What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for Area Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York

This page combines two federal data products: IPEDS institutional characteristics for Columbia University in the City of New York and the College Scorecard field-of-study (FOS) file for Area Studies at the master's credential level. The FOS file is keyed by CIP (Classification of Instructional Programs) code, which means earnings and debt figures here reflect only graduates of this specific program – not the school as a whole. IPEDS reports 45 completers in the most recent cohort for this program at Columbia University in the City of New York, the denominator behind the median earnings figure.

Median graduate earnings of $81,697 represent Treasury-derived wages, deferred compensation, and positive self-employment earnings four years after program completion for federally aided completers who were working and not enrolled. Compared to the national mean of $84,562 across all institutions offering Area Studies, graduates here earn below the national average for this program. Across all programs at Columbia University in the City of New York, the mean median-earnings figure is $114,132, providing internal context for whether this specific field out-earns other options at the same institution.

Debt signals complete the ROI picture. The median cumulative federal loan debt for Area Studies graduates at Columbia University in the City of New York is $50,000, which translates to roughly $417 per month on a standard 10-year repayment plan. The descriptive debt-to-earnings ratio is 0.61: reported annual earnings exceed cumulative debt. This is a PlainCollege comparison, not a federal gainful-employment verdict. Program-level debt and four-year post-completion earnings come from the Department of Education’s College Scorecard field-of-study snapshot retrieved in March 2026.