ROI Major

Business Administration and Management at State University of New York at Plattsburgh

NY · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 52.02

Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Business Administration and Management degree from State University of New York at Plattsburgh earn a median salary of $64,759 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $49,060. The degree typically pays for itself in 7.7 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 bachelor's graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$48,024

Typical Career

$64,759

Top Performers

$84,351

Estimated break-even: 7.7 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$432

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $5,397. Most students can comfortably afford about a $432 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.7x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.8x 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 Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 21.7%
Educational Services 15.6%
Public Administration 8.7%

Institution-wide industry mix for bachelor's graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$49,060

Nominal: $64,759 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).

7.7 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 $30,739 $41,775 $55,842
5 Years After Graduation $48,024 $64,759 $84,351
10 Years After Graduation $56,453 $77,211 $108,865

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 $64,759 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)
= $64,759 × (1.0 ÷ 1.3200) = $49,060 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates with a degree in Business Administration and Management from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh experience a positive earnings trajectory. Median earnings one year after graduation stand at $41,775, which increases to $64,759 five years later and reaches $77,211 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 $49,059.85, indicating that graduates may have less purchasing power than their peers in other states.

The top industries for graduates include Health Care & Social Assistance (21.7%), Educational Services (15.6%), and Public Administration (8.7%), suggesting a strong alignment with sectors that prioritize stability and growth. The estimated break-even point for graduates compared to those with only a high school diploma is approximately 7.7 years, indicating a reasonable return on investment for those pursuing this degree. Overall, while the earnings are competitive, the cost of living in New York should be considered when evaluating the financial benefits of this career path.

AI-assisted editorial analysis based on Census PSEO data. Fact-checked against source data.

Compare with Another School

See how the Business Administration and Management degree at State University of New York at Plattsburgh stacks up against another institution side-by-side.

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.

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