Associate's · Loch Sheldrake, New York

Is Culinary Arts and Related Services at Sullivan County Community College worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back slowly: graduates typically recover the cost in about 8.2 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: Not enough graduates to report; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $39,009; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: Not enough borrowers to report; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $4k (likely $4k – $5k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $930 a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in NY; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 8.2 years (likely 0.7–20+); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$72k (likely −$151k – $22k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: −$46k (likely −$207k – $159k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 26%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26