Is a public relations and advertising degree from Fashion Institute of Technology worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 58% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 62%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 5% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several New York programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Fashion Institute of Technology Public Relations and Advertising (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Fashion Institute of Technology public relations and advertising graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $21,500, which ranks the lowest of 12 public relations and advertising bachelor's programs in New York. That works out to about $228 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do Fashion Institute of Technology public relations and advertising graduates stay in New York?

Most do. 75% (263 of 351) were working in New York one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication
Public school
New York, NY
About 275 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Fashion Institute of Technology public relations and advertising graduates earn about what public relations and advertising graduates earn nationally, $36,849 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $21,500 in federal loans, less than at 80% of public relations and advertising programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying public relations and advertising degrees in New York.

First-year earnings$36,84931st percentile of 179 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$66,37480% more than year one

Median federal debt$21,500The lowest of 12 New York programs

Debt-to-earnings58%New York median 61%, national 62%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The New York and national columns are the medians across all public relations and advertising bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Fashion Institute of Technology	New York	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$36,849	$38,828	$39,677
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$66,374	$66,212	$58,304
Median federal debt at graduation	$21,500	$25,000	$24,693
Debt as share of first-year pay	58%	61%	62%
Programs compared		12	179

Five years out, Fashion Institute of Technology graduates earn more than the national figure and about the same as the New York median.

Debt and first-year pay at every New York public relations and advertising program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the New York medians.

Fashion Institute of TechnologyOther New York programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

What graduates earn over time

Pay rises about 80% between the first and fifth year.

Fashion Institute of Technology grads, year 1$36,849

Fashion Institute of Technology grads, year 5$66,374

All New York public relations and advertising grads, year 5$66,212

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Does family income change the outcome?

Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned $4,780 less in their first year than other graduates. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$34,013Median debt $21,657

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$38,793Median debt $21,500

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $228 a month, or 7.4% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (307 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10–14%
Paying down the balance	40–44%
Paused payments (forbearance)	15–19%
In default	5% or less

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual. Separately, 96 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $34,885.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

75% of graduates (263 of 351) were working in New York one year after graduating. Prices in the New York area are about 13% above the national average, so a $36,849 salary here buys what about $32,736 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to public relations and advertising, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Training and Development Specialists

$76,080

Median pay in New York. 27,460 people work in this job in New York. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 11% from 2025 to 2035, with about 46,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $40,220Top 10%: $133,620

Public Relations Specialists

$81,250

Median pay in New York. 28,250 people work in this job in New York. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 23,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $51,730Top 10%: $157,610

Human Resources Managers

$176,650

Median pay in New York. 17,920 people work in this job in New York. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 16,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $105,380Top 10%: $321,880

Fundraisers

$80,540

Median pay in New York. 11,600 people work in this job in New York. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $53,670Top 10%: $132,510

About Fashion Institute of Technology

In-state tuition and fees	$6,294 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$16,874 / year
Average net price after aid	$19,095 / year
Admission rate	60%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	81%
Undergraduate students	7,637

Public Relations and Advertising ranks 4th of 9 bachelor's programs at Fashion Institute of Technology by first-year earnings. The top three are Specialized Sales and Merchandising ($42,717), Apparel and Textiles ($40,463), and Marketing ($37,663).

Other public relations and advertising bachelor's programs near New York

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Fashion Institute of TechnologyNew York, NY · public		$36,849	$21,500
Marymount Manhattan CollegeNew York, NY · private nonprofit	2 mi	$41,696	$25,000
Pace UniversityNew York, NY · private nonprofit	3 mi	$44,485	$25,000
St. John's UniversityQueens, NY · private nonprofit	11 mi	$38,210	$26,848
Manhattan UniversityRiverdale, NY · private nonprofit	11 mi	$26,502	$25,832
Hofstra UniversityHempstead, NY · private nonprofit	21 mi	$42,030	$24,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $36,849 one year after graduating and $66,374 five years after. The median across public relations and advertising bachelor's programs in New York is $38,828.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of New York comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the public relations and advertising program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

Public Relations and Advertising bachelor's programs in New York, ranked12 programs by pay and debt Public Relations and Advertising bachelor's programs in the US, ranked179 programs by pay and debt All Fashion Institute of Technology programs, ranked12 programs by pay and debt