Psychology at CUNY Bernard M Baruch College

Baruch's psychology program ranks in the 78th percentile nationally but drops to the 60th percentile against New York competitors—yet this undersells its actual value. The program carries just $13,470 in median debt, dramatically lower than both the $25,500 national median and New York's $25,000 median. That low debt makes the modest starting salary of $35,149 entirely manageable, with a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.38 that most private colleges would envy.

The 56% earnings growth over four years tells an important story: Baruch grads start below some peers but catch up quickly, reaching nearly $55,000 by year four. For a CUNY school serving 55% Pell-eligible students, this trajectory matters more than first-year numbers. You're essentially getting a psychology degree for half the typical cost while maintaining solid career prospects—a combination that's rare even among New York's 92 programs offering this major.

The calculus here is straightforward: if your child plans to pursue careers where a psychology BA is the foundation (HR, social services, graduate school), paying $13,470 instead of $25,000+ preserves flexibility for what comes next. That extra $12,000 in avoided debt could fund a semester of graduate school or simply provide breathing room during those early career years when every dollar counts.