Research brief & institution hub

SUNY College at Potsdam

NYSmall public institution · Overall rank #955 nationally

Data snapshot September 27, 2026Updated October 1, 2026

Azimuth places SUNY College at Potsdam in the 35th percentile overall.

Who it’s a good fit for

SUNY College at Potsdam is a public university in Potsdam, New York, where Education and the Visual and Performing Arts dominate the degree mix. The largest program is also the highest-earning one, and affordability is above average.

Graduates earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes that gap to a remainder it cannot explain, which subtracts from earnings, while the factors it measures also subtract.

Return is below the levels seen at many peers. Pell recipients complete at a rate slightly above the entering cohort as a whole, and access and mobility both sit around the average.

The lowest income band pays well below the published cost, while the highest pays closer to it. The admission rate is below the median for comparable schools, and most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study.

SUNY College at Potsdam at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate^[1]: 77.7%
Six-year completion^[2]: 45.3%
Four-year earnings^[3]: $49,169

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income^[6]: $14,524
Median student debt^[4]: $24,250
Median Parent PLUS debt^[7]: $19,000

SUNY College at Potsdam rankings: how Azimuth assesses value^[5]

SUNY College at Potsdam is a public university in Potsdam, New York, enrolling 1,823 undergraduates. Its composite standing in the Azimuth ranking sits in the lower third of the field among nonprofit four-year institutions (35th percentile).

The university admits 77.7% of applicants, a rate that is more selective than the 83.4% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Among full-time first-year students, 77.7% return for a second year, compared with a median of 73.4% for similar schools.

The six-year graduation rate is 45.3%, against a peer median of 43.5%. An estimated 30.7% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate captures only the first-time, full-time cohort, which data indicate is the majority of entrants.

The four are spread out. Affordability is the strongest, while return is the weakest. Access and mobility sit close together in the middle of the pack.

Affordability is the clearest part of the profile, while return is the area that most tempers the overall picture at SUNY College at Potsdam. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, affordability stands in the 73rd percentile, the university’s strongest pillar.

Azimuth places access in the 51st percentile and mobility in the 46th percentile. Return, the weakest pillar, is in the 13th percentile. The stronger affordability reading sits alongside a much weaker return reading.

40.3% of undergraduates at SUNY College at Potsdam receive Pell Grants. Those students complete at a rate of 47.8%, which is 2.5 percentage points above the overall six-year graduation rate for the entering cohort.

Azimuth ranks the university #724 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks SUNY College at Potsdam #795 for mobility. Graduates earn about $11,532 less than the model expects for similar students.

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

SUNY College at Potsdam rankings in context
Geography	Rank
National	#955

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility: National percentile: 46

Access & reach: National percentile: 51

Affordability: National percentile: 73

Return on investment: National percentile: 13

01 / SUNY College at Potsdam briefing

SUNY College at Potsdam cost & financial aid^[6]^[7]

At SUNY College at Potsdam, aid recipients have an average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, of $13,624 against a published cost of attendance of $25,083. Published in-state tuition and fees are $8,768 and room and board are $15,280; out-of-state tuition and fees are $18,678.

Average aid reduces the published cost by $11,459 for recipients. Among comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median net price is $12,822.

The college's is $802 above that peer median. Azimuth ranks SUNY College at Potsdam #387 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid cuts the listed price substantially, though the average net price remains above the comparable-institution median.

The published cost of attendance is $25,083, with in-state tuition and fees at $8,768 and room and board at $15,280. Azimuth ranks SUNY College at Potsdam #387 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 average $8,623, those in the $48,001–$75,000 band average $14,524, and those earning over $110,000 average $20,041. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $11,418.

Grants and scholarships lower the sticker price by an average of $11,459 for aid recipients, leaving an average net price of $13,624 across all bands. The average net price is $802 above the $12,822 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $24,250 in federal student loans, which is $4,750 above the $19,500 median for comparable institutions. 92.3% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $19,000 in Parent PLUS loans. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $276 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$14,524

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at SUNY College at Potsdam

Federal borrowing is widespread at SUNY College at Potsdam, where 92.3% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. Among borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $24,250.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $19,500. SUNY College at Potsdam's median is $4,750 above that benchmark.

For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $19,000. The borrowing rate and above-peer median show that debt is a material part of the cost picture here.

Affordability is the stronger part of the picture at SUNY College at Potsdam, but the return figures are less favorable. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $49,169 four years after completion.

That level falls in the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, also sits in the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $11,532 less than the model expects for similar students. The earnings scenarios run from $38,375 in a downside scenario to $63,029 in an upside scenario; the typical scenario matches the reported median earnings.

Median federal student debt at completion is $24,250, $4,750 above the $19,500 peer median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $276 a month if repaid over ten years. Lower earnings and higher debt than peers point in the same direction.

Parent borrowers using Parent PLUS have median borrowing of $19,000, separate from federal student loan borrowers. For the median federal debt, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $276 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: $24,250
Institution Parent PLUS debt: $19,000

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

Estimated student payment · monthly: $276/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly: $241/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 / SUNY College at Potsdam briefing

SUNY College at Potsdam career outcomes & earnings^[3]^[8]^[9]

The return pillar at SUNY College at Potsdam is the weakest of the four, at the 13th percentile. Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $49,169, at the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

That is $3,947 below the $53,116 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Graduates earn about $11,532 less than the model expects for similar students.

That places the gap at the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures subtracts $433. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $11,099.

The earnings picture at SUNY College at Potsdam is modest: federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $49,169 four years after completion. Azimuth places that measure in the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, from an earnings cohort of 723 completers.

Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is negative here. Graduates earn about $11,532 less than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings scenarios based on the program mix put downside earnings at $38,375, typical earnings at $49,169, and upside earnings at $63,029. An estimated 30.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. The earnings percentile and the model comparison point in the same direction.

Four years after completion, federally aided graduates at SUNY College at Potsdam working and not enrolled earn a median of $49,169, in the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size) is $53,116, leaving the university $3,947 below that figure.

Azimuth ranks the university #1,283 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $11,532 less than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings beyond expectations measure the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students. That places the earnings gap at the 16th 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) subtracts $433. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $11,099.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $82. The largest degree fields are education and the visual and performing arts, followed by business programs.

Estimated from the program mix, the downside earnings scenario is $38,375 and the upside scenario is $63,029. An estimated 30.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Program mix leaves a wide modeled range around the typical earnings picture at SUNY College at Potsdam. The downside earnings scenario is $38,375, and the upside scenario is $63,029; both are scenarios estimated from the program mix, not observed groups.

Among the higher-earning fields, median earnings four years after completion are $57,949 in Subject-Area Teacher Education, $57,066 in Business Administration and Management, and $53,834 in Teacher Education. Those field results sit toward the upper end of the modeled range.

Borrowers who complete at SUNY College at Potsdam carry more federal student loan debt than comparable institutions, alongside lower-than-expected earnings. Median federal student loan debt is $24,250 for federal-loan borrowers who completed, excluding Parent PLUS and private loans.

That is above the $19,500 peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), by $4,750. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $276 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parent borrowers who used Parent PLUS loans have median borrowing of $19,000, a separate population from student borrowers. Graduates earn about $11,532 less than the model expects for similar students.

Higher borrowing than comparable institutions and lower-than-expected earnings point in the same direction for the return picture.

What explains value-added earnings?

Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.: -$433
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.: -$11,099
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.: -$11,532

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

Read the full outcomes brief

Read the full admissions brief

04 / SUNY College at Potsdam briefing

What are the largest majors at SUNY College at Potsdam?^[12]

At SUNY College at Potsdam, Education accounts for 25.0% of bachelor's degrees awarded, with several of its largest fields among the higher-earning programs. Subject-Area Teacher Education had median earnings of $57,949 four years after completion and 106 degrees awarded in one academic year.

Business Administration and Management recorded $57,066 and 61 degrees awarded. Teacher Education posted $53,834 with 58 degrees awarded.

At a more moderate level, Music showed $36,677 and 46 degrees awarded. The contrast between the education and business fields and music shows that four-year earnings vary materially by field.

Education accounts for 25.0% of bachelor’s degrees awarded, placing teacher-focused study at the center of the program mix. Published earnings data cover 16 fields. The largest fields span markedly different earnings figures.

SUNY College at Potsdam awards bachelor's degrees across 16 programs with published four-year earnings data. The program mix is anchored by Education, which accounts for 25.0% of degrees awarded, followed by Visual & Performing Arts at 16.6% and Business at 9.3%.

The largest single programs are Subject-Area Teacher Education at 106 degrees awarded, Business Administration and Management at 61, and Teacher Education at 58. The highest-earning program is also the largest.

Subject-Area Teacher Education graduates earn a median of $57,949 four years after completion, which is 1.13x the national median for its field. Business Administration and Management follows at $57,066, though that figure sits at 0.84x the national median.

Teacher Education and Criminal Justice round out the top earners, at $53,834 and $53,597 respectively. Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management, a smaller program with 19 degrees awarded, reports median earnings of $52,583.

The pattern is concentrated: the largest programs are also the best-paid ones, and the earnings spread across the top five is narrow. 10.5% of degrees are in STEM fields.

A student drawn to the arts should know that Music, the fifth-largest program, reports median earnings of $36,677, well below the top of the list.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields

Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas 106 degrees awarded: $57,949
Business Administration, Management and Operations 61 degrees awarded: $57,066
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods 58 degrees awarded: $53,834
Psychology, General 57 degrees awarded: $48,601
Music 46 degrees awarded: $36,677
History 35 degrees awarded: $45,234

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 / SUNY College at Potsdam briefing

How does SUNY College at Potsdam serve students from different backgrounds?

Pell recipients in the first-time full-time cohort complete within six years at 47.8%, above the overall six-year graduation rate of 45.3% by 2.5 percentage points. Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 46th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $11,532 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, sits in the 16th percentile.

Completion is somewhat stronger for Pell recipients, but the modeled earnings picture is weaker.

Pell Grant recipients make up 40.3% of undergraduates at SUNY College at Potsdam, indicating a substantial financial-access presence. The public university admits 77.7% of applicants, enrolls 1,823 undergraduates, and has an estimated 30.7% share of entrants outside the first-time, full-time group.

Azimuth places its access pillar in the 51st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Pell participation and transfer entry describe a campus serving several routes into undergraduate study.

06 / SUNY College at Potsdam briefing

What colleges are similar to SUNY College at Potsdam?^[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 SUNY College at Potsdam.

Admissions peerPaul Smiths College of Arts and Science76.5% admitted

Comparison with SUNY College at Potsdam
Measure	SUNY College at Potsdam	Paul Smiths College of Arts and Science
Peer earnings · 4 years	$49,169	$48,703-$466 vs SUNY College at Potsdam
Average annual net price	$13,624	$26,683+$13,059 vs SUNY College at Potsdam · higher cost
Admission rate	77.7%	76.5%

Higher-admission alternativeRochester Christian University97.7% admitted

Comparison with SUNY College at Potsdam
Measure	SUNY College at Potsdam	Rochester Christian University
Peer earnings · 4 years	$49,169	$50,000+$831 vs SUNY College at Potsdam
Average annual net price	$13,624	$21,456+$7,832 vs SUNY College at Potsdam · higher cost
Admission rate	77.7%	97.7%

Nearby alternativePaul Smiths College of Arts and ScienceNearby option · NY

Comparison with SUNY College at Potsdam
Measure	SUNY College at Potsdam	Paul Smiths College of Arts and Science
Peer earnings · 4 years	$49,169	$48,703-$466 vs SUNY College at Potsdam
Average annual net price	$13,624	$26,683+$13,059 vs SUNY College at Potsdam · higher cost
Admission rate	77.7%	76.5%

Higher-earnings alternativeSan Jose State University$89,614 earnings

Comparison with SUNY College at Potsdam
Measure	SUNY College at Potsdam	San Jose State University
Peer earnings · 4 years	$49,169	$89,614+$40,445 vs SUNY College at Potsdam
Average annual net price	$13,624	$13,760+$136 vs SUNY College at Potsdam · higher cost
Admission rate	77.7%	84.6%

Explore San Jose State University →

Lower-cost alternativeSan Diego Christian College$992 average net price

Comparison with SUNY College at Potsdam
Measure	SUNY College at Potsdam	San Diego Christian College
Peer earnings · 4 years	$49,169	$50,741+$1,572 vs SUNY College at Potsdam
Average annual net price	$13,624	$992-$12,632 vs SUNY College at Potsdam · lower cost
Admission rate	77.7%	30.8%

Similar profileSUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at CobleskillMatched across several measures

Comparison with SUNY College at Potsdam
Measure	SUNY College at Potsdam	SUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill
Peer earnings · 4 years	$49,169	$50,709+$1,540 vs SUNY College at Potsdam
Average annual net price	$13,624	$18,701+$5,077 vs SUNY College at Potsdam · higher cost
Admission rate	77.7%	84.0%

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 September 27, 2026Governed hub narrative September 27, 2026Governed spoke corpus September 27, 2026

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.

Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.
Source fields: ADM_RATE
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.
Source fields: RET_FT4
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
Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.
Source fields: PCTPELL
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
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