ROI Major

Accounting and Related Services at SUNY College of Technology at Canton

NY · Associate's Degree · CIP 52.03

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Accounting and Related Services degree from SUNY College of Technology at Canton earn a median salary of $41,455 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $31,405. The degree typically pays for itself in 32.9 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

$31,048

Typical Career

$41,455

Top Performers

$57,372

Estimated break-even: 32.9 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$276

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,455. Most students can comfortably afford about a $276 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.1x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.5x 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, Public Administration, Professional, Scientific & Technical Services.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 29.9%
Public Administration 10.1%
Professional, Scientific & Technical Services 9.9%

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

$31,405

Nominal: $41,455 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).

32.9 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 $19,988 $29,557 $38,692
5 Years After Graduation $31,048 $41,455 $57,372
10 Years After Graduation $35,643 $45,210 $61,926

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 $41,455 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)
= $41,455 × (1.0 ÷ 1.3200) = $31,405 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 SUNY College of Technology at Canton experience a gradual increase in earnings over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $29,557, rising to $41,455 five years post-graduation, and reaching $45,210 after ten years. However, when adjusted for purchasing power, the national equivalent of the five-year salary is approximately $31,405.3, reflecting the impact of the cost of living in New York, which has a COL index of 1.32 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The primary industries that graduates enter are predominantly within Health Care & Social Assistance, with 30.4%, 29.9%, and 24.9% of graduates finding employment in this sector. This concentration suggests a strong alignment between the program and the job market demands in these fields. Considering the estimated break-even point of approximately 32.9 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing this degree may take considerable time, indicating a need for careful financial planning and consideration of long-term career goals.

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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.