The Best Finance Programs in New York for 2026

St. Lawrence University's finance major runs through the Economics Department inside a liberal arts curriculum, taught by faculty who have served as economists at the Federal Reserve and the President's Council of Economic Advisors. The program centers on the Bloomberg Finance Lab, 15 terminals giving students access to real time market data and research from more than 1,500 sources, and pairs coursework with the LINC Mentor program, winter break SLU Connect trips to New York, Washington D.C., and San Francisco, and study abroad options like the London Program, which combines banking coursework with a month long work study placement.

St. Lawrence's Hakia Score is 89.7, fourth among these four programs. It admits 54% of applicants and graduates 79% of them, and the school reports a 94% outcomes rate for graduates employed or in graduate school within 7 to 9 months, with 73% completing at least one internship. Tuition is flat at $65,450, the highest of the four schools and $1,740 above Syracuse's. At an enrollment of just 1,991, St. Lawrence fits a student who wants the most personal setting on this list and is willing to pay the top price for it.

Hofstra's Zarb School of Business offers a BBA in Finance built around two core courses, FIN 132 Principles of Investments and FIN 160 Corporate Valuation and Financial Policy, plus 15 semester hours of finance electives chosen under advisement. Students round out the major with a 3-credit economics elective drawn from options like Monetary Economics, International Economics, and Applied Econometrics, inside a standard 120-semester-hour BBA sequence.

Hofstra graduates 69% of its students and admits 68% of applicants, numbers that back an 85.6 Hakia Score, good for 5th among New York finance programs in 2026. Tuition runs a flat $56,545 for in-state and out-of-state students alike, the highest sticker price in this group, at a private nonprofit enrolling 10,685 students on Long Island, best suited to students who want a large BBA program with room to customize finance electives.

SUNY Geneseo's BS in Finance covers managerial and corporate finance, investments, valuation, and financial modeling, then lets students pick four electives from topics like derivatives, fixed income securities, financial statement analysis, applied portfolio management, and programming in R and Python. Students manage the Student Managed Investment Fund, worth more than $1,000,000, a size that places it in the top 10% of student-run funds worldwide, using three Bloomberg terminals in the department's endowed Trading Room.

Geneseo's CFA Institute Affiliated University status brings CFA Level 1 exam scholarships and discounts, and students compete in the WNY CFA Research Challenge, backed by an annual finance conference and a fall networking trip to New York City banks and hedge funds. The program posts a 71% graduation rate, a 66% admit rate, and an 85.4 Hakia Score that ranks 6th in New York for 2026. As a public SUNY school, in-state tuition is $7,070 against $17,640 out-of-state, a $10,570 gap that makes it the cheapest program on this list for New York residents, with 3,945 students enrolled.

Siena College's finance major runs through the School of Business with concentrations in financial planning, corporate finance, and investment analysis. Students manage the Bjorklund Fund, started with $100,000 and now valued at $419,802.67, using twelve Bloomberg terminals in the Hickey Financial Technology Center. All finance majors, 100% of them, earn Bloomberg Certification before graduation, and the program preps students for the CFA Level 1 exam, where its pass rate over the past four years has topped the global average.

Siena posts a 75% graduation rate, the highest of any program in this group, alongside a 69% admit rate and an 84.8 Hakia Score that lands it 7th for 2026. Tuition is a flat $44,505 for all students, the lowest sticker price among the private schools here, at a small nonprofit enrolling 3,720 students. Alumni have placed at JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, PwC, and Goldman Sachs Ayco, making it a fit for students who want hands-on trading experience without Hofstra's or Adelphi's price tag.

Adelphi's BS in Finance sits inside the Robert B. Willumstad School of Business, which has held AACSB accreditation since 2007, a distinction held by fewer than 6% of the world's 16,000 business schools. Students manage the Student Investment Fund, now valued at over $350,000 and started in 2008 with funding from retired Goldman Sachs managing partner James Riley, Jr., inside the James Riley, Jr. Trading Room. Every finance major completes Bloomberg Market Concepts certification and can sit for the Securities Industry Essentials exam with free review.

The program posts a 67% graduation rate and a 66% admit rate, feeding an 84.3 Hakia Score that ranks 8th in New York for 2026. Flat tuition of $46,784 applies to in-state and out-of-state students at this Garden City nonprofit of 7,603 students, and finance majors can add an MBA through the Bachelor+1 program in a single additional year, a fit for students who want an accredited pedigree and a built-in graduate path near New York City.

Rochester Institute of Technology is a private, nonprofit institution in Rochester, NY. Its Bachelor's in Finance program ranks #9 of the 12 analyzed here with an 82.7 Hakia Score, a composite of graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and graduate outcomes. That sits below the 86.3 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 70% of its students, below the 71% average across the ranked schools. Rochester Institute of Technology admits 67% of applicants, less selective than the 64% average for the group. That is more open than the 46% rate at Syracuse University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands in the middle of the pack in a group where graduation runs from 53% to 84%.

On cost, Rochester Institute of Technology charges $58,260 a year in-state. Over four years that totals about $233,040 in tuition. That puts it at the higher end on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $6,930 at CUNY Bernard M Baruch College to $65,450 at St Lawrence University. As a private institution, its tuition does not change with residency, unlike the public universities on this list. Graduates step into a field with an $88,870 national median salary reported by the BLS. It earns its place in the top 12 on the balance of cost, completion, and outcomes.

Based in Queens, NY, St. John's University-New York is a private, nonprofit institution. Its Bachelor's in Finance program lands at #10 of the 12 ranked here, earning an 81.7 Hakia Score that weighs graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and outcomes. That sits below the 86.3 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 66% of its students, below the 71% average across the ranked schools. St. John's University-New York admits 83% of applicants, less selective than the 64% average for the group. That is more open than the 46% rate at Syracuse University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands in the middle of the pack in a group where graduation runs from 53% to 84%.

On cost, St. John's University-New York charges $51,919 a year in-state. Over four years that totals about $207,676 in tuition. That puts it mid-pack on price on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $6,930 at CUNY Bernard M Baruch College to $65,450 at St Lawrence University. As a private institution, its tuition does not change with residency, unlike the public universities on this list. Graduates step into a field with an $88,870 national median salary reported by the BLS. It earns its place in the top 12 on the balance of cost, completion, and outcomes.

CUNY Queens College is a public institution in Queens, NY. Its Bachelor's in Finance program ranks #11 of the 12 analyzed here with an 81.6 Hakia Score, a composite of graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and graduate outcomes. That sits below the 86.3 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 53% of its students, below the 71% average across the ranked schools. CUNY Queens College admits 64% of applicants, more selective than the 64% average for the group. That is more open than the 46% rate at Syracuse University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands toward the lower end in a group where graduation runs from 53% to 84%.

On cost, CUNY Queens College charges $6,930 a year in-state, roughly 2.1x the $14,880 out-of-state rate. Over four years that is about $27,720 in tuition for residents, against $59,520 for non-residents. That puts it among the most affordable on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $6,930 at CUNY Bernard M Baruch College to $65,450 at St Lawrence University. Graduates step into a field with an $88,870 national median salary reported by the BLS. For prospective students, the draw here is low in-state cost paired with genuine selectivity.

Pace University is a private, nonprofit institution in New York, NY. Its Bachelor's in Finance program ranks #12 of the 12 analyzed here with an 81.1 Hakia Score, a composite of graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and graduate outcomes. That sits below the 86.3 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 60% of its students, below the 71% average across the ranked schools. Pace University admits 76% of applicants, less selective than the 64% average for the group. That is more open than the 46% rate at Syracuse University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands toward the lower end in a group where graduation runs from 53% to 84%.

On cost, Pace University charges $51,602 a year in-state. Over four years that totals about $206,408 in tuition. That puts it mid-pack on price on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $6,930 at CUNY Bernard M Baruch College to $65,450 at St Lawrence University. As a private institution, its tuition does not change with residency, unlike the public universities on this list. Graduates step into a field with an $88,870 national median salary reported by the BLS. It earns its place in the top 12 on the balance of cost, completion, and outcomes.