Best Exercise Physiologist programs in Kentucky, ranked by enrollment
Assess, plan, or implement fitness programs that include exercise or physical activities such as those designed to improve cardiorespiratory function, body composition, muscular strength, muscular endurance, or.
15 schools in Kentucky run programs that feed this job, graduating 417 people a year. The job pays a median of $51,070 in Kentucky across about 60 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Kentucky that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
2 programs in Kentucky that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Kentucky (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Kentucky page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exercise Science and Kinesiologymain feeder CIP 31.0505In Kentucky → | 367 | 88.0% | 14 | $30,426 | $25,643 |
| 2 | Exercise Physiology and Kinesiologymain feeder CIP 26.0908In Kentucky → | 50 | 12.0% | 2 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
Top 15 schools in Kentucky
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 5 of the 15 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 83 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $25,858 | 56% | — | 94% |
| 2 | Eastern Kentucky University Richmond, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 66 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $29,632 | 50% | — | 78% |
| 3 | Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights, KY Public · 2 feeder programs | 39 | Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology | — | 52% | — | 68% |
| 4 | Morehead State University Morehead, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 35 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $30,696 | 52% | — | 77% |
| 5 | University of Kentucky Lexington, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 33 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 71% | — | 93% |
| 6 | Bellarmine University Louisville, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 31 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $30,236 | 64% | $22,542 | 86% |
| 7 | Transylvania University Lexington, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 30 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 71% | $21,881 | 87% |
| 8 | Kentucky Wesleyan College Owensboro, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 17 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 47% | $36,525 | 72% |
| 9 | Murray State University Murray, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 17 | Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology | — | 61% | — | 86% |
| 10 | Thomas More University Crestview Hills, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 40% | $18,902 | 90% |
| 11 | Union Commonwealth University Barbourville, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 32% | $28,386 | 63% |
| 12 | Alice Lloyd College Pippa Passes, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 39% | $18,384 | 75% |
| 13 | Asbury University Wilmore, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 65% | $19,816 | 63% |
| 14 | Campbellsville University Campbellsville, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 42% | $18,824 | 80% |
| 15 | University of Louisville Louisville, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $33,241 | 61% | — | 79% |
All 15 schools in Kentucky
Every school in Kentucky with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Kentucky University | Bowling Green | Public | 83 | 1 |
| Eastern Kentucky University | Richmond | Public | 66 | 1 |
| Northern Kentucky University | Highland Heights | Public | 39 | 2 |
| Morehead State University | Morehead | Public | 35 | 1 |
| University of Kentucky | Lexington | Public | 33 | 1 |
| Bellarmine University | Louisville | Private not-for-profit | 31 | 1 |
| Transylvania University | Lexington | Private not-for-profit | 30 | 1 |
| Kentucky Wesleyan College | Owensboro | Private not-for-profit | 17 | 1 |
| Murray State University | Murray | Public | 17 | 1 |
| Thomas More University | Crestview Hills | Private not-for-profit | 16 | 1 |
| Union Commonwealth University | Barbourville | Private not-for-profit | 15 | 1 |
| Alice Lloyd College | Pippa Passes | Private not-for-profit | 11 | 1 |
| Asbury University | Wilmore | Private not-for-profit | 9 | 1 |
| Campbellsville University | Campbellsville | Private not-for-profit | 8 | 1 |
| University of Louisville | Louisville | Public | 7 | 1 |
What exercise physiologists earn in Kentucky
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $59,460. Kentucky pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Exercise Physiologists page.
How to become a Exercise Physiologist
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Kentucky
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 3 majors mapped to Exercise Physiologists3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 26.0908Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology
- 31.0505Exercise Science and Kinesiology
- 51.2311Kinesiotherapy/Kinesiotherapist
Common questions
Answers for people weighing exercise physiologists programs in Kentucky.
What degree do you need to become an Exercise Physiologist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Exercise Science and Kinesiology, which awarded 367 degrees in Kentucky in 2024-25, 88.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming an Exercise Physiologist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Sports, Physiology. Together they graduate about 417 people a year in Kentucky.
How much do exercise physiologists earn in Kentucky?+
The median is $51,070 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 14.1% below the U.S. median of $59,460. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for exercise physiologists growing?+
BLS projects a +9.5% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 1,700 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Kentucky?+
15 institutions in Kentucky reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do exercise physiologists work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Exercise Specialist, Exercise Physiologist, Clinical Exercise Physiologist, Lifestyle and Weight Management Consultant among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 29-1128.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
Explore every U.S. college in one conversation
Clema turns plain-language questions into sourced answers across every U.S. institution — earnings, aid, acceptance, graduation, safety, and athletics from IPEDS, College Scorecard, and 10+ federal datasets, built in.
Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card