10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$43,388at year 10Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
Public · COLLEGE PAYOFF
West Virginia University Institute of Technology
Beckley, WV · 19 field-and-degree records
Earnings reported for 17 · Federal debt reported for 17
Based onObserved earnings + college priceEstimate10-year payoff
Estimated 10-year payoff
Negative payoff
−$43,388 over 10 years
Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.
12.5 yrsTime to earn back the modeled cost
−20%Estimated return after 10 years
$62,396Observed earnings · year 5
Not reachedHighest annual price before payoff reaches $0
Start with your question
What do you want to understand?
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT → PAYBACK
Estimated payoff over ten years.
The scenario counts direct price and earnings forgone upfront, then applies the reported annual earnings premium.
FEDERAL COST DATA
Four ways to read college price.
Annual college-wide figures from the current College Scorecard release. Average net price covers full-time, first-time undergraduates receiving federal aid; public-college figures use in-state students. Program tuition and individual aid offers may differ.
PUBLISHED STUDENT BUDGET · 2024–25
What makes up the annual price?
Sticker-price components reported to IPEDS. Grants and scholarships are not subtracted here.
Living off campus: $12,566 housing and food allowance plus $6,080 in other expenses.
Do not confuse this with net price. Net price subtracts average grants and scholarships. DegreeVerdict continues to use the separately labeled average net price in its standard college ROI scenario.
PRICE SENSITIVITY
The price can change the verdict.
Hold observed earnings constant and see how the modeled ten-year payoff changes as annual price rises.
← Negative payoff$0Positive payoff →
$0Annual price−$6,040
$8,000Annual price−$38,040
$9,000Current college-wide context−$42,040
$16,000Annual price−$70,040
$24,000Annual price−$102,040
$32,000Annual price−$134,040
$40,000Annual price−$166,040
HOW STUDENTS ATTEND · 2023-24
Online study is a meaningful part of the student experience.
IPEDS enrollment counts show course delivery across the whole institution. They do not indicate whether a specific degree can be completed online.
Institution-level attendance context from IPEDS. Program delivery is reported separately on degree pages and in the program directory. These figures do not enter ROI.
College identity and local contextAccreditation, institution type, dual enrollment and state prices
COLLEGE AT A GLANCE
Institution details
Current federal characteristics describing the college, not the outcomes of a specific program.
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
- Main award level
- Bachelor’s degrees
- Campus setting
- City
- Admissions
- Selective admission
- Delivery
- Campus or mixed delivery
- Federal designation
- No special designation reported
DUAL-ENROLLMENT CONTEXT · 2024
514 high-school students took college courses.
IPEDS counts students enrolled in college credit while still in high school. A large dual-enrollment population can shape headline enrollment figures, especially at community colleges.
This is participation, not a college completion rate. It does not indicate how many students later enrolled after high school, earned a credential or entered the workforce.
STATE PRICE CONTEXT · 2024
Prices in West Virginia run 11% below the U.S. level.
BEA Regional Price Parities compare price levels across states. A value of 100 equals the national average.
What it costs and what graduates earn
$9,337Average net price / year
$18,907Cost of attendance
$22,500Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$239/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$62,396Median earnings · year 5 after completion
33.0%Completion rate
36.7%Admission rate
1,033Average SAT score
22ACT midpoint
981Student size
Debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. It does not include Parent PLUS or private loans. We show admissions scores only when a valid federal value is available.
What the numbers say about West Virginia University Institute of Technology
What does West Virginia University Institute of Technology cost?
West Virginia University Institute of Technology reports an average annual net price of $9,337 after grants and scholarships. This is an institution-wide average, not an individual aid offer.
What do West Virginia University Institute of Technology graduates earn?
The observed median earnings figure is $62,396 5 years after completion. It describes a federal cohort, not a guaranteed starting salary.
How much federal debt do West Virginia University Institute of Technology graduates have?
Completer borrowers report median cumulative federal student debt of $22,500. Parent PLUS and private loans are not included.
Is every degree at West Virginia University Institute of Technology worth the same?
No. The current release contains 19 field-and-degree records for West Virginia University Institute of Technology; 17 report year-4 earnings and 17 report federal debt. Outcomes can differ substantially by field and degree level.
DEBT AFTER COLLEGE
Are borrowers making progress?
Repayment progress, default and debt at exit describe different federal borrower cohorts. They are shown separately and do not change the ROI estimate.
Source: College Scorecard. Repayment progress is the share of borrowers who reduced principal by at least $1 at the stated measurement point. Debt covers federal student loans; Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded. Cohorts and reporting periods differ across measures.
Who studied here during the year
1,410Students enrolled at any point
1,410Undergraduate students
Not availableGraduate students
Unduplicated students enrolled at any point from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025. This full-year measure is different from a fall headcount and does not enter ROI.
More student and earnings detailPrice by family income, retention, equity and common industries
WHO PAYS, WHO FINISHES, WHO EARNS
Outcomes are not the same for every family.
These federal cohorts add context that a single college average can hide. Missing figures remain unreported rather than estimated.
Complete within 150% of the expected time
26% received a Pell Grant within eight yearsMedian Parent PLUS debt
3,209 parent borrowers in the reported cohortMedian federal student debt
53% making progress in repayment after three yearsStudent family incomeMedian earnings after 10 yearsObserved federal cohorts
Lower income$48,196Earnings are not a guarantee
Middle income$55,219Earnings are not a guarantee
Higher income$62,351Earnings are not a guarantee
Three-year repayment progress
Lower income46%
Middle income58%
Higher income67%
Undergraduate student composition
White77%
Black3%
Hispanic3%
Asian1%
Source: College Scorecard, June 2026 release. Parent PLUS debt belongs to parents; student-debt measures exclude Parent PLUS and private loans. Cohort definitions differ by measure.
INDEPENDENT CENSUS EARNINGS VIEW
How earnings develop by field
Privacy-protected Census employment records follow graduate cohorts one, five and ten years after completion. This source is kept separate from College Scorecard because its population and methodology differ.
Field and credentialYear 1Year 5Year 10
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 14
$67,118Year 1
$93,757Year 5
$110,220Year 10
Architectural Engineering Technologies/Technicians.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 15
$76,554Year 1
$87,772Year 5
$98,101Year 10
Architectural Engineering Technologies/Technicians.Associate degree · Broad federal field 15
$47,740Year 1
$74,515Year 5
$94,389Year 10
Accounting and Related Services.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 52
$37,316Year 1
$48,487Year 5
$76,015Year 10
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 51
$61,332Year 1
$59,848Year 5
$74,872Year 10
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 24
$54,757Year 1
$59,848Year 5
$62,818Year 10
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences.Associate degree · Broad federal field 51
$47,740Year 1
$49,539Year 5
$53,767Year 10
Accounting and Related Services.Associate degree · Broad federal field 52
Not availableYear 1
$40,342Year 5
$40,342Year 10
Median annual earnings in 2023 dollars. Each time point may use a different pooled graduation cohort. Coverage is limited to institutions participating in the Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes program.
NATIONAL CONTEXT
How this college compares
Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.
WHAT STANDS OUT
A faster read on this college
These summaries use every reportable field-and-credential record at this institution. They do not fill privacy-suppressed outcomes.
EARNINGS OVER TIME
What graduates earned in later years
$43,805Year 1
$64,952Year 4
$62,396Year 5
Each year can represent a different federal cohort, so the points do not track the same people over time.
Your choice of degree can change the payoff.
Graduate earnings differ by field and credential, even within the same college.
1Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering · Bachelor's Degree$99,5422Computer Engineering · Bachelor's Degree$99,0483Chemical Engineering · Bachelor's Degree$96,5034Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering · Bachelor's Degree$94,7505Mechanical Engineering · Bachelor's Degree$90,4616Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's Degree$83,7507Civil Engineering · Bachelor's Degree$82,1178Computer and Information Sciences, General · Bachelor's Degree$79,805Observed year-4 earnings · compare the same field and credential across colleges
Programs that stand out against the same-degree benchmark
This view rewards performance relative to the same field and credential, not simply majors that pay more everywhere.
1MathematicsBachelor's Degree · $77,144 reported+11%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt2Security Science and TechnologyBachelor's Degree · $62,455 reported+8%vs same-degree national median$24,324federal debt3Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesBachelor's Degree · $56,132 reported+6%vs same-degree national median$25,000federal debt4Psychology, GeneralBachelor's Degree · $51,263 reported+1%vs same-degree national median$23,328federal debt5Biology, GeneralBachelor's Degree · $57,486 reported+0%vs same-degree national median$23,090federal debt6Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject AreasBachelor's Degree · $51,403 reported+0%vs same-degree national median$25,242federal debt
Comparable colleges in WV
Currently operating public institutions with the closest combination of annual net price and observed year-5 earnings. Similarity is descriptive, not a quality ranking.
Keyser, WV
Potomac State College of West Virginia University
- Annual net price
- $9,197
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $62,396
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -20%
Bluefield State University
- Annual net price
- $13,684
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $62,433
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -26%
West Virginia University
- Annual net price
- $15,634
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $62,396
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -28%
Shepherd University
- Annual net price
- $11,363
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $54,289
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -59%
Compare fields and degree levels
Showing all 19 field-and-degree records in the current release.
| Major or field | Degree level | Earnings, year 4 | Federal debt | 2024–25 graduates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering | Bachelor's Degree | $99,542 | $22,500 | Not reported |
| Computer Engineering | Bachelor's Degree | $99,048 | $24,500 | Not reported |
| Chemical Engineering | Bachelor's Degree | $96,503 | $22,843 | Not reported |
| Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering | Bachelor's Degree | $94,750 | $27,242 | Not reported |
| Mechanical Engineering | Bachelor's Degree | $90,461 | $26,242 | Not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Bachelor's Degree | $83,750 | $26,000 | Not reported |
| Civil Engineering | Bachelor's Degree | $82,117 | $24,291 | Not reported |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General | Bachelor's Degree | $79,805 | Not available | Not reported |
| Mathematics | Bachelor's Degree | $77,144 | Not available | Not reported |
| Accounting and Related Services | Bachelor's Degree | $76,135 | $23,903 | Not reported |
| Business/Commerce, General | Bachelor's Degree | $65,372 | $26,432 | Not reported |
| Security Science and Technology | Bachelor's Degree | $62,455 | $24,324 | Not reported |
| Biology, General | Bachelor's Degree | $57,486 | $23,090 | Not reported |
| Political Science and Government | Bachelor's Degree | $56,969 | $23,250 | Not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | Bachelor's Degree | $56,132 | $25,000 | Not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas | Bachelor's Degree | $51,403 | $25,242 | Not reported |
| Psychology, General | Bachelor's Degree | $51,263 | $23,328 | Not reported |
| Chemistry | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $24,356 | Not reported |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $30,000 | Not reported |
Graduate counts come from IPEDS and group related majors into the same federal field. Missing earnings or debt values remain labeled as unavailable.
Earnings, price, completion and enrollment are observed federal measures. ROI, payoff and break-even are modeled scenarios built from those measures and fixed assumptions. College payoff is not the payoff of every degree at this school; use the program table for a more precise comparison.