Leaders & Laggards

A State-by-State Report Card on Public Postsecondary Education

New York

Student Access & Success

New York’s four-year institutions receive a good grade in this area, with both retention rates and the percentage of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants scoring in the top 10 nationally. The state’s two-year institutions receive an average grade, with the percentage of students receiving Pell Grants and completion rate both in the middle third of all states.

Efficiency & Cost-Effectiveness

New York receives a good grade for four-year institutions and an average grade for two-year institutions in this area, with four- and two-year costs per completion ($59,787 and $52,896, respectively) and state and local funding per completion ($44,152 and $33,386, respectively) that rank in the middle third of states.

Meeting Labor Market Demand

The median wage of a New York bachelor’s degree holder is approximately $22,600 (or 66%) more than the median wage of a high school graduate; the overall unemployment rate for a bachelor’s degree holder is about 1.5 points lower. The median wage of an associate’s degree holder is about $8,600 (or 25%) more than the median wage of a high school graduate; the overall unemployment rate is about 1 point lower.

Transparency & Accountability

Overall, New York receives below average marks in this area. While the consumer information and public accountability sources for the state do not include student outcomes information, the State University of New York (SUNY) system does provide a useful net price calculator for incoming students. New York does not track graduate labor market outcomes. Both the SUNY and City University of NewYork (CUNY) systems have very broad programs in place to measure student learning, although it’s unclear which assessments are being used and whether the results will be public.

Policy Environment

The New York plan has goals for student outcomes but not for system efficiency. The state does not have an outcomes-based funding system. And while the state’s articulation and credit transfer policy allows students to transfer individual courses, it comes with the caveat that, “Final determination of transfer credit acceptance is ultimately made by the campus registrar.”

Innovation

The SUNY Learning Network is a robust and easy to use portal displaying online degree programs and individual courses that are available across the state, and the state has a broad goal of expanding online learning. The CUNY system has created a pathway for students to take high-demand education courses online. Regarding new providers, New York is among the most open states in the country, earning the state an above average grade.

Report Card

Compare with

Four-Year Institutions

NY Nat'l
Student Access & Success B
Percentage of Pell Grant Recipients 41.8 30.8
Retention Rate 82.9 77.9
Completion Rate 57.2 54.5
Completions per 100 FTE Students 20.9 19.7
Risk-Adjusted Completion Points (5-point Scale) 4
Complete College America
Efficiency & Cost-Effectiveness B
Cost Per Completion $59,787 $68,140
State and Local Funding Per Completion $44,152 $41,198
State, Local, and Tuition Funding Per Completion $61,734 $76,932
Cost Per Completion and Public Funding Combined Measure (5-point scale) 4
Meeting Labor Market Demand C
BA vs. HS Wage Gap (Overall) $22,565 $17,881
BA vs. HS Wage Ratio (Overall) 165.5 156.0
BA vs. HS Wage Gap (25–34) $21,642 $12,703
BA vs. HS Wage Ratio (25–34) 176.3 149.9
BA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (Overall) 1.5 4.0
BA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (Overall) 1.3 2.1
BA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (25–34) 4.5 7.1
BA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (25–34) 1.8 2.9
Transparency & Accountability D
Transparency—Public Accountability (5-point Scale) 2.5
Transparency—Consumer Information (3-point Scale) 2
Does the State Report Labor Market Outcomes? false
Labor Market Outcomes (4-point Scale) 0
Does the State Report Student Learning Outcomes? true
Student Learning Outcomes (3-point Scale) 1

Two-Year Institutions

NY Nat'l
Student Access & Success C
Percentage of Pell Grant Recipients 52.6 46.9
Retention Rate 63.1 58.6
Completion Rate 20.8 20.5
Completions Per 100 FTE Undergraduates 18.3 16.8
Risk-Adjusted Completion Points (5-point Scale) 3
Efficiency & Cost-Effectiveness C
Cost Per Completion $52,896 $57,210
State and Local Funding Per Completion $33,386 $35,476
State, Local, and Tuition Funding Per Completion $46,759 $52,512
Cost Per Completion and Public Funding Combined MeasureCombined Measure (5-point Scale) 3
Meeting Labor Market Demand D
AA vs. HS Wage Gap (Overall) $8,565 $8,545
AA vs. HS Wage Ratio (Overall) 124.9 126.1
AA vs. HS Wage Gap (25–34) $7,216 $6,595
AA vs. HS Wage Ratio (25–34) 125.4 125.0
AA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (Overall) 0.9 2.7
AA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (Overall) 1.1 1.5
AA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (25–34) 2.4 4.9
AA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (25–34) 1.32 1.84
Transparency & Accountability D
Transparency—Public Accountability (5-point Scale) 1.5
Transparency—Consumer Information (3-point Scale) 2
Does the State Report Labor Market Outcomes? false
Labor Market Outcomes (4-point Scale) 0
Does the State Report Student Learning Outcomes? true
Student Learning Outcomes (3-point Scale) 1

State

NY Nat'l
Policy Environment D
State Goals (6-point Scale) 2
Does the State Have Outcomes-Based Funding? false
Four-Year Outcomes-Based Funding (3-point Scale) 0
Two-Years Outcomes-Based Funding (3-point Scale) 0
Does the State Have a Credit Transfer Policy? true
Credit Transfer Policy (5-point Scale) 3
Innovation: Openness to Providers B
Numerical Openness to New Providers Grade 87%
Regulatory Jurisdiction 100%
Financial Burden 100%
Approval Process Burden 60%
Innovation: Online Learning B
Numerical Online Learning Grade 71.4
Online Learning Score (7-point Scale) 5

State Facts at a Glance

  • Number of Public Four-Year Institutions 31
  • Number of Public Two-Year Institutions 43
  • Number of Students Served by Public Four-Year Institutions 248041
  • Number of Students Served by Public Two-Year Institutions 281996
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