ROI Major

Civil Engineering Technologies at SUNY Westchester Community College

NY · Associate's Degree · CIP 15.02

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Civil Engineering Technologies degree from SUNY Westchester Community College earn a median salary of $67,373 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in NY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $51,040. The degree typically pays for itself in 6.9 years.

Quick Insights

Solid Investment

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

$47,289

Typical Career

$67,373

Top Performers

$91,796

Estimated break-even: 6.9 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$449

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $5,614. Most students can comfortably afford about a $449 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.7x 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, Educational Services, Professional, Scientific & Technical Services.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 29.4%
Educational Services 9.9%
Professional, Scientific & Technical Services 8.3%

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

$51,040

Nominal: $67,373 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).

6.9 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 $27,161 $42,309 $69,154
5 Years After Graduation $47,289 $67,373 $91,796
10 Years After Graduation $77,335 $105,799 $136,883

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 $67,373 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)
= $67,373 × (1.0 ÷ 1.3200) = $51,040 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 SUNY Westchester Community College can expect a significant increase in earnings over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $42,309, which rises to $67,373 five years post-graduation and reaches $105,799 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equivalent nationally is approximately $51,040.15, indicating that while the cost of living in New York is higher (COL index of 1.32), the earnings trajectory remains promising.

The top industries for graduates are predominantly in Health Care & Social Assistance, accounting for 40.6% and 29.4% of employment, followed by Professional, Scientific & Technical Services at 10.4%. Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 6.9 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering Technologies appears favorable. This suggests that graduates can expect a solid financial return relative to their educational investment over time.

Compare with Another School

See how the Civil Engineering Technologies degree at SUNY Westchester Community College 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.