How much debt do Piedmont University teacher education graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $30,026, which ranks 19th lowest of 23 teacher education bachelor's programs in Georgia. That works out to about $318 a month over 10 years.

Is a teacher education degree from Piedmont University worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 72% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 61%. Compare the cost with other Georgia programs before deciding.

Piedmont University Teacher Education (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Piedmont University teacher education graduates stay in Georgia?

Most do. 95% (53 of 56) were working in Georgia one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods
Private nonprofit university
Demorest, GA
About 31 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Piedmont University teacher education graduates earn about what teacher education graduates earn nationally, $41,663 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $30,026 in federal loans, more than at 90% of teacher education programs in the country. Several Georgia programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$41,66347th percentile of 655 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$46,08611% more than year one

Median federal debt$30,02619th lowest of 23 Georgia programs

Debt-to-earnings72%Georgia median 60%, national 61%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Georgia and national columns are the medians across all teacher education bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Piedmont University	Georgia	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$41,663	$41,634	$41,955
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$46,086	$48,347	$46,679
Median federal debt at graduation	$30,026	$26,500	$26,075
Debt as share of first-year pay	72%	60%	61%
Programs compared		23	655

Five years out, Piedmont University graduates earn about the national figure but about $2,261 less than the Georgia median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Georgia teacher education program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Georgia medians.

Piedmont UniversityOther Georgia programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

What graduates earn over time

Pay rises about 11% between the first and fifth year.

Piedmont University grads, year 1$41,663

Piedmont University grads, year 5$46,086

All Georgia teacher education grads, year 5$48,347

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $318 a month, or 9.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (43 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	20–39%

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

95% of graduates (53 of 56) were working in Georgia one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of Georgia outside metro areas are about 13% below the national average, so a $41,663 salary here buys what about $47,897 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to teacher education, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education

$72,290

Median pay in Georgia. 43,820 people work in this job in Georgia. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 87,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $49,260Top 10%: $98,030

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$75,480

Median pay in Georgia. 25,730 people work in this job in Georgia. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 63,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $49,450Top 10%: $96,820

Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$64,780

Median pay in Georgia. 23,610 people work in this job in Georgia. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 38,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,540Top 10%: $97,960

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

$43,920

Median pay in Georgia. 16,850 people work in this job in Georgia. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 66,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: associate's degree.

Bottom 10%: $28,150Top 10%: $77,130

About Piedmont University

Tuition and fees	$31,700 / year
Average net price after aid	$20,599 / year
Admission rate	93%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	47%
Undergraduate students	1,117

Teacher Education ranks 3rd of 5 bachelor's programs at Piedmont University by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($73,416), Business Administration ($45,404), and Teacher Education ($41,663).

Other teacher education bachelor's programs near Demorest

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Piedmont UniversityDemorest, GA · private nonprofit		$41,663	$30,026
Truett McConnell UniversityCleveland, GA · private nonprofit	12 mi	$37,831	$24,000
Brenau UniversityGainesville, GA · private nonprofit	24 mi	$40,980	$38,250
University of North GeorgiaDahlonega, GA · public	25 mi	$46,099	$19,500
Clemson UniversityClemson, SC · public	41 mi	$41,080	$25,783
University of GeorgiaAthens, GA · public	43 mi	$46,162	$18,229
Southern Wesleyan UniversityCentral, SC · private nonprofit	46 mi	$42,006	$27,000
Georgia Gwinnett CollegeLawrenceville, GA · public	48 mi	$48,203	$21,590
Anderson University (South Carolina)Anderson, SC · private nonprofit	51 mi	$40,385	$27,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $41,663 one year after graduating and $46,086 five years after. The median across teacher education bachelor's programs in Georgia is $41,634.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Georgia comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the teacher education program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

Teacher Education bachelor's programs in Georgia, ranked23 programs by pay and debt Teacher Education bachelor's programs in the US, ranked655 programs by pay and debt All Piedmont University programs, ranked5 programs by pay and debt