College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

CUNY York College

NYMedium public institution · Overall rank #157 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

An Azimuth composite standing in the 89th percentile.

Who it’s a good fit for

CUNY York College is a public university in Jamaica, New York, where Health Professions and Business lead the degree mix. Affordability is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes more of that to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market — than to what it cannot explain.

Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study. The price case holds across the income scale: the lowest band averages well below the published cost, and the highest band also averages below it.

Pell students complete at a rate above the cohort as a whole, and access is well above average. The admission rate is below the median for comparable schools, and the degree mix is oriented toward health and business.

A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the highest-earning fields are much smaller ones.

CUNY York College at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
64.1%
Six-year completion[2]
32.3%
Four-year earnings[3]
$61,389

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$7,426
Median student debt[4]
$11,000
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$11,018

CUNY York College rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

CUNY York College is a public university in Jamaica, New York, enrolling 4,345 undergraduates. Its composite standing is near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (89th percentile).

The university admits 64.1% of applicants, a rate that is more selective than the 85.9% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. An estimated 43.9% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students.

Of the first-time, full-time cohort, 57.4% return after the first year and 32.2% complete within six years. Both figures run below the peer medians of 73.7% and 49.1%.

The four are spread across the ranking. Affordability is the strongest, at the 99th percentile, while return is the weakest, at the 52nd percentile.

Access and mobility sit between them, at the 82nd and 75th percentiles respectively, giving the university a profile where cost is the headline and earnings are the counterweight.

CUNY York College is distinguished by affordability, while its return pillar sits nearer the middle of Azimuth’s scale. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, affordability is in the 99th percentile, its strongest pillar.

Access is in the 82nd percentile and mobility is in the 75th percentile. Return, its weakest pillar, is in the 52nd percentile.

The contrast makes cost the clearest strength in a profile whose other pillars are less even.

Pell Grant recipients account for 40.1% of undergraduates at CUNY York College. For enrolled students who submitted SAT scores, the middle 50% landed between 790 and 960.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth ranks CUNY York College #260 for access. Pell recipients finish at 43.0% within six years, 10.8 percentage points above the rate for the entering cohort as a whole (32.2%).

For mobility, Azimuth places CUNY York College at #372 among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

CUNY York College rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#157

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 75
Access & reach
National percentile: 82
Affordability
National percentile: 99
Return on investment
National percentile: 52

Top-ranked majors

  1. Social Work#12
  2. Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General#16
  3. Sociology#36

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / CUNY York College briefing

CUNY York College cost & financial aid[6][7]

At CUNY York College, the published cost of attendance is $14,330, while aid recipients have an average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, of $4,456. In-state tuition and fees are $7,358, and out-of-state tuition and fees are $15,308.

Financial aid reduces the published cost by $9,874 on average for aid recipients. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $14,068; York's is $9,612 below that figure.

Azimuth ranks CUNY York College #5 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. The low average net price and the peer comparison point to a cost picture that is unusually favorable within this cohort.

For aid recipients, CUNY York College pairs a published cost of attendance of $14,330 with much lower prices after grants and scholarships. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $2,861 for families in the lowest family-income band; $4,161 in the next-lowest band; $7,426 in the middle band; $9,383 in the next-highest band; and $12,520 for families in the highest family-income band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $9,659. Azimuth ranks the university #5 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 69% of the published cost and offsets $9,874 from the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, the average net price is $4,456, which is $9,612 below the peer median of $14,068 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Published in-state tuition is $7,358, and out-of-state tuition is $15,308. The aid offset and lower peer comparison both point toward lower published costs after aid.

Among borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $11,000, and 15.4% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. That median is $10,229 below the peer median of $21,229 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $125 a month if repaid over ten years. Median Parent PLUS borrowing for parent borrowers is $11,018.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$7,426

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at CUNY York College

At CUNY York College, federal borrowing is limited to 15.4% of federal aid recipients, so the completion-debt figures describe borrowers rather than the whole undergraduate body. Among federal-loan borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $11,000.

At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median federal debt is $21,229; the college's median is $10,229 below it. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $11,018.

The investment picture at CUNY York College is built on a foundation of low cost. The median federal student debt at completion is $11,000, $10,229 below the $21,229 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $125 a month. Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $61,389, at the 55th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students, placing the outcome at the 66th percentile nationally. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the university's program mix, range from $51,604 in a downside case to $82,095 in an upside case, with $61,389 as the typical outcome.

The return pillar sits at the 52nd percentile nationally, while affordability is at the 99th percentile. Low debt and above-expected earnings point the same way for a student who finishes.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing among parent borrowers is $11,018. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $125 a month if repaid over ten years.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$11,000
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$11,018

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$125/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$140/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / CUNY York College briefing

CUNY York College career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $61,389 four years after completion. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, that figure falls in the 55th percentile.

Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, falls in the 66th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth places CUNY York College’s return pillar in the 52nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $2,579.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $579. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $57,301, with the college $4,088 above it. The peer comparison and model-based result point in the same direction.

CUNY York College graduates have median earnings of $61,389 four years after completion, among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. Azimuth places that figure in the 55th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 1,476 completers.

The typical scenario uses that central earnings figure, with downside and upside scenarios ranging from $51,604 to $82,095. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, are positive here.

Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students. An estimated 29.2% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The central scenario and above-expected earnings point in the same direction, even as modeled outcomes vary by program mix.

For federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, CUNY York College has median earnings of $61,389 four years after completion, in the 55th percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $57,301, with York’s figure $4,088 above it.

Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is in the 66th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $2,579. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $579.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $405. Azimuth ranks the college #700 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix range from $51,604 on the downside to $82,095 on the upside. The peer comparison and modeled expectation point in the same direction.

At the program level, the highest listed earnings are in Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions, which awarded 37 degrees and had median earnings of $122,313 four years after completion. That figure is 1.61x of the national median for its field.

Nursing awarded 49 degrees and had median earnings of $112,147, or 1.26x of its field’s national median. The largest program, Health Sciences, awarded 255 degrees, with median earnings of $60,346 four years after completion and a 0.98x field benchmark.

These program figures make the school-level median a broad summary rather than a program-specific forecast.

Earnings at CUNY York College vary widely across its modeled program mix. The downside earnings scenario is $51,604, the typical scenario is $61,389, and the upside scenario reaches $82,095; these are scenarios rather than observed graduate groups.

CUNY York College keeps out-of-pocket costs far below those of comparable public universities. The average net price aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships is $4,456.

That figure is below the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions of the same type and size, by $9,612. For aid recipients in the lowest family-income band, the average net price is $2,861, and for the highest band the average is $12,520.

Borrowing is similarly modest. The median federal student loan debt among borrowers who completed is $11,000, which is below the peer median of $21,229 by $10,229.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $125 a month if repaid over ten years. Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students.

The low net price and modest debt point the same way as the earnings outcome, a combination that keeps the financial risk relatively low for borrowers.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$2,579
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$579
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$3,158

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

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / CUNY York College briefing

CUNY York College acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

CUNY York College admitted 64.1% of applicants in the reported entering class, a lower share than the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size). This rate summarizes how that year’s applicant pool fared, rather than setting a threshold for admission.

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
64.1%
Approximate lower endpoint
790
Reported average
880
Approximate upper endpoint
960

Enrolled students who submitted scores. This range is not an admission cutoff. The endpoints add section percentiles; they are not verified composite-score percentiles. A separate SAT-equivalent average is not plotted as a median. Source: College Scorecard; sum of section 25th/75th percentiles; enrolled score-submitters.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / CUNY York College briefing

What are the largest majors at CUNY York College?[12]

The highest-earning programs at CUNY York College are concentrated in health sciences, and they are not the largest by degrees awarded. Nursing graduates earn $112,147 four years after completion, from 49 degrees awarded a year.

Azimuth ranks it #47 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. The largest program is Health Sciences, at 255 degrees awarded and median earnings of $60,346.

Azimuth ranks it #16 nationally. Psychology is the second largest, with 126 degrees awarded and earnings of $53,156; Azimuth ranks it #111 nationally.

A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the best-paid fields are smaller. Social Work awards 81 degrees a year, with earnings of $60,820 and a national rank of #12.

Health Professions leads the degree mix at CUNY York College, accounting for 32.9% of bachelor's degrees awarded. Business is next at 17.6%.

Azimuth assigns national ranks to 8 of the college's bachelor's programs. The biggest program by degrees awarded is Health Sciences, at 255 degrees awarded a year.

The program is ranked #16 in its field by Azimuth. Social Work holds a national rank of #12 from Azimuth within its field, with 81 degrees awarded a year.

Its graduates earn a median of $60,820 four years after completion. Nursing is ranked #47 in its field by Azimuth, and its graduates earn $112,147 four years after completion from 49 degrees awarded a year.

Health Professions accounts for 32.9% of bachelor's degrees awarded at CUNY York College, with Business next at 17.6% and Psychology at 10.0%. The university has 8 programs with an Azimuth national rank and 22 with published four-year earnings data.

The largest single program is Health Sciences, at 255 degrees awarded a year, followed by Psychology at 126 degrees awarded and Accounting at 89 degrees awarded. Social Work is the highest-ranked program, with 81 degrees awarded and median earnings of $60,820 four years after completion.

Health Sciences, the largest program, ranks #16 nationally and #3 in New York within its field, with median earnings of $60,346. Nursing ranks #13 in New York within its field, with median earnings of $112,147 from 49 degrees awarded.

Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions is the highest-earning program, with median earnings of $122,313 four years after completion from 37 degrees awarded. Its benchmark ratio is 1.61x against the national median for its field.

Nursing carries a benchmark ratio of 1.26x against the national median for its field. The strongest programs are split between large health-related fields and smaller specialized ones.

The largest program awards the most degrees, yet the highest earnings belong to a much smaller program. Four-year earnings in fields where graduate study is common may understate later trajectories.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General 255 degrees awarded
$60,346
Psychology, General 126 degrees awarded
$53,156
Business Administration, Management and Operations 89 degrees awarded
$62,993
Accounting and Related Services 89 degrees awarded
$67,152
Social Work 81 degrees awarded
$60,820
Sociology 60 degrees awarded
$59,899

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / CUNY York College briefing

How does CUNY York College serve students from different backgrounds?

Graduates earn about $3,158 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is in the 66th percentile.

For the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year graduation rate is 32.2%; Pell recipients complete within six years at 43.0%, above the overall rate by 10.8 percentage points. Azimuth rates mobility in the 75th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Above-overall Pell completion and above-expected earnings point in the same direction.

An estimated 43.9% of undergraduates enter CUNY York College as transfers or part-time students, making transfer entry a visible part of its access profile. The public university admits 64.1% of applicants and has 4,345 undergraduates.

Pell Grant recipients make up 40.1% of undergraduates. Azimuth rates the access pillar in the 82nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The admission, Pell, and transfer figures show several routes into the undergraduate population.

06 / CUNY York College briefing

What colleges are similar to CUNY York College?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with CUNY York College.

Admissions peerLincoln University65.7% admitted
Comparison with CUNY York College
MeasureCUNY York CollegeLincoln University
Peer earnings · 4 years$61,389$50,871-$10,518 vs CUNY York College
Average annual net price$4,456$14,977+$10,521 vs CUNY York College · higher cost
Admission rate64.1%65.7%
Higher-admission alternativeMercy University85.8% admitted
Comparison with CUNY York College
MeasureCUNY York CollegeMercy University
Peer earnings · 4 years$61,389$62,616+$1,227 vs CUNY York College
Average annual net price$4,456$14,072+$9,616 vs CUNY York College · higher cost
Admission rate64.1%85.8%
Explore Mercy University →
Nearby alternativeCUNY Lehman CollegeNearby option · NY
Comparison with CUNY York College
MeasureCUNY York CollegeCUNY Lehman College
Peer earnings · 4 years$61,389$63,353+$1,964 vs CUNY York College
Average annual net price$4,456$3,148-$1,308 vs CUNY York College · lower cost
Admission rate64.1%56.6%
Explore CUNY Lehman College →
Higher-earnings alternativeCUNY Queens College$68,713 earnings
Comparison with CUNY York College
MeasureCUNY York CollegeCUNY Queens College
Peer earnings · 4 years$61,389$68,713+$7,324 vs CUNY York College
Average annual net price$4,456$4,195-$261 vs CUNY York College · lower cost
Admission rate64.1%64.4%
Explore CUNY Queens College →
Lower-cost alternativeCUNY Lehman College$3,148 average net price
Comparison with CUNY York College
MeasureCUNY York CollegeCUNY Lehman College
Peer earnings · 4 years$61,389$63,353+$1,964 vs CUNY York College
Average annual net price$4,456$3,148-$1,308 vs CUNY York College · lower cost
Admission rate64.1%56.6%
Explore CUNY Lehman College →
Similar profileSalem State UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with CUNY York College
MeasureCUNY York CollegeSalem State University
Peer earnings · 4 years$61,389$62,605+$1,216 vs CUNY York College
Average annual net price$4,456$15,996+$11,540 vs CUNY York College · higher cost
Admission rate64.1%95.9%
Explore Salem State University →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

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

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings