ROI Major

General Sales, Merchandising, and Related Marketing Operations at Kingsborough Community College/CUNY

NY · Associate's Degree · CIP 52.18

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a General Sales, Merchandising, and Related Marketing Operations degree from Kingsborough Community College/CUNY earn a median salary of $44,638 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $33,817. The degree typically pays for itself in 16.7 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

$32,157

Typical Career

$44,638

Top Performers

$61,167

Estimated break-even: 16.7 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$298

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,720. Most students can comfortably afford about a $298 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 New York buys what costs $1.32 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 34.5%
Educational Services 11.8%
Public Administration 8.8%

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

$33,817

Nominal: $44,638 in New York (COL 132.0% of national avg) · 24.2% lower 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).

16.7 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 $21,319 $27,985 $42,596
5 Years After Graduation $32,157 $44,638 $61,167
10 Years After Graduation $39,950 $54,821 $72,095

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 $44,638 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in NY, which has a cost-of-living index of 132.0% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $44,638 × (1.0 ÷ 1.3200) = $33,817 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates in General Sales, Merchandising, and Related Marketing Operations from Kingsborough Community College can expect a steady earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $27,985, which increases to $44,638 after five years and reaches $54,821 after ten years. However, considering the cost of living in New York, where the cost-of-living index is 1.32 compared to the national average of 1.0, the purchasing-power-adjusted five-year salary is approximately $33,816.67, indicating that actual purchasing power may be lower than nominal figures suggest.

The top industries for graduates are predominantly in Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for 34.5% of employment, followed by Educational Services at 11.8%. Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 16.7 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing this degree may be moderate. While graduates can find opportunities in growing sectors, the relatively long break-even period suggests that students should weigh their options carefully before committing to this educational path.

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See how the General Sales, Merchandising, and Related Marketing Operations degree at Kingsborough Community College/CUNY 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.