10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$185,886at year 10Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
Mercyhurst University
⌖ Erie, PA · 32 reportable field-and-credential outcomes
10-year estimate · Negative payoff
−$185,886 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.
35.9 yrsModeled economic break-even
−72%Modeled 10-year ROI
$52,189Observed earnings · year 5
Not reachedMaximum annual price for positive 10-year payoff
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT → PAYBACK
Estimated payoff over ten years.
The scenario counts direct price and earnings forgone upfront, then applies the reported annual earnings premium.
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.
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
- City
- Admissions
- Selective admission
- Delivery
- Campus or mixed delivery
- Federal designation
- No special designation reported
Cost, debt, completion and earnings context
$19,444Average net price / year
$59,557Cost of attendance
$25,305Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$268/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$52,189Median earnings · year 5 after completion
60.2%Completion rate
81.0%Admission rate
2,191Student size
Institution debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded; missing and privacy-suppressed values remain unavailable.
NATIONAL CONTEXT
How this college compares
Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.
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.
EARNINGS PATH
Reported earnings over time
$39,521Year 1
$57,293Year 4
$52,189Year 5
Separate federal cohorts may underlie different measurement years.
The college average is not the whole story.
Observed earnings vary substantially by field and credential at the same institution.
1Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions · Master's Degree$124,3782Intelligence, Command Control and Information Operations · Master's Degree$107,2543Intelligence, Command Control and Information Operations · Bachelor's Degree$86,5974Accounting and Related Services · Bachelor's Degree$86,5965Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General · Bachelor's Degree$83,8126Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Associate's Degree$77,8647Political Science and Government · Bachelor's Degree$76,1548Marketing · Bachelor's Degree$74,187Observed year-4 earnings · compare like fields and credentials before deciding
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.
1Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, GeneralBachelor's Degree · $83,812 reported+37%vs same-degree national median$26,000federal debt2Political Science and GovernmentBachelor's Degree · $76,154 reported+20%vs same-degree national median$25,000federal debt3Intelligence, Command Control and Information OperationsBachelor's Degree · $86,597 reported+14%vs same-degree national median$25,625federal debt4Accounting and Related ServicesBachelor's Degree · $86,596 reported+14%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt5Biology, GeneralBachelor's Degree · $65,000 reported+14%vs same-degree national median$27,000federal debt6MarketingBachelor's Degree · $74,187 reported+7%vs same-degree national median$26,000federal debt
Comparable colleges in PA
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.
Williamsport, PA
Lycoming College
- Annual net price
- $19,140
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $53,116
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -68%
Westminster College
- Annual net price
- $19,859
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $53,025
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -69%
Rosedale Technical College
- Annual net price
- $19,760
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $50,528
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -79%
Rosemont College
- Annual net price
- $20,150
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $54,584
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -63%
Explore exact field-and-credential outcomes
| Federal field | Credential | Earnings, year 4 | Federal debt | 2023–24 awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions | Master's Degree | $124,378 | Not available | Not reported |
| Intelligence, Command Control and Information Operations | Master's Degree | $107,254 | Not available | Not reported |
| Intelligence, Command Control and Information Operations | Bachelor's Degree | $86,597 | $25,625 | 2 |
| Accounting and Related Services | Bachelor's Degree | $86,596 | Not available | 0 |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General | Bachelor's Degree | $83,812 | $26,000 | Not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Associate's Degree | $77,864 | $36,000 | Not reported |
| Political Science and Government | Bachelor's Degree | $76,154 | $25,000 | Not reported |
| Marketing | Bachelor's Degree | $74,187 | $26,000 | Not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Bachelor's Degree | $72,411 | $26,000 | 4 |
| Biology, General | Bachelor's Degree | $65,000 | $27,000 | Not reported |
| Finance and Financial Management Services | Bachelor's Degree | $63,128 | $27,000 | Not reported |
| Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations | Bachelor's Degree | $61,066 | $26,950 | 0 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Master's Degree | $58,112 | Not available | Not reported |
| Security Science and Technology | Bachelor's Degree | $55,665 | Not available | Not reported |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | Bachelor's Degree | $54,902 | $26,000 | 0 |
| Public Health | Bachelor's Degree | $54,182 | $25,000 | Not reported |
| Hospitality Administration/Management | Bachelor's Degree | $53,812 | $26,000 | Not reported |
| Special Education and Teaching | Master's Degree | $51,575 | Not available | Not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | Master's Degree | $50,399 | Not available | Not reported |
| Special Education and Teaching | Bachelor's Degree | $49,638 | $27,000 | 2 |
| Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other | Bachelor's Degree | $47,652 | $26,000 | 0 |
| Design and Applied Arts | Bachelor's Degree | $45,411 | $27,000 | 0 |
| Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services | Associate's Degree | $45,013 | $28,332 | Not reported |
| Psychology, General | Bachelor's Degree | $43,694 | $26,000 | Not reported |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | Associate's Degree | $42,983 | $12,547 | Not reported |
| Dance | Bachelor's Degree | $41,049 | $27,000 | Not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Associate's Degree | $40,802 | $12,000 | Not reported |
| Communication and Media Studies | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $26,000 | Not reported |
| English Language and Literature, General | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $25,500 | Not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | Associate's Degree | Not available | $12,000 | Not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $45,660 | Not reported |
| Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $25,000 | Not 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.