Private for-profit · University
Salem University
Salem, West Virginia · Distant rural
- —
- Admit rate
- $12,303
- Avg net price
- 20%
- Graduation rate
- $34,642
- Median earnings
Salem University is a private for-profit bachelor's-granting institution in Salem, West Virginia (distant rural setting), enrolling 892 undergraduates.
About Salem, West Virginia
Salem is a city in Harrison County, West Virginia, United States. Notable settler family names included Lippincott, Maxson, Babcock, Plumer, Davis, and Fitz-Randolph. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Distant rural
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 85 miles to Pittsburgh, PA
- To Great Lakes shore
- 165 miles
- Nearest airport
- 18 miles to North Central West Virginia (CKB)
How Salem University compares
Higher than 6% · #19 of 20 in West Virginia
Higher than 9%
Higher than 6% · #19 of 19 in West Virginia
Cheaper than 84% · #9 cheapest of 19 in West Virginia
Lower than 41%
Lower than 14%
Larger than 34%
Percentiles compare Salem University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in West Virginia.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate89282%
- Graduate19118%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women48955%
- Men40345%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White60%
- Black12%
- Hispanic4.3%
- Asian0.6%
- Other or multiracial23%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 892
- Graduate enrollment
- 191
- Student–faculty ratio
- 19 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 75%
- First-generation students
- 54%
- Students over 25
- 49%
- Median family income
- $19,775
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $37,701
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $11,900
- Room & board
- $8,400
- Books & supplies
- $960
- Total cost of attendance
- $18,650
- Average net price
- $12,303
Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.
Outcomes
- Graduated (within 6 years)
- 20%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 16%
- First-year retention
- 55%
- Transferred to another college
- 59%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $31,612
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $34,642
- Median debt at graduation
- $24,694
- Students with federal loans
- 72%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 20%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.
Campus life & athletics
- On-campus housing
- Yes
- Dorm capacity
- 367
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 41%
- Housing charge (year)
- $2,880
- Meal plan (year)
- $5,520
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NCAA Division II without football
- Varsity athletes
- 305 (182 men · 123 women)
Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.
Varsity sports (9)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- B
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.9 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 3
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,083 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.
Reported offenses in an average year
The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.
By offense type, per year
Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.
What you'll actually pay, by family income
Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.
College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.
Four-year (or more) true cost
Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.
$11,154/year × about 4.3 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.
Does the school pay you to attend?
Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.
Modest institutional aid: 49% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $6,798. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.
Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 143 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $34,642
- Typical debt at graduation
- $24,694
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 71%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 46%
Typical debt would take roughly 7.1 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.
Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.
The pay gap here
Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.
Men out-earn women by $9,615 (32%) a decade out.
Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.
Campus climate
- Summer high
- 85°F
- Winter low
- 21°F
- Annual rain
- 49.1″
- Annual snow
- 23.2″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, W Union 2, WV US station (10.5 mi from campus).
What Salem University graduates study — and earn
Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.
Colleges similar to Salem University
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Salem University side by side →
American InterContinental University-Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia · Midsize city · 13 mi to Atlanta
- Students
- 734
- Admission
- —
- Net price
- $16k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $36k
Strayer University-Florida
Tampa, Florida · Large suburb · 7 mi to Tampa
- Students
- 1,107
- Admission
- —
- Net price
- $16k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $40k
Strayer University-Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee · Large city · 10 mi to Memphis
- Students
- 1,784
- Admission
- —
- Net price
- $12k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $40k
The College of Westchester
White Plains, New York · Small city · 25 mi to New York
- Students
- 759
- Admission
- 94%
- Net price
- $16k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $42k
Eastern International College-Jersey City
Jersey City, New Jersey · Large city · 3 mi to New York
- Students
- 495
- Admission
- 70%
- Net price
- $21k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $35k
Strayer University-South Carolina
Greenville, South Carolina · Small city · 1 mi to Greenville
- Students
- 1,868
- Admission
- —
- Net price
- $18k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $40k
Colleges near Salem University
United Technical Center
Clarksburg, WV · Public · Certificate · 10 students
Clarksburg Beauty Academy and School of Massage Therapy
Clarksburg, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 47 students
Pierpont Community and Technical College
Fairmont, WV · Public · Associate · 959 students
Fairmont State University
Fairmont, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 2,590 students
Fred W Eberle Technical Center
Buckhannon, WV · Public · Certificate · 109 students
West Virginia Wesleyan College
Buckhannon, WV · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 954 students
Glenville State University
Glenville, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 1,096 students
Monongalia County Technical Education Center
Morgantown, WV · Public · Certificate · 43 students
Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.













