Business Operations Support and Assistant Services at Bryant & Stratton College-Virginia Beach

The earnings trajectory here should immediately concern any parent: graduates earn $30,125 their first year but see that drop to $26,332 by year four—a 13% decline that's the opposite of what you want from a degree investment. While this program performs above the national median for business operations programs, it lands squarely in the middle of Virginia offerings (40th percentile), and nearby community colleges like Tidewater and Virginia Peninsula deliver stronger outcomes at likely lower cost.

The debt picture compounds the problem. At $27,300, graduates carry about $7,000 more debt than the Virginia median for this program, creating a nearly 1:1 debt-to-earnings ratio in year one that only worsens as earnings decline. Given that 62% of students here receive Pell grants, this debt burden hits families who can least afford a program that doesn't build toward higher earnings.

The sample size is small—under 30 graduates tracked—so these numbers could shift with more data. But right now, the pattern is clear: paying premium tuition for outcomes that trail the state's community college options doesn't make financial sense. If your child is set on this career path, exploring the community college alternatives that deliver better earnings with less debt would be the smarter play.