ROI Major

Accounting and Related Services at James A. Rhodes State College

OH · Associate's Degree · CIP 52.03

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Accounting and Related Services degree from James A. Rhodes State College earn a median salary of $46,924 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in OH, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $52,080. The degree typically pays for itself in 16 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

$35,999

Typical Career

$46,924

Top Performers

$63,970

Estimated break-even: 16 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$313

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,910. Most students can comfortably afford about a $313 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.2x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.6x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Ohio buys what costs $0.90 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Health Care & Social Assistance, Manufacturing, Public Administration.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 52.1%
Manufacturing 14.0%
Public Administration 4.9%

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

$52,080

Nominal: $46,924 in Ohio (COL 90.1% of national avg) · 11% 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).

16 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 $26,316 $35,158 $46,936
5 Years After Graduation $35,999 $46,924 $63,970
10 Years After Graduation $41,559 $52,920 $75,158

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 $46,924 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in OH, which has a cost-of-living index of 90.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $46,924 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9010) = $52,080 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

The earnings trajectory for graduates in Accounting and Related Services at James A. Rhodes State College shows a steady increase over time. Median earnings one year after graduation stand at $35,158, rising to $46,924 five years post-graduation and reaching $52,920 by the ten-year mark. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns closely with the national equivalent at $52,079.91, indicating that graduates can expect their earnings to maintain value relative to the cost of living, particularly in Ohio, where the cost of living index is 0.901 compared to the national average.

A significant portion of graduates enters the Health Care & Social Assistance sector, with 52.1% employed in this field one year after graduation. This trend continues with 43.9% and 31.3% remaining in the same industry at five and ten years, respectively. Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 16 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing a degree in Accounting and Related Services appears favorable, especially considering the stability and growth potential within the health care sector.

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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.