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Career outcomes brief

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# CUNY City College Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated October 1, 2026

[Overview](/school/cuny-city-college/)[Cost & aid](/school/cuny-city-college/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/cuny-city-college/admissions/)[Majors](/school/cuny-city-college/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/cuny-city-college/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do CCNY graduates earn?

The reported median is $67,740 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is $2,130 per year.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $67,740, in the 72nd percentile. That is $2,130 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth places the return pillar at the 71st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $8,767 more than the model expects for similar students.

That puts the gap at the 80th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $3,267.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $5,500. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $2,739.

The earnings scenarios span a wide range, from $49,212 on the downside to $97,579 on the upside. These are scenarios estimated from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates.

At the upper end, Computer Engineering graduates earn $117,131 four years after completion, and Computer Science graduates earn $116,238. The largest program, Psychology, posts a median of $56,223.

An estimated 37.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because four-year earnings cover completers who are working and not enrolled, those continuing their education are outside that earnings snapshot.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$67,740

**Rank for difference from expectations**
80th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**CCNY reported median**
$67,740

**Peer schools comparable schools · $2,130 below CCNY**
$65,610

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $8,767 below CCNY**
$58,973

School and program earnings use pooled 2017–18 and 2018–19 completion cohorts, measured in 2022 and 2023 and expressed in 2024 dollars. [How the model works](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

## How many CCNY students return and finish their degrees?

First-time, full-time bachelor’s cohorts · CDS 2025-26

**Returned the following fall**
83.0%

**Completed within six years**
50.0%

**Pell recipients completed within six years**
49.0%

Source: CUNY City College Common Data Set 2025-26, B22 retention; B4–B11 six-year completion. Retention and completion follow different entering cohorts.

## How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $49,212 to $97,579, around the reported median of $67,740. Compare the lower scenario with [CCNY borrowing and monthly payments](/school/cuny-city-college/cost/) to see how a smaller income could change your plan.

Modeled from the school’s program mix; not salary percentiles or a forecast for one graduate.

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

**Lower estimate**
$49,212

**Median · reported**
$67,740

**Higher estimate**
$97,579

Downside shows a lower-earning scenario based on the college’s mix of programs; upside shows a higher-earning scenario. Typical is the school’s reported median four years after completion. These are planning scenarios, not a forecast of your salary or percentiles of individual graduates.

[Why the downside matters](/analysis/median-roi-hides-a-harsh-reality/) explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. [Read about the move to four-year earnings](/analysis/college-scorecard-2026-4-year-vs-10-year-earnings-2-2/).

## Do CCNY graduates earn more than expected?

Azimuth models what we would expect graduates to earn based on who the college enrolls, how selective it is and its local economy. The difference between that expectation and reported earnings is what Azimuth calls [value added](/methodology/#value-added).

CCNY graduates’ reported earnings are $8,767 above that expectation, the 80th percentile for this measure. Unlike a peer comparison, it adjusts for who enrolls.

The breakdown separates the contribution attributed to observed factors from the remaining difference. Neither component establishes how much attending CCNY caused a student to earn. [Read how expected earnings are estimated](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

What explains value-added earnings?

**Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.**
+$3,267

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
+$5,500

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
+$8,767

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

## Which fields at CCNY report the highest earnings?

The largest programs at CUNY City College span a wide earnings range, with the highest-earning fields awarding fewer degrees than the largest ones. Psychology awards the most degrees at 418 a year, and graduates earn a median of $56,223 four years after completion.

[Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) it #48 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. Computer Science is the third-largest program at 132 degrees awarded, and its median earnings of $116,238 are the highest among the large programs.

Mechanical Engineering graduates earn $97,270 from 119 degrees a year, and Azimuth ranks it #43 nationally. At the more moderate end, Fine and Studio Arts awards 116 degrees and posts median earnings of $45,656, with a national rank of #40.

CUNY City College offers 18 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, with earnings data available for 31 fields. The two largest degree families, Psychology and Engineering, each account for about one in six degrees awarded.

The best-paid programs are in engineering. Mechanical Engineering graduates earn a median of $97,270 four years after completion, from 119 degrees awarded a year.

[Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) it #43 nationally within its field. The highest-ranked program is Communication and Media Studies, at #26 in its field with 86 degrees awarded a year.

Its completers earn $69,948. The largest single program, Psychology, awards 418 degrees a year, ranks #48 nationally, and its completers earn $56,223 four years after completion.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Computer Engineering**
$117,131

**Computer Science**
$116,238

**Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering**
$97,698

**Mechanical Engineering**
$97,270

**Biomedical/Medical Engineering**
$95,685

**Chemical Engineering**
$88,659

**Civil Engineering**
$87,957

**Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering**
$87,804

[Explore CCNY program cohorts and field ranks](/school/cuny-city-college/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Earnings vary widely by field, as earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix show. The downside earnings scenario sits at $49,212, the typical scenario at $67,740, and the upside scenario reaches $97,579.

Among the largest programs, Fine and Studio Arts graduates earn a median of $45,656, while the highest-earning program, Computer Engineering, reaches $117,131.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates of CUNY City College who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $67,740. Azimuth places that figure in the 72nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 2,640 completers.

Graduates earn about $8,767 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix show a downside of $49,212 and an upside of $97,579.

An estimated 37.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).