ROI Major

Health and Physical Education/Fitness at University of North Carolina at Wilmington (The)

NC · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 31.05

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Health and Physical Education/Fitness degree from University of North Carolina at Wilmington (The) earn a median salary of $53,620 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NC, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $54,826. The degree typically pays for itself in 11.4 years.

Quick Insights

Slow Burn / High Debt Risk

How this degree looks at a glance

A fast read on salary range, break-even speed, living-cost impact, and where graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$40,673

Typical Career

$53,620

Top Performers

$70,197

Estimated break-even: 11.4 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$357

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,468. Most students can comfortably afford about a $357 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.4x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.7x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in North Carolina buys what costs $0.98 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Health Care & Social Assistance, Educational Services, Professional, Scientific & Technical Services.

Where Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 17.7%
Educational Services 16.8%
Professional, Scientific & Technical Services 15.5%

Institution-wide industry mix for graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$54,826

Nominal: $53,620 in North Carolina (COL 97.8% of national avg) · 2.2% higher purchasing power

10-Year Earnings Curve

Break-Even Timeline

How long until cumulative earnings advantage exceeds total college investment (tuition + opportunity cost vs. entering workforce directly after high school).

11.4 years to break even
Graduation 15 years

Total Investment

$155,168

4yr tuition + 4yr opportunity cost

HS Graduate Baseline

$38,792/yr

BLS 2023 median, HS diploma

View Raw Data: Median Earnings by Year
Timeframe 25th Pct. Median (50th) 75th Pct.
1 Year After Graduation $22,333 $30,394 $41,230
5 Years After Graduation $40,673 $53,620 $70,197
10 Years After Graduation $48,258 $63,677 $81,442

Source: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO), 2025 release. Earnings shown for Bachelor's degree graduates (all cohorts combined).

How We Calculate Purchasing Power

The median salary of $53,620 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in NC, which has a cost-of-living index of 97.8% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $53,620 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9780) = $54,826 National Average equivalent.

COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Health and Physical Education/Fitness program at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington experience a positive earnings trajectory over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $30,394, which increases to $53,620 after five years and reaches $63,677 a decade post-graduation. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns with a national equivalent of $54,826.18, indicating that graduates maintain competitive earnings relative to national standards despite the cost of living index in North Carolina being slightly lower than the national average.

The top industries that graduates enter include Health Care & Social Assistance (17.7%), Educational Services (16.8%), and Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (15.5%). The estimated break-even point for pursuing a degree versus a high-school-only path is approximately 11.4 years, suggesting that while the initial investment in education may take time to pay off, the long-term benefits in terms of earnings and career opportunities in these sectors can be substantial. Overall, the return on investment for this degree appears favorable, particularly for those committed to careers in health and education.

Compare with Another School

See how the Health and Physical Education/Fitness degree at University of North Carolina at Wilmington (The) stacks up against another institution side-by-side.

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Data sources: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO). Cost-of-living index: BLS Regional CPI & MIT Living Wage Project. Cost of attendance: IPEDS. For informational use only; data may be suppressed for small cohort sizes.