Economics at St. John's University-New York

St. John's economics graduates start well below expectations—earning $45,301 in their first year puts them in just the 24th percentile nationally and 40th percentile among New York programs. That's roughly $6,000 less than the typical economics grad in the state. The bright spot is strong earnings growth: by year four, median pay jumps to $76,529, a 69% increase that closes much of the gap with peers.

The debt load of $23,250 is reasonable and roughly aligned with national norms, yielding a manageable 0.51 debt-to-earnings ratio. However, the small sample size here—fewer than 30 graduates tracked—means these numbers could swing significantly with just a few outliers. This program may be too small to reliably predict outcomes.

For families considering St. John's economics, the question is whether that initial earnings lag matters. If your student plans to stay in New York's competitive job market, they'll be starting behind peers from higher-ranked programs like Barnard or Cornell (both earning over $80,000 by year four). The eventual catch-up is encouraging, but the first few years after graduation could be financially tighter than expected. Given the uncertainty from limited data, this is a program where individual student performance and networking will likely matter more than the average suggests.