texas Woman's University Denton, TX	$53,255	$32,429	127	$20,167	95.0%
55	Springfield College Springfield, MA	$53,187	$34,191	121	$27,000	70.2%
56	Indiana University Bloomington, IN	$53,142	$35,873	246	$19,657	80.4%
57	Michigan State East Lansing, MI	$52,910	$28,045	258	$26,000	83.9%
58	Western Illinois University Macomb, IL	$52,779	$28,315	44	$31,000	75.0%
59	Robert Morris University Moon Township, PA	$52,507	$34,433	36	$27,000	90.6%
60	Emory University Atlanta, GA	$52,404	$37,974	59	$19,883	11.1%

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Earnings are median among graduates who received federal financial aid.

Choosing the Best Health and Physical Education/Fitness Program

Graduate Earnings

Median salary 4 years post-graduation measures the long-term ROI of a program. Higher earnings with lower debt means better financial outcomes.

Program Size

Graduate count signals program maturity. Larger programs often have stronger alumni networks and more job placement resources.

Debt-to-Earnings Ratio

Compare median debt against starting salary. A ratio below 1x means most graduates can repay loans within a year of earnings.

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