Private nonprofit · COLLEGE PAYOFF

Bard College

Annandale-On-Hudson, NY · 10 reportable field-and-credential outcomes

10-year estimate · Negative payoff

−$390,926 over 10 years

Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.

With these assumptions, the added earnings do not recover the cost within ten years.

Modeled economic break-even
−123%Modeled 10-year ROI
$37,767Observed earnings · year 5
Not reachedMaximum annual price for positive 10-year payoff
Includes direct price and earnings forgone while studying. Assumes $45,000 in alternative annual earnings and no wage growth. How we calculate it
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT → PAYBACK

Estimated payoff over ten years.

The scenario counts direct price and earnings forgone upfront, then applies the reported annual earnings premium.

10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$390,926at year 10
Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
−$318,5960
2
4
6
8
−$390,92610
Years after graduationBreak-even: years
FEDERAL COST DATA

Four ways to read college price.

Annual college-wide figures from the current College Scorecard release. Average net price covers full-time, first-time undergraduates receiving federal aid; public-college figures use in-state students. Program tuition and individual aid offers may differ.

Published in-state tuition$66,436
Sticker price
Published out-of-state tuition$66,436
Sticker price
Average net price$34,649
Title IV student average
Cost of attendance$84,553
Tuition + living budget
PRICE SOURCECollege reported · annual amount · federal dataset
COLLEGE AT A GLANCE

Institution details

Current federal characteristics describing the college—not the outcomes of a specific program.

Accreditor
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
Main award level
Bachelor’s degrees
Campus setting
Rural
Admissions
Selective admission
Delivery
Campus or mixed delivery
Federal designation
No special designation reported
Sources: College Scorecard June 2026 release and IPEDS 2024 institutional characteristics.
OBSERVED FEDERAL MEASURES

Cost, debt, completion and earnings context

$34,649Average net price / year
$84,553Cost of attendance
$24,254Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$257/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$37,767Median earnings · year 5 after completion
67.6%Completion rate
52.1%Admission rate
2,414Student size

Institution debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded; missing and privacy-suppressed values remain unavailable.

PRICE BY FAMILY INCOME

Average net price is not one price

Federal averages for aided students in each family-income band. Your aid offer can differ.

$0–30k$19,012
$30–48k$21,038
$48–75k$22,139
$75–110k$28,185
$110k+$44,873
LONGER-TERM CONTEXT

What happens beyond the first earnings measure

Year 5$37,767
Year 6$31,072
Year 10$46,543
Full-time retention
84.6%
Part-time retention
Not available
Completion within 200% of normal time
72.4%

Earnings timepoints may use different historical cohorts and should not be read as one group’s guaranteed salary growth.

NATIONAL CONTEXT

How this college compares

Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.

34thEarnings percentile
63thCompletion percentile
WHAT STANDS OUT

A faster read on this college

These summaries use only reportable field-and-credential records at this institution. They do not fill privacy-suppressed outcomes.

$48,961Median year-4 earnings across reportable program categories
$26,861Median federal debt across categories that report debt
50%Of earnings-reporting categories above their same-field national benchmark
EARNINGS PATH

Reported earnings over time

$21,735Year 1
$45,380Year 4
$37,767Year 5

Separate federal cohorts may underlie different measurement years.

PROGRAM PAYOFF SPREAD

The college average is not the whole story.

Observed earnings vary substantially by field and credential at the same institution.

1Business Administration, Management and Operations · Master's Degree$103,5822Biological and Physical Sciences · Bachelor's Degree$64,5183Fine and Studio Arts · Master's Degree$63,4914Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods · Master's Degree$51,2125English Language and Literature/Letters, Other · Bachelor's Degree$50,4026Music · Master's Degree$48,9617Social Sciences, General · Bachelor's Degree$48,7518Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities · Bachelor's Degree$38,298

Observed year-4 earnings · compare like fields and credentials before deciding

Strongest relative outcomes

Programs that stand out against the same-degree benchmark

This view rewards performance relative to the same field and credential—not simply majors that pay more everywhere.

1Fine and Studio ArtsMaster's Degree · $63,491 reported+29%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt2Biological and Physical SciencesBachelor's Degree · $64,518 reported+10%vs same-degree national median$27,000federal debt3English Language and Literature/Letters, OtherBachelor's Degree · $50,402 reported+8%vs same-degree national median$26,861federal debt4MusicMaster's Degree · $48,961 reported+1%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt5Business Administration, Management and OperationsMaster's Degree · $103,582 reported+0%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt6Social Sciences, GeneralBachelor's Degree · $48,751 reported-9%vs same-degree national median$24,747federal debt
BUILD A REAL SHORTLIST

Comparable colleges in NY

Currently operating private nonprofit institutions with the closest combination of annual net price and observed year-5 earnings. Similarity is descriptive—not a quality ranking.

Barrytown, NY

Simon's Rock at Bard College

Annual net price
$31,625
Observed earnings · year 5
$37,767
Modeled 10-year ROI
-124%
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Hyde Park, NY

Culinary Institute of America

Annual net price
$36,113
Observed earnings · year 5
$42,127
Modeled 10-year ROI
-109%
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Brooklyn, NY

Merkaz Bnos-Business School

Annual net price
$31,786
Observed earnings · year 5
$32,322
Modeled 10-year ROI
-141%
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Bronxville, NY

Sarah Lawrence College

Annual net price
$41,437
Observed earnings · year 5
$42,787
Modeled 10-year ROI
-106%
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ALL REPORTABLE PROGRAM CATEGORIES

Explore exact field-and-credential outcomes

Federal fieldCredentialEarnings, year 4Federal debt2023–24 awards
Business Administration, Management and OperationsMaster's Degree$103,582Not availableNot reported
Biological and Physical SciencesBachelor's Degree$64,518$27,000Not reported
Fine and Studio ArtsMaster's Degree$63,491Not availableNot reported
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and MethodsMaster's Degree$51,212Not availableNot reported
English Language and Literature/Letters, OtherBachelor's Degree$50,402$26,861Not reported
MusicMaster's Degree$48,961Not availableNot reported
Social Sciences, GeneralBachelor's Degree$48,751$24,747Not reported
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesBachelor's Degree$38,298Not availableNot reported
Fine and Studio ArtsBachelor's Degree$34,667$27,000Not reported
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssociate's Degree$34,571Not availableNot reported

Awards use first-major IPEDS completions aggregated to the same four-digit field and credential.

Earnings, price, completion and enrollment are observed federal measures. ROI, payoff and break-even are modeled scenarios built from those measures and fixed assumptions. College payoff is not the payoff of every degree at this school; use the program table for a more precise comparison.