---
title: George Washington University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Washington, DC
control: Private nonprofit
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# George Washington University

Washington, DC · Private nonprofit · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $90,873 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $62,102 – $130,294 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $19,500 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $12,500 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 84% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $83,856 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 88% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.21× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $62,873 | derived |

**84% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $19,500 (≈ 22% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $25,991 to $160,692 across 92 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Systems Engineering. | Doctoral Degree | $160,692 | not reported |
| Engineering-Related Fields. | Doctoral Degree | $135,821 | $58,963 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Master's Degree | $127,076 | not reported |
| Human Resources Management and Services. | Doctoral Degree | $124,764 | not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Doctoral Degree | $124,241 | $61,789 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $107,834 | $61,500 |
| Systems Engineering. | Master's Degree | $106,809 | $37,964 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $106,667 | $41,000 |
| Homeland Security. | Master's Degree | $106,257 | $39,152 |
| Engineering-Related Fields. | Master's Degree | $104,747 | $40,193 |
| Computer Software and Media Applications. | Master's Degree | $102,047 | $46,000 |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. | Master's Degree | $98,922 | $139,995 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Master's Degree | $95,274 | $52,641 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Doctoral Degree | $92,116 | $61,345 |
| Information Science/Studies. | Master's Degree | $89,668 | not reported |
| Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies. | Master's Degree | $88,848 | $78,277 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services. | Master's Degree | $86,952 | $66,000 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $84,965 | not reported |
| Public Health. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $84,962 | not reported |
| Law. | First Professional Degree | $77,345 | $176,325 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Master's Degree | $76,621 | $34,940 |
| Computer Science. | Bachelor's Degree | $75,984 | $19,500 |
| Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $74,168 | $16,404 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Doctoral Degree | $73,328 | $159,850 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $73,002 | $24,500 |
| Public Administration. | Master's Degree | $71,996 | $46,979 |
| Political Science and Government. | Master's Degree | $71,685 | $61,310 |
| Public Policy Analysis. | Master's Degree | $71,176 | $53,242 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $69,299 | $23,000 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $68,769 | $18,716 |
| Systems Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $68,609 | not reported |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $67,909 | $18,148 |
| Information Science/Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $67,132 | not reported |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $66,737 | $21,375 |
| Human Resources Management and Services. | Master's Degree | $66,145 | $37,500 |
| Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. | Doctoral Degree | $66,066 | $148,723 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections. | Master's Degree | $66,034 | not reported |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Master's Degree | $64,310 | $36,992 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Master's Degree | $63,675 | $51,254 |
| Economics. | Master's Degree | $63,388 | $41,000 |
| Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology. | Master's Degree | $62,228 | $67,389 |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. | Post-baccalaureate Certificate | $62,153 | $22,251 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies. | Master's Degree | $61,963 | $56,634 |
| International Business. | Bachelor's Degree | $60,116 | $21,875 |
| Public Health. | Master's Degree | $59,884 | $75,171 |
| Legal Support Services. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $59,676 | $20,500 |
| Medicine. | First Professional Degree | $58,850 | $197,284 |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Master's Degree | $58,749 | $34,357 |
| Geography and Cartography. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $57,970 | not reported |
| Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $57,078 | $20,500 |
| Mathematics. | Bachelor's Degree | $56,802 | not reported |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $56,768 | $15,000 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Master's Degree | $56,723 | $41,000 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Master's Degree | $56,156 | $37,269 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Master's Degree | $56,033 | $90,707 |
| Publishing. | Master's Degree | $55,535 | $40,899 |
| Legal Support Services. | Master's Degree | $55,530 | $45,750 |
| Hospitality Administration/Management. | Master's Degree | $54,760 | $58,750 |
| Design and Applied Arts. | Master's Degree | $54,395 | $75,495 |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $54,148 | $22,975 |
| International and Comparative Education. | Master's Degree | $53,840 | $41,000 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $53,406 | $47,000 |
| Hospitality Administration/Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $52,591 | $19,250 |
| Business/Commerce, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $52,414 | $20,500 |
| Human Resources Management and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $51,900 | $20,939 |
| Area Studies. | Master's Degree | $50,676 | not reported |
| Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. | Master's Degree | $49,811 | $49,750 |
| Education, Other. | Master's Degree | $49,355 | $47,500 |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. | Master's Degree | $48,615 | $54,500 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $47,727 | $23,250 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Master's Degree | $47,074 | $89,000 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,627 | $20,958 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,521 | $25,000 |
| Journalism. | Master's Degree | $44,648 | not reported |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $44,076 | $21,723 |
| Journalism. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,777 | $25,000 |
| Design and Applied Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,306 | not reported |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,187 | not reported |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,168 | $23,250 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,192 | $19,500 |
| Museology/Museum Studies. | Master's Degree | $37,818 | $52,671 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,208 | not reported |
| Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,630 | $19,500 |
| Anthropology. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,176 | $26,000 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research. | Bachelor's Degree | $35,320 | $19,500 |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. | Associate's Degree | $35,205 | not reported |
| English Language and Literature, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,575 | $23,250 |
| Philosophy. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,265 | not reported |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,683 | not reported |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $28,669 | $23,871 |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $28,641 | not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Master's Degree | $25,991 | $59,500 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore George Washington University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?131469

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/george-washington-university-dc.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`