Pennsylvania·Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations·SOC 27-2022

Best Coach programs in Pennsylvania, ranked by enrollment

Instruct or coach groups or individuals in the fundamentals of sports for the primary purpose of competition. Demonstrate techniques and methods of participation.

44 schools in Pennsylvania run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,102 people a year. The job pays a median of $48,730 in Pennsylvania across about 8,170 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledCoachFootball CoachBasketball CoachTrack and Field CoachSki CoachGolf CoachSwim CoachTrack Coach
Graduates / yr
1,102
in Pennsylvania
Median pay · Pennsylvania
$48,730
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
8,170
people employed
Schools
44
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
56%
across those schools
Median net price
$23,598
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Pennsylvania that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

4 programs in Pennsylvania that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Pennsylvania (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 Pennsylvania page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1635
57.6%
38$30,426$25,643
2372
33.8%
10$30,426$25,643
390
8.2%
10$43,033$26,044
45
0.5%
1$33,805$27,000

Top 25 schools in Pennsylvania

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 19 of the 44 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1West Chester University of Pennsylvania
West Chester, PA Public · 2 feeder programs
151Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, General71%78%
2Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana, PA Public · 2 feeder programs
127Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, General$31,31156%91%
3Temple University
Philadelphia, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
123Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$29,32275%80%
4Pennsylvania Western University
California, PA Public · 3 feeder programs
79Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$32,63252%94%
5East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania
East Stroudsburg, PA Public · 2 feeder programs
74Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$31,62243%92%
6Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Slippery Rock, PA Public · 2 feeder programs
72Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, General$35,41166%71%
7Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania
Bloomsburg, PA Public · 2 feeder programs
46Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$35,61354%93%
8Millersville University of Pennsylvania
Millersville, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
38Sport and Fitness Administration/Management58%86%
9Neumann University
Aston, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
28Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$28,98254%$28,75381%
10Keystone College
La Plume, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
27Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$21,02636%$23,59885%
11Point Park University
Pittsburgh, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
23Physical Education Teaching and Coaching59%$23,70497%
12York College of Pennsylvania
York, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
22Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$35,73964%$18,68274%
13Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
Harrisburg, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
20Sport and Fitness Administration/Management34%$14,14087%
14Lancaster Bible College
Lancaster, PA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
18Sport and Fitness Administration/Management67%$21,39956%
15Arcadia University
Glenside, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
17Sport and Fitness Administration/Management67%$23,79680%
16Drexel University
Philadelphia, PA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
16Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$27,37678%$36,00479%
17Messiah University
Mechanicsburg, PA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
15Sport and Fitness Administration/Management75%$25,67579%
18University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus
Pittsburgh, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
15Physical Education Teaching and Coaching$25,59985%58%
19Bucks County Community College
Newtown, PA Public · 2 feeder programs
14Sport and Fitness Administration/Management32%
20Misericordia University
Dallas, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
13Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$35,83672%$22,47771%
21Rosemont College
Rosemont, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
13Sport and Fitness Administration/Management57%$18,58676%
22Cairn University - Langhorne
Langhorne, PA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
12Physical Education Teaching and Coaching60%$28,32088%
23Holy Family University
Philadelphia, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
10Sport and Fitness Administration/Management$31,51861%$12,16371%
24Montgomery County Community College
Blue Bell, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
10Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, General28%
25University of Valley Forge
Phoenixville, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
10Sport and Fitness Administration/Management49%$27,18261%

All 44 schools in Pennsylvania

Every school in Pennsylvania 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.

All schools in Pennsylvania that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
West Chester University of PennsylvaniaWest ChesterPublic1512
Indiana University of PennsylvaniaIndianaPublic1272
Temple UniversityPhiladelphiaPublic1231
Pennsylvania Western UniversityCaliforniaPublic793
East Stroudsburg University of PennsylvaniaEast StroudsburgPublic742
Slippery Rock University of PennsylvaniaSlippery RockPublic722
Commonwealth University of PennsylvaniaBloomsburgPublic462
Millersville University of PennsylvaniaMillersvillePublic381
Neumann UniversityAstonPrivate not-for-profit281
Keystone CollegeLa PlumePrivate not-for-profit271
Point Park UniversityPittsburghPrivate not-for-profit231
York College of PennsylvaniaYorkPrivate not-for-profit221
Harrisburg University of Science and TechnologyHarrisburgPrivate not-for-profit201
Lancaster Bible CollegeLancasterPrivate not-for-profit182
Arcadia UniversityGlensidePrivate not-for-profit171

What coaches and scouts earn in Pennsylvania

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Pennsylvania
$48,730
Mean annual
$64,540
Jobs in state
8,170
What the range looks like
10th pct$21,170Median$48,73090th pct$119,060
Versus the national median
+3.0%

U.S. median $47,320. Pennsylvania pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
0.84×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Pennsylvania

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$56,770median
3,650 jobs
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ
$49,460median
480 jobs
Pittsburgh, PA
$47,050median
1,550 jobs
Reading, PA
$48,960median
160 jobs
Altoona, PA
$46,730median
90 jobs
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA
$46,880median
250 jobs
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
$40,570median
420 jobs
Lancaster, PA
$47,380median
230 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+6.4%
Faster than average
Openings per year
41,800
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
19,500
306,500 → 326,000
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

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 Coaches and Scouts page.

How to become a Coach

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

SpeakingLearning StrategiesMonitoringReading ComprehensionActive ListeningCritical Thinking

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Pennsylvania

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 4 majors mapped to Coaches and Scouts4 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 13.1314Physical Education Teaching and Coaching
  • 31.0501Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, General
  • 31.0504Sport and Fitness Administration/Management
  • 42.2815Performance and Sport Psychology

Common questions

Answers for people weighing coaches and scouts programs in Pennsylvania.

What degree do you need to become a Coach?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Sport and Fitness Administration/Management, which awarded 635 degrees in Pennsylvania in 2024-25, 57.6% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Coach?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Sports, Teacher Education and Professional Development, Clinical. Together they graduate about 1,102 people a year in Pennsylvania.

How much do coaches and scouts earn in Pennsylvania?+

The median is $48,730 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.0% above the U.S. median of $47,320. 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 coaches and scouts growing?+

BLS projects a +6.4% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 41,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Pennsylvania?+

44 institutions in Pennsylvania reported graduates from at least one of the 4 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 coaches and scouts work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Coach, Football Coach, Basketball Coach, Track and Field Coach among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-2022.

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 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected 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 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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