University at Albany Area Studies (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Area Studies
- Public university
- Albany, NY
- About 17 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release ยท BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
University at Albany area studies graduates earn about what area studies graduates earn nationally, $32,808 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $22,305 in federal loans, close to the national median of $20,925. Several New York programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The New York and national columns are the medians across all area studies bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Debt and first-year pay at every New York area studies program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the New York medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $236 a month, or 8.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
Prices in the Albany area are about the same as the national average.
About University at Albany
Area Studies ranks 18th of 31 bachelor's programs at University at Albany by first-year earnings. The top three are Applied Mathematics ($65,604), Accounting ($55,124), and Other Mathematics ($51,917).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $32,808 one year after graduating. The median across area studies bachelor's programs in New York is $37,041.
The median federal loan balance is $22,305, which ranks 3rd lowest of 6 area studies bachelor's programs in New York. That works out to about $236 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 68% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 61%. Compare the cost with other New York programs before deciding.
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 area studies 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