ROI Major

Accounting and Related Services at Mohawk Valley Community College - SUNY Office of Community Colleges

NY · Associate's Degree · CIP 52.03

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Accounting and Related Services degree from Mohawk Valley Community College - SUNY Office of Community Colleges earn a median salary of $46,803 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $35,457. The degree typically pays for itself in 15 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

$36,275

Typical Career

$46,803

Top Performers

$61,419

Estimated break-even: 15 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$312

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,900. Most students can comfortably afford about a $312 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, Retail Trade, Educational Services.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 30.4%
Retail Trade 9.7%
Educational Services 8.6%

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

$35,457

Nominal: $46,803 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).

15 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 $23,771 $32,092 $43,722
5 Years After Graduation $36,275 $46,803 $61,419
10 Years After Graduation $42,923 $55,778 $69,010

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 $46,803 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)
= $46,803 × (1.0 ÷ 1.3200) = $35,457 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Accounting and Related Services program at Mohawk Valley Community College can expect a steady earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $32,092, which increases to $46,803 five years post-graduation and reaches $55,778 after ten years. When considering purchasing power, the purchasing-power-adjusted five-year salary is approximately $35,456.82, reflecting the cost of living in New York, which has a cost-of-living index of 1.32 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The program prepares students for diverse career opportunities, with the top industries for graduates being Health Care & Social Assistance (30.4%), Manufacturing (17.4%), and a second segment of Health Care & Social Assistance (17.2%). Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 15 years compared to a high-school-only path, students can expect a favorable return on investment over time, particularly as they advance in their careers and earnings potential increases.

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See how the Accounting and Related Services degree at Mohawk Valley Community College - SUNY Office of Community Colleges 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.