Western Kentucky University Special Education (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Special Education and Teaching
- Public university
- Bowling Green, KY
- About 28 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release ยท BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Western Kentucky University special education graduates earn less than graduates of most special education programs nationally, $38,807 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $26,564. Several Kentucky programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Kentucky and national columns are the medians across all special education bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Debt and first-year pay at every Kentucky special education program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Kentucky medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
Does family income change the outcome?
Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned $3,274 less in their first year than other graduates. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $286 a month, or 8.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
86% of graduates (31 of 36) were working in Kentucky one year after graduating. Prices in the Bowling Green area are about 10% below the national average, so a $38,807 salary here buys what about $43,033 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 special education, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Special Education Teachers, Secondary School
$60,730Median pay in Kentucky. 2,680 people work in this job in Kentucky. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Special Education Teachers, Middle School
$60,200Median pay in Kentucky. 1,530 people work in this job in Kentucky. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Interpreters and Translators
$53,590Median pay in Kentucky. 480 people work in this job in Kentucky. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Special Education Teachers, Preschool
$54,220Median pay in Kentucky. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 2,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
About Western Kentucky University
Special Education ranks 19th of 45 bachelor's programs at Western Kentucky University by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering ($74,205), Mechanical Engineering ($70,722), and Nursing ($68,294).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $38,807 one year after graduating. The median across special education bachelor's programs in Kentucky is $38,807.
The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 4th lowest of 7 special education bachelor's programs in Kentucky. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 70% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 58%. Compare the cost with other Kentucky programs before deciding.
Most do. 86% (31 of 36) were working in Kentucky one year after graduating.
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 Kentucky 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 special 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