Sarah Lawrence College Liberal Arts and General Studies (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
  • Private nonprofit college
  • Bronxville, NY
  • About 312 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Sarah Lawrence College liberal arts and general studies graduates earn less than graduates of most liberal arts and general studies programs nationally, $25,846 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,245 in federal loans, close to the national median of $27,000. Several New York programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$25,84611th percentile of 395 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$42,67265% more than year one
Median federal debt$24,2458th lowest of 20 New York programs
Debt-to-earnings94%New York median 73%, national 73%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The New York and national columns are the medians across all liberal arts and general studies bachelor's programs that report the figure.

Five years out, Sarah Lawrence College graduates earn less than the national figure and about $5,623 less than the New York median. Several New York programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every New York liberal arts and general studies program

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

Sarah Lawrence CollegeOther 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 65% between the first and fifth year.

Sarah Lawrence College grads, year 1$25,846
Sarah Lawrence College grads, year 5$42,672
All New York liberal arts and general studies grads, year 5$48,295

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 about the same in their first year as other graduates. They also borrowed less. At this program, the outcome does not look worse for students with less money.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$25,033Median debt $23,908
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$25,663Median debt $24,500

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $257 a month, or 11.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

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 $52,934.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

42% of graduates (107 of 255) were working in New York one year after graduating. Prices in the New York area are about 13% above the national average, so a $25,846 salary here buys what about $22,961 buys in a typical US city.

About Sarah Lawrence College

Liberal Arts and General Studies is the only bachelor's program at Sarah Lawrence College that reports first-year earnings.

Other liberal arts and general studies bachelor's programs near Bronxville

Common questions

The median graduate earns $25,846 one year after graduating and $42,672 five years after. The median across liberal arts and general studies bachelor's programs in New York is $35,817.

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 liberal arts and general studies program.

Sources

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

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