Massachusetts Maritime Academy

Massachusetts Maritime Academy's program mix is anchored in Engineering, reflecting the academy's specialized maritime and technical identity. Engineering accounts for 40% of graduates and Business accounts for 15%, together defining a focused portfolio built around applied, workforce-ready fields.

Across 7 programs serving roughly 316 students annually, 5 meet Azimuth's ranking threshold — a concentrated set that reflects the academy's specialized mission rather than a broad liberal-arts catalog. Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering is the academy's largest program with 62 graduates, combining strong cohort scale with median earnings of $85,256 four years after enrollment.

Azimuth ranks Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services, Other #1 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. The highest four-year earnings at the academy come from Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, where 59 graduates earn median earnings of $125,016 — Azimuth ranks this program #2 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The Marine Transportation program graduates 49 students with median earnings of $119,916, and Azimuth ranks the program #3 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. International Business adds further depth, with 47 graduates earning $89,094 and Azimuth ranking the program #5 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions.

These programs are overwhelmingly high-mobility, direct-to-workforce pathways — graduates in marine engineering, facilities management, and international business enter industries with strong and steady hiring demand. The academy's focused scale means cohorts are small, but employer recruitment in maritime, energy, and logistics sectors is tightly matched to the degree output.

The [supply-demand map for college graduates](/analysis/supply-demand-map-college-degrees/) provides broader context for how these applied-technical fields align with national labor-market trends. ```

Massachusetts Maritime Academy's published cost of attendance is $31,367, but need-based aid meaningfully reduces what most families pay. Low-income families see a net price of approximately $8,757, while middle-income families pay around $10,547, and higher-income families pay approximately $27,367.

Azimuth ranks Massachusetts Maritime Academy #936 for post-graduation affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Net prices by income band are medians within those bands; individual aid packages vary, so some families in each band pay more and some less than the figures shown.

As a public maritime institution, Massachusetts Maritime Academy benefits from in-state tuition structures and a focused program portfolio that keeps costs relatively predictable. The institution participates in federal, state, and institutional aid programs, and students may also access specialized maritime scholarships and service-obligation stipends tied to the academy's licensing and officer-track programs.

Families seeking to understand the full gap between sticker price and actual cost should review the [net price illusion](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) before drawing conclusions from the published cost of attendance alone. Median federal student loan debt at graduation is $25,000, and families using Parent PLUS borrow a median of $38,678; private or institutional loans may add further borrowing that falls outside these federal-only figures — see the [Parent PLUS risk framework](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) for how household context shapes PLUS decisions.

For a graduate at the institution's median four-year earnings of $103,680, median federal debt of $25,000 projects to a monthly payment of about $282 under standard ten-year repayment. For personalized projections across earnings scenarios — including Parent PLUS planning — use [Azimuth's Financial GPS tool](/analysis/financial-gps-framework/).

Graduates of Massachusetts Maritime Academy earn median earnings of $103,680 four years after enrollment, placing Massachusetts Maritime Academy in the 99.2 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure runs well above the $52,536 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band).

Graduates earn about $27,777 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 98.4 percentile for [earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/) among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Massachusetts Maritime Academy #41 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The earnings pattern reflects a focused, Engineering-concentrated curriculum. Engineering accounts for 40% of degrees, with Business adding another 15%, giving the academy a distinctly technical degree profile.

Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering combines the largest cohort scale with strong pay, anchoring the institution's aggregate return. Azimuth ranks Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services, Other #1 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions [per the program-ranking methodology](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/), with 62 graduates earning median earnings of $85,256 — 1.3x the national benchmark for the field.

Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering (59 graduates) earns median earnings of $125,016, and Azimuth ranks it #2 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Marine Transportation and International Business round out the lineup, with Azimuth ranking them #3 and #5 respectively for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions, and four-year median earnings of $119,916 and $89,094.