ROI Major

Civil Engineering Technologies at Mohawk Valley Community College - SUNY Office of Community Colleges

NY · Associate's Degree · CIP 15.02

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Civil Engineering Technologies degree from Mohawk Valley Community College - SUNY Office of Community Colleges earn a median salary of $68,179 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $51,651. The degree typically pays for itself in 7.8 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

$55,111

Typical Career

$68,179

Top Performers

$84,259

Estimated break-even: 7.8 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$455

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $5,682. Most students can comfortably afford about a $455 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.8x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.9x 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

$51,651

Nominal: $68,179 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).

7.8 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 $25,070 $33,556 $52,008
5 Years After Graduation $55,111 $68,179 $84,259
10 Years After Graduation $56,642 $79,787 $105,199

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 $68,179 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)
= $68,179 × (1.0 ÷ 1.3200) = $51,651 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Civil Engineering Technologies program at Mohawk Valley Community College can expect a significant earnings trajectory over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $33,556, which increases to $68,179 after five years and further rises to $79,787 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equates to approximately $51,650.76 nationally, indicating that while initial earnings may be modest, the long-term financial outlook is promising, particularly when considering inflation and cost of living adjustments.

The program's graduates primarily enter the Health Care & Social Assistance sector (30.4%), followed by Manufacturing (17.4%) and another segment of Health Care & Social Assistance (17.2%). Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 7.8 years compared to a high school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing this degree appears favorable. This suggests that students can expect to recoup their educational expenses and benefit from higher earnings in a relatively short time frame, making the program a viable option for those interested in civil engineering technologies.

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See how the Civil Engineering Technologies 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.