Bachelor's · Flushing, New York

Is Mechanical Engineering at Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology 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 in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 3.6 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $85,630; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $110,907; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $19,750; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $159k (likely $159k – $207k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $74k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in NY; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 3.6 years (likely 2.9–4.8); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $348k (likely $154k – $555k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $1.19M (likely $814k – $1.68M); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 43%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26