College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

State University of New York at Cortland

NYMedium public institution · Overall rank #521 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth ranks State University of New York at Cortland #521 among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

State University of New York at Cortland is a public university in Cortland, New York, whose degree mix is led by Education and Parks, Recreation & Fitness. Mobility is well above average.

Graduates earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes a subtraction from earnings to the remainder it cannot explain and an addition to the factors it measures.

Return is modestly below average, the weakest of the four . Pell recipients complete within a few points of the rate for the entering cohort as a whole, and access is above average.

The lowest income band pays well below the published cost, while the highest band pays closer to it, a spread that points to substantial aid for families who qualify. The admission rate is below the median for comparable public universities, and the degree mix is concentrated in fields where earnings four years out are modest.

A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the best-paid one, Special Education and Teaching, awards far fewer degrees.

State University of New York at Cortland at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
59.8%
Six-year completion[2]
68.0%
Four-year earnings[3]
$58,555

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$20,102
Median student debt[4]
$21,500
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$24,455

State University of New York at Cortland rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

State University of New York at Cortland is a public university in Cortland, New York, enrolling 5,901 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits in the middle of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions, with mobility as the strongest pillar and return as the weakest.

The university admits 59.8% of applicants, a rate well below the 85.9% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Retention runs above the peer median: 81.1% return after the first year, against a peer median of 73.7%.

The six-year graduation rate is 68.0%, which also exceeds the peer median of 49.1%. An estimated 22.4% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students.

The shape is a selective public campus where mobility is the strongest pillar, access sits above the midpoint, and affordability is near the middle of the field. Return is the weakest of the four, leaving the pillars spread across the ranking rather than clustered together.

At State University of New York at Cortland, mobility is the clearest part of the profile, while return is the area that most tempers the overall picture. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, mobility is in the 84th percentile, the strongest pillar; access is in the 69th percentile and affordability in the 50th percentile.

Return, the weakest pillar, is in the 34th percentile. The mobility and return results point in different directions.

27.4% of undergraduates at State University of New York at Cortland receive Pell Grants. Azimuth ranks State University of New York at Cortland #449 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell recipients complete at a rate of 65.1%, 2.9 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate (68.0%). Mobility is the strongest pillar for the university, with Azimuth ranking it #235 among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $13,113 less than the model expects for similar students.

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

State University of New York at Cortland rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#521

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 84
Access & reach
National percentile: 69
Affordability
National percentile: 50
Return on investment
National percentile: 34

01 / State University of New York at Cortland briefing

State University of New York at Cortland cost & financial aid[6][7]

The published cost of attendance at State University of New York at Cortland is $28,108. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported in-state tuition of $7,070 and required fees of $1,804 for the 2026-27 academic year, with on-campus food and housing at $16,290.

Out-of-state students face a published tuition of $17,180. After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients is $22,345, which is $8,277 above the $14,068 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Financial aid reduces the published cost by an average of $5,763. Azimuth ranks the university #713 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The published cost of attendance at State University of New York at Cortland is $28,108. Azimuth ranks the university #713 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $12,550, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $20,102, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $25,853. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $13,303.

Grants and scholarships reduce the sticker price by an average of $5,763 for aid recipients, leaving an of $22,345 across all bands. That is $8,277 above the peer median of $14,068 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $21,500 in federal student loans, $271 above the peer median of $21,229. 94.1% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $24,455 in Parent PLUS loans. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$20,102

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at State University of New York at Cortland

At State University of New York at Cortland, 94.1% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. For borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $21,500.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $21,229, placing the university's median $271 above that benchmark. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $24,455.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 73% of graduates borrowed from any source, with an average cumulative amount of $21,799 per borrower. Its figures include federal loans held by 72% of graduates, averaging $15,628. They also include private loans held by 18% of graduates, averaging $6,171.

Mobility is the clearest strength at State University of New York at Cortland, but the financial return picture is mixed. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $58,555 four years after completion.

Azimuth places those earnings in the 45th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is below the Azimuth norm.

Graduates earn about $13,113 less than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places this measure in the 12th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The downside, typical, and upside earnings scenarios are $52,569, $58,555, and $66,991 four years after completion. Median federal student debt of $21,500 is $271 above the peer median of $21,229 at comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years. Below-expected earnings and debt above peers leave a mixed return picture.

Among the separate Parent PLUS parent-borrower population, median borrowing is $24,455. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 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
$21,500
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$24,455

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$244/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$311/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 / State University of New York at Cortland briefing

State University of New York at Cortland career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

The school-level earnings picture is mixed at State University of New York at Cortland. Federally aided completers working and not enrolled earn a median of $58,555 four years after completion; Azimuth places that figure in the 45th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth puts the return pillar in the 34th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $13,113 less 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 12th 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 $3,106.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $16,219. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $57,301; the university is $1,254 above. The peer comparison and model result point in different directions.

Federally aided graduates of State University of New York at Cortland who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $58,555 four years after completion. That median sits at the 45th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The earnings cohort includes 1,681 completers. Graduates earn about $13,113 less than the model expects for similar students.

That gap is at the 12th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix range from $52,569 on the downside to $66,991 on the upside, with a typical figure of $58,555.

An estimated 30.2% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

The return picture is mixed at State University of New York at Cortland. Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $58,555 four years after completion, in the 45th percentile.

For comparable institutions of the same type and size, the peer median—the middle value—is $57,301; the university’s figure is $1,254 above it. Graduates earn about $13,113 less than the model expects for similar students.

That puts earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, in the 12th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $3,106.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $16,219. Within the measured factors, the STEM component subtracts $613.

Downside and upside earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix are $52,569 and $66,991. Azimuth places the return pillar in the 34th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings sit above the peer median but below the model expectation. Special Education and Teaching is the highest-earning listed field, with 86 degrees awarded and median earnings of $74,079 four years after completion.

Its median is 1.47x the national median for its field. Subject-Area Teacher Education had 233 degrees awarded and median earnings of $63,201 four years after completion.

Business/Managerial Economics had 93 degrees awarded and median earnings of $66,644 at the same horizon. These listed fields show different earnings levels across programs.

Program mix leaves room for noticeably different modeled earnings outcomes at State University of New York at Cortland. The downside earnings scenario is $52,569, the typical scenario is $58,555, and the upside scenario is $66,991.

These are earnings scenarios rather than observed groups of graduates. Among individual fields, median earnings four years after completion are $74,079 in Special Education and Teaching, $66,644 in Business/Managerial Economics, and $63,431 in Communication and Media Studies.

Those field-level figures help explain the spread between the downside and upside scenarios.

At State University of New York at Cortland, the published cost of attendance is $28,108, and aid covers about 21% of that for the average aid recipient. The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $22,345.

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $21,500 in federal student loans, $271 above the peer median of $21,229 at comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $24,455. The earnings picture is mixed: graduates earn less than the model expects, but the median debt is close to the peer median.

The earnings scenarios and the estimated share of graduates who continue to graduate study are both derived from the program mix.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$3,106
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$16,219
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$13,113

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 / State University of New York at Cortland briefing

State University of New York at Cortland acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Admission is less common at State University of New York at Cortland: 59.8% of applicants were admitted in the reported entering class. That rate is below the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 18,352 first-year applicants, 11,451 admitted, and 1,353 enrolled.

Admissions
Admission rate
59.8%
Read the full admissions brief

04 / State University of New York at Cortland briefing

What are the largest majors at State University of New York at Cortland?[12]

Earnings vary across larger programs at State University of New York at Cortland, with Special Education and Teaching at the higher end. Four years after completion, its median earnings are $74,079, alongside 86 degrees awarded.

Business/Managerial Economics also sits toward the higher-earning end, with $66,644 in median earnings and 93 degrees awarded. The large education fields are more moderate by comparison: Subject-Area Teacher Education reports median earnings of $63,201 across 233 degrees awarded, while Kinesiology and Physical Education reports $56,466 and 236 degrees awarded.

These figures show that earnings differ by field even among the university's larger programs.

At State University of New York at Cortland, earnings differ across the largest fields, so the choice of field carries weight. The range across these large fields makes program-level results more informative than a single campuswide figure.

The degree mix at State University of New York at Cortland is concentrated in fields that lead directly to public-sector and service careers. Education accounts for 32.1% of bachelor's degrees awarded, with Parks, Recreation & Fitness next at 16.7% and Social Sciences at 10.9%.

The university has 17 programs with published four-year earnings data. The largest single program is Kinesiology and Physical Education, at 236 degrees awarded a year.

Its graduates earn a median of $56,466 four years after completion, a benchmark ratio of 1.03x against the national median for its field. Subject-Area Teacher Education is nearly as large, with 233 degrees awarded and median earnings of $63,201.

The highest-earning program is a smaller one. Special Education and Teaching graduates earn $74,079 four years out, from 86 degrees awarded a year.

That is a benchmark ratio of 1.47x against the national median for its field. Business/Managerial Economics, the fourth-largest program, follows at $66,644.

The pattern is one of modest but steady earnings across the largest programs, with the best-paid fields sitting inside the education family rather than outside it. Across all fields, 6.3% of degrees are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness 236 degrees awarded
$56,466
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas 233 degrees awarded
$63,201
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods 138 degrees awarded
$62,275
Business/Managerial Economics 93 degrees awarded
$66,644
Special Education and Teaching 86 degrees awarded
$74,079
Psychology, General 80 degrees awarded
$56,366

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 / State University of New York at Cortland briefing

How does State University of New York at Cortland serve students from different backgrounds?

Completion is the clearest strength in this mobility picture: the first-time full-time cohort has a 68.0% six-year graduation rate, and Pell recipients complete within six years at 65.1%, below the overall rate by 2.9 percentage points. Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 84th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, point the other way. Graduates earn about $13,113 less than the model expects for similar students.

Azimuth places in the 12th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

At State University of New York at Cortland, access begins with an admission rate of 59.8% and undergraduate enrollment of 5,901. Pell Grants reach 27.4% of undergraduates, and an estimated 22.4% arrive as transfers or part-time students.

Azimuth places the access pillar in the 69th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. These measures describe admission, grant reach, and transfer entry at the public university.

06 / State University of New York at Cortland briefing

What colleges are similar to State University of New York at Cortland?[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 State University of New York at Cortland.

Admissions peerHartwick College69.6% admitted
Comparison with State University of New York at Cortland
MeasureState University of New York at CortlandHartwick College
Peer earnings · 4 years$58,555$60,324+$1,769 vs State University of New York at Cortland
Average annual net price$22,345$31,320+$8,975 vs State University of New York at Cortland · higher cost
Admission rate59.8%69.6%
Higher-admission alternativeAlfred University73.8% admitted
Comparison with State University of New York at Cortland
MeasureState University of New York at CortlandAlfred University
Peer earnings · 4 years$58,555$58,242-$313 vs State University of New York at Cortland
Average annual net price$22,345$25,620+$3,275 vs State University of New York at Cortland · higher cost
Admission rate59.8%73.8%
Explore Alfred University →
Nearby alternativeSUNY OneontaNearby option · NY
Comparison with State University of New York at Cortland
MeasureState University of New York at CortlandSUNY Oneonta
Peer earnings · 4 years$58,555$58,809+$254 vs State University of New York at Cortland
Average annual net price$22,345$19,158-$3,187 vs State University of New York at Cortland · lower cost
Admission rate59.8%69.6%
Explore SUNY Oneonta →
Higher-earnings alternativeMaine Maritime Academy$113,298 earnings
Comparison with State University of New York at Cortland
MeasureState University of New York at CortlandMaine Maritime Academy
Peer earnings · 4 years$58,555$113,298+$54,743 vs State University of New York at Cortland
Average annual net price$22,345$23,414+$1,069 vs State University of New York at Cortland · higher cost
Admission rate59.8%54.1%
Explore Maine Maritime Academy →
Lower-cost alternativeSUNY College at Geneseo$18,211 average net price
Comparison with State University of New York at Cortland
MeasureState University of New York at CortlandSUNY College at Geneseo
Peer earnings · 4 years$58,555$63,560+$5,005 vs State University of New York at Cortland
Average annual net price$22,345$18,211-$4,134 vs State University of New York at Cortland · lower cost
Admission rate59.8%66.5%
Explore SUNY College at Geneseo →
Similar profileSUNY BrockportMatched across several measures
Comparison with State University of New York at Cortland
MeasureState University of New York at CortlandSUNY Brockport
Peer earnings · 4 years$58,555$57,799-$756 vs State University of New York at Cortland
Average annual net price$22,345$16,353-$5,992 vs State University of New York at Cortland · lower cost
Admission rate59.8%70.7%
Explore SUNY Brockport →

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