College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

American University

DCMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #901 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Overall, Azimuth ranks American University #901 among nonprofit colleges and universities.

Who it’s a good fit for

American University is a private nonprofit university in Washington, District of Columbia, where the degree mix leans heavily toward Social Sciences, Business, and Communication & Journalism. Return is well above average, while affordability is below the levels seen at many peers.

Graduates earn above the median at comparable schools, yet they earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes an addition to the factors it measures and a subtraction to what it cannot explain.

Pell students complete within a fraction of a point of the overall rate, and mobility is above average. The lowest income band pays well below the published cost, but the spread between the lowest and highest bands is wide.

The admission rate is below the median at comparable schools, and an estimated share of graduates continues to further study. A student drawn to the social sciences should know that the largest programs are not the best-paid ones.

American at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
62.0%
Six-year completion[2]
75.5%
Four-year earnings[3]
$79,081

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$26,035
Median student debt[4]
$22,750
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$39,169

American rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

American University is a private nonprofit university in Washington, District of Columbia, enrolling 7,266 undergraduates. Its standing in the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions sits near the middle of the field overall.

American University accepts 62.0% of applicants, against a peer median of 71.2%. First-year retention is 88.2%, exceeding the peer median of 83.4%.

The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 75.5%; the peer median is 68.8%. An estimated 7.1% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, which means the six-year graduation figure reflects only those who began as full-time freshmen.

Return is the strongest of the four and affordability is the weakest. Mobility and access fall between them, leaving the pillars unevenly spaced across the profile.

Return is the strongest part of American University’s Azimuth profile, but affordability is its clear weak point for families comparing costs. Azimuth places return in the 80th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Mobility stands in the 58th percentile, and access is in the 37th percentile. Affordability is in the 5th percentile, the university’s weakest pillar.

The return and mobility results sit above the affordability result, making careful cost comparison especially important.

13.9% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Azimuth ranks the university #921 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Among first-time full-time Pell recipients, 75.4% complete within six years, 0.1 percentage points below the rate for that cohort as a whole. Azimuth ranks the university #621 for mobility. Graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

American rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#901
District of Columbia#6
South#306

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 58
Access & reach
National percentile: 37
Affordability
National percentile: 5
Return on investment
National percentile: 80

01 / American briefing

American cost & financial aid[6][7]

American University carries a published annual cost of attendance of $76,058 (an average across living arrangements), leaving a comparatively expensive starting price before aid is applied. Tuition and fees account for $58,771, and room and board add $17,982.

For aid recipients, the average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $41,943. Financial aid offsets $34,115 of the published price on average, though individual packages can differ.

At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median net price is $27,371, making this university's average $14,572 above that benchmark. Azimuth ranks American University #1,350 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The higher net price and low affordability standing point in the same direction.

Families considering American University face a published cost of attendance of $76,058 (an average across living arrangements), with aid-recipient prices varying sharply across family-income bands. The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $23,233 for the low-income band, $20,444 for the lower-middle-income band, $26,035 for the middle-income band, $30,063 for the upper-middle-income band, and $53,673 for the high-income band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $30,440. Azimuth ranks American University #1,350 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 45% of the published cost, representing average savings of $34,115. The across all aid recipients is $41,943, which is $14,572 above the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Published tuition and fees are $58,771. Aid offsets part of the sticker price, but the overall aid-recipient price remains above the comparable-institution median.

Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $22,750, and 95.0% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. This is $1,449 below the peer median of $24,199 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $259 a month if repaid over ten years. Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $39,169.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$26,035

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at American

Federal borrowing is widespread at American University, so the debt figures describe a common part of the cost picture. 95.0% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $22,750. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $24,199.

American University’s median is $1,449 below that figure. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $39,169.

Federal debt sits below the peer median, though parent borrowing is a separate cost to consider.

American University’s return picture combines high observed earnings and lower debt than comparable institutions with earnings that fall short of the model’s expectation. Graduates earn a median of $79,081 four years after completion.

Azimuth places that earnings figure in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, provide a second measure.

Graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places that measure in the 45th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios put earnings at $60,501 in a downside case, $79,081 in a typical case, and $96,947 in an upside case. Median federal debt is $22,750, $1,449 below the $24,199 peer median.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $259 a month if repaid over ten years. High earnings and lower debt point favorably, while the model-expectation measure pulls the other way.

Family costs can include parent borrowing separate from student federal loans. The median Parent PLUS borrowing for parent borrowers is $39,169.

Median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $259 a month if repaid over ten years.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$22,750
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$39,169

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$259/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$498/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / American briefing

American career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

American University combines earnings above comparable peers with a below-expected model result. Federally aided completers working and not enrolled earn a median of $79,081 four years after completion, in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between graduate earnings and the model for similar students, is in the 45th percentile.

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 80th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $4,023.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,701. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $68,250; the university's median is $10,831 above it. Observed earnings and the model result point in different directions.

American University graduates have median earnings of $79,081 four years after completion among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled; that figure also anchors the typical modeled scenario. Azimuth places the earnings measure in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The earnings cohort includes 2,193 completers. Graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students.

The downside earnings scenario is $60,501, and the upside scenario is $96,947. An estimated 31.3% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The high earnings standing and lower-than-expected model result point in different directions.

American University has median earnings of $79,081 four years after completion, placing the figure in the 87th percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $68,250, with the university $10,831 above that figure.

Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sit in the 45th percentile. Graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $4,023. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,701.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component subtracts $391. Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix range from a downside of $60,501 to an upside of $96,947.

Azimuth ranks the university #296 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Finance is the highest-earning listed field, with 75 degrees awarded and median earnings of $134,332 four years after completion.

Its median is 1.61x the national median for its field. Business Administration and Management had 247 degrees awarded and earnings of $88,359; Accounting had 18 degrees awarded and earnings of $119,020; and Computer Science had 24 degrees awarded and earnings of $117,293. These field-level figures vary widely around the school-level median.

Earnings can differ widely across the university’s program mix. The downside earnings scenario is $60,501, and the upside scenario is $96,947; these are scenarios rather than observed groups of graduates.

Among higher-earning fields, Finance has median earnings of $134,332 four years after completion, Accounting has $119,020, and Computer Science has $117,293. Those field-level medians show why the modeled range is broad.

The published cost of attendance at American University is $76,058 (an average across living arrangements), and aid covers about 45% of that for the average aid recipient. After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients is $41,943, which is $14,572 above the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who complete leave with a median of $22,750 in federal student loans, $1,449 below the $24,199 peer median. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $259 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $39,169 in Parent PLUS loans, a figure that falls outside the student debt total. The earnings picture is mixed.

Graduates earn a median of $79,081 four years after completion, a figure that sits $10,831 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions. But graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students, placing the gap at the 45th percentile.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$4,023
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$6,701
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$2,678

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / American briefing

American acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

For applicants, American University admitted 62.0% of the reported applicant pool, a rate below the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size). The difference points to a lower reported admission outcome here than at those comparable institutions, without predicting an individual decision.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
62.0%
25th percentile
1300
Median
1370
75th percentile
1430

CDS 2024-25 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / American briefing

What are the largest majors at American?[12]

The program picture spans higher and more moderate earnings four years after completion across its named fields. Finance recorded median earnings of $134,332 with 75 degrees awarded, while Accounting recorded $119,020 across 18 degrees awarded.

Computer Science posted median earnings of $117,293 four years after completion and 24 degrees awarded. At a more moderate level, International Relations and National Security Studies recorded $73,865 with 382 degrees awarded.

The figures place the higher-earning fields alongside a large program with a lower median earnings figure.

American University has high-earning fields in finance, accounting, and computing, making the intended field central to the earnings picture.

The bachelor's degree mix at American University is anchored in the social sciences and business. Social Sciences accounts for 35.1% of degrees awarded, with Business at 17.5% and Communication & Journalism at 11.2%.

Published four-year earnings data cover 23 fields. The largest single program is International Relations and National Security Studies, at 382 degrees awarded, followed by Business Administration and Management with 247 and Political Science with 192.

The highest-earning program is a smaller one: Finance graduates earn a median of $134,332 four years after completion, from 75 degrees awarded. Accounting follows at $119,020, with 18 degrees awarded.

Business Administration and Management, the second-largest program, is also among the top earners at $88,359. Computer Science graduates earn $117,293, from 24 degrees awarded.

The pattern is a university where the largest programs are not the best-paid ones. The social sciences family dominates the degree count, while the highest earnings concentrate in business fields and computer science.

7.7% of degrees awarded are in STEM, so the earnings in quantitative business programs sit alongside a much larger liberal arts and social science core. The largest program, International Relations and National Security Studies, reports a median of $73,865 four years after completion.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
International Relations and National Security Studies 382 degrees awarded
$73,865
Business Administration, Management and Operations 247 degrees awarded
$88,359
Political Science and Government 192 degrees awarded
$73,604
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication 132 degrees awarded
$78,410
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other 110 degrees awarded
$76,552
Criminal Justice and Corrections 86 degrees awarded
$66,970

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / American briefing

How does American serve students from different backgrounds?

Pell recipients and the overall first-time full-time cohort complete at nearly the same rate. The six-year graduation rate is 75.5%, and Pell recipients complete within six years at 75.4%, below the overall rate by 0.1 percentage points.

Azimuth puts American University's mobility pillar in the 58th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is negative: Graduates earn about $2,678 less than the model expects for similar students.

Azimuth places that measure in the 45th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Admission is reported at 62.0%, the starting point for access at American University. Its undergraduate enrollment is 7,266; Pell Grant recipients account for 13.9%, and an estimated 7.1% enter as transfers or part-time students.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth puts the access pillar in the 37th percentile. The admission rate, Pell participation, and transfer estimate describe different routes into the undergraduate population.

06 / American briefing

What colleges are similar to American?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with American.

Admissions peerSt. John's College55.2% admitted
Comparison with American
MeasureAmericanSt. John's College
Peer earnings · 4 years$79,081$45,787-$33,294 vs American
Average annual net price$41,943$45,597+$3,654 vs American · higher cost
Admission rate62.0%55.2%
Higher-admission alternativeThe Catholic University of America82.8% admitted
Comparison with American
MeasureAmericanThe Catholic University of America
Peer earnings · 4 years$79,081$79,320+$239 vs American
Average annual net price$41,943$29,561-$12,382 vs American · lower cost
Admission rate62.0%82.8%
Nearby alternativeThe Catholic University of AmericaNearby option · DC
Comparison with American
MeasureAmericanThe Catholic University of America
Peer earnings · 4 years$79,081$79,320+$239 vs American
Average annual net price$41,943$29,561-$12,382 vs American · lower cost
Admission rate62.0%82.8%
Higher-earnings alternativeWorcester Polytechnic Institute$105,724 earnings
Comparison with American
MeasureAmericanWorcester Polytechnic Institute
Peer earnings · 4 years$79,081$105,724+$26,643 vs American
Average annual net price$41,943$43,071+$1,128 vs American · higher cost
Admission rate62.0%60.2%
Explore Worcester Polytechnic Institute →
Lower-cost alternativeUniversity of Maryland-College Park$15,678 average net price
Comparison with American
MeasureAmericanUniversity of Maryland-College Park
Peer earnings · 4 years$79,081$84,365+$5,284 vs American
Average annual net price$41,943$15,678-$26,265 vs American · lower cost
Admission rate62.0%44.8%
Explore University of Maryland-College Park →
Similar profileNova Southeastern UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with American
MeasureAmericanNova Southeastern University
Peer earnings · 4 years$79,081$81,582+$2,501 vs American
Average annual net price$41,943$30,371-$11,572 vs American · lower cost
Admission rate62.0%73.2%

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings