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.

Private for-profitSmall · 892 undergradsDistant ruralNCAA Division II without footballCold winters

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
To Great Lakes shore
165 miles
Nearest airport
18 miles to North Central West Virginia (CKB)

How Salem University compares

Graduation rate20%

Higher than 6% · #19 of 20 in West Virginia

First-year retention55%

Higher than 9%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$34,642

Higher than 6% · #19 of 19 in West Virginia

Average net price$12,303

Cheaper than 84% · #9 cheapest of 19 in West Virginia

Median debt at graduation$24,694

Lower than 41%

Student–faculty ratio19 : 1

Lower than 14%

Undergraduate enrollment892

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

1,083students
  • Undergraduate89282%
  • Graduate19118%

Undergraduates by gender

892undergrads
  • 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)

All students
16%
Low-income (Pell)
31%
First-generation
35%

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)

Baseball62
Soccer50
Swimming50
Basketball41
Water Polo35
Tennis20
Softball19
Volleyball17
Wrestling11

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.

1.0reported offenses a year
1.0 violent a year0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Fondling
0.7
Rape
0.3

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.

< $30k
$9,886
$30–48k
$10,753
$48–75k
$11,154
$75–110k
$14,107
$110k+
$14,716

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.

Est. total to a degree
$47,782

$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.

49%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$6,798
average award, among those who get one

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.

Weigh it value

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.

Women
$30,050
Men
$39,665

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

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.95.7JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, W Union 2, WV US station (10.5 mi from campus).

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 →

Colleges near Salem University

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.