FAFSA lower earnings list

New York schools on the FAFSA “lower earnings” list

57 schools in New York are flagged "lower earnings" in the Department of Education's March 2026 release, the list the 2027-28 FAFSA uses, out of 306 New York schools with an earnings figure. The December 2025 release, which earlier news coverage reported, flagged 70: 21 came off and 8 were added.

A New York school is flagged when its graduates’ median earnings four years after completing are below $33,962, the median for New York high school graduates aged 25 to 34 (March 2026 release, January 2026 dollars). A school that mostly enrolls out-of-state students or operates in several states is compared with the national median, $34,635, instead.

Data period: March 2026 release, completers of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023. Nationally: 999 schools flagged now, 1,365 in December 2025. National report and method

Last verified: September 25, 2026.

Flagged in the March 2026 release (57)

Names as the Department lists them. A linked name opens the school’s CampusPin profile, which shows its earnings and benchmark.

Flagged in December 2025, not now (21)

The reason is given for each. Because the benchmark and the graduating cohort changed too, coming off is not by itself evidence that graduates earn more.

  • Access Careers, now above the benchmark
  • Access Careers-Islandia, now above the benchmark
  • Ace Institute of Technology, now above the benchmark
  • Barber & Beauty Institute of New York, now above the benchmark
  • Bet Medrash Gadol Ateret Torah, no earnings figure now
  • Circle in the Square Theatre School, now above the benchmark
  • Culinary Tech Center, not in the March 2026 list
  • Digital Film Academy, not in the March 2026 list
  • Lia Schorr Institute of Cosmetic Skin Care Training, now above the benchmark
  • Long Island Business Institute, not in the March 2026 list
  • Merkaz Bnos-Business School, now above the benchmark
  • New York Institute of Beauty, now above the benchmark
  • New York School for Medical and Dental Assistants, now above the benchmark
  • Pacific College of Health and Science, now above the benchmark
  • Seminar L'moros Bais Yaakov, now above the benchmark
  • Studio Jewelers, no earnings figure now
  • The Ailey School, no earnings figure now
  • The Salon Professional Academy-Tonawanda, now above the benchmark
  • Westchester School of Beauty Culture, no earnings figure now
  • Word of Life Bible Institute, now above the benchmark
  • Yeshiva Karlin Stolin, no earnings figure now

What the notice does and does not mean

  • It is informational: it does not affect federal aid eligibility, and a flagged school can still be listed and attended.
  • It describes a whole school, not a program. The Department says earnings differ by credential and field.
  • It covers graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled when earnings were measured.
  • A school with no earnings figure shows no notice. That is an absence of data, not a pass.
Add the New York FAFSA notice card to your website (counselors, college-access programs, schools)

Plain HTML with no script and no tracking: the state's flagged count, the previous release and the benchmark, with the notice's caveats and the source, linking back to this page and its full list of schools.

Questions about New York

How many New York schools are on the FAFSA lower earnings list?
57 schools in New York are flagged "lower earnings" in the Department of Education's March 2026 release, the list the 2027-28 FAFSA uses, out of 306 New York schools with an earnings figure. The December 2025 release, which earlier news coverage reported, flagged 70: 21 came off and 8 were added. Every one is named on this page.
Why did 21 schools in New York come off the list?
Of the 21 schools flagged in December 2025 and not now, 13 now clear the benchmark, 5 no longer have an earnings figure, 3 are not in the March 2026 list at all. The Department replaced the data on 22 March 2026 with a newer group of graduates (completers of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023) and a re-estimated high school benchmark, so coming off the list is not by itself evidence that a school's graduates earn more.
What earnings benchmark are New York schools compared with?
$33,962: the median earnings of New York high school graduates aged 25 to 34 in the March 2026 release, in January 2026 dollars. The December 2025 release used $35,676, in June 2025 dollars and from an earlier survey, so the two are not a like-for-like comparison. A school that mostly enrolls out-of-state students or operates in several states is compared with the national median instead, $34,635.
Does the lower earnings notice affect financial aid?
No. The Department says the notice is informational only. It does not affect eligibility for federal aid, the Student Aid Index or how the FAFSA is processed, and students can still list and attend a flagged school. It is shown only to first-year undergraduates.

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Sources, methodology & citation

Data snapshot: March 22, 2026. Last verified: September 25, 2026.

Sources used across this page

Not every source informs every figure. Each data point draws on the source appropriate to it see the relevant section and the data dictionary for field-level provenance.

Where a value is unavailable it is shown as unavailable, never as 0, free, or a negative judgment. Always confirm final details with the institution before applying.

Methodology Data dictionary Report a correction

Suggested citation

CampusPin. (2026). New York schools on the FAFSA "lower earnings" list. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/research/fafsa-lower-earnings-colleges/new-york