Research brief & institution hub

George Mason University

VALarge public institution · Overall rank #33 nationally

Data snapshot September 27, 2026Updated October 1, 2026

George Mason University reaches the 98th percentile in the Azimuth composite ranking.

Who it’s a good fit for

George Mason University is a public university in Fairfax, Virginia, where Business and Computer & Information Sciences lead the degree mix. Mobility is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them, and the model attributes more of that to the factors it measures than to what it cannot explain. Return is among the highest we track.

Pell recipients complete at a rate above the entering cohort as a whole, and access is well above average. Affordability is above average, and the admission rate sits above the median for comparable institutions.

Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than graduate study, so the earnings figures reflect a workforce that is largely not deferred.

GMU at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate^[1]: 87.5%
Six-year completion^[2]: 67.8%
Four-year earnings^[3]: $78,425

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income^[6]: $15,224
Median student debt^[4]: $19,500
Median Parent PLUS debt^[7]: $25,142

GMU rankings: how Azimuth assesses value^[5]

George Mason University is a public university in Fairfax, Virginia, enrolling 27,752 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (98th percentile).

The university admits 87.5% of applicants, against a peer median of 78.1% for comparable institutions of the same type and size—the middle value among similar schools. 86.0% of the first-time full-time cohort return after the first year, compared with a peer median of 83.1%.

67.8% complete within six years, against a peer median of 65.0%. An estimated 40.9% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students, and the six-year rate describes the first-time, full-time minority.

The four at George Mason University sit far apart. Mobility is the strongest, and affordability is the weakest.

Return and access fall between them, leaving a wide spread across the four measures.

Azimuth ranks George Mason University #33 among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions, with the mobility pillar reaching the 98th percentile. The return pillar sits in the 91st percentile and access in the 83rd percentile.

Affordability is the weakest pillar, in the 68th percentile, yet every pillar clears the median for nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell Grants reach 30.1% of undergraduates at George Mason University, a share that indicates the breadth of financial access to the university. Students who enter with Pell Grants complete at 75.0%, 7.2 percentage points above the rate for the entering cohort as a whole.

That completion outcome, combined with the breadth of Pell access, places the university at #257 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. The mobility pillar ranks #30 among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students, an earnings outcome that sits alongside the university's mobility standing.

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

GMU rankings in context
Geography	Rank
National	#33

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility: National percentile: 98

Access & reach: National percentile: 83

Affordability: National percentile: 68

Return on investment: National percentile: 91

Top-ranked majors

Homeland Security#1
Visual and Performing Arts, General#2
Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution#3

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / GMU briefing

GMU cost & financial aid^[6]^[7]

George Mason University lists a published cost of attendance of $28,604. In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported in-state tuition of $14,220 and required fees of $3,828 for the 2025-26 academic year, with on-campus food and housing at $15,725.

Out-of-state students face tuition of $38,688. After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients is $17,915, which is $2,281 above the $15,634 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Financial aid reduces the published cost by an average of $10,689. Azimuth ranks the university #447 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The published cost of attendance is $28,604. Azimuth ranks George Mason University #447 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $11,942, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $15,224, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $25,894. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $13,952.

Aid covers about 37% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. The across all aid recipients is $17,915, which is $2,281 above the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $19,500 in federal student loans, $576 below the peer median of $20,076. About 83.6% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

Parents who borrow through the separate Parent PLUS program hold a median of $25,142. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$15,224

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at GMU

For completers who used federal loans, the median balance at graduation is $19,500. The university's median falls below the comparable-institution median of $20,076 by $576.

Roughly 83.6% of federal aid recipients borrow through the federal program. Parent borrowers represent a separate population; their median Parent PLUS balance is $25,142.

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported that 47% of graduates borrowed from any source, averaging $29,366 per borrower. This included 46% with federal loans averaging $19,537 and 11% with private loans averaging $45,078.

Graduates of George Mason University earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students, placing the university in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The median earnings four years after completion stand at $78,425, which falls in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios, anchored on the university's program mix, show a typical outcome of $78,425. The downside earnings scenario sits at $57,368, while the upside scenario reaches $108,251.

For borrowers who complete a degree, the median federal student debt is $19,500, which is below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). If repaid over ten years, the estimated monthly payment is $222.

Parent borrowers at the university took on a median of $25,142 in Parent PLUS loans, a separate federal borrowing population. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $222.

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

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt: $19,500
Institution Parent PLUS debt: $25,142

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

Estimated student payment · monthly: $222/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly: $319/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 / GMU briefing

GMU career outcomes & earnings^[3]^[8]^[9]

Median earnings for federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled at George Mason University reach $78,425 four years after completion. That figure is in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The peer median for comparable institutions same type and size is $65,610, and the university sits above that mark by $12,815. Completers earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students, a performance in the 89th percentile nationally.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $10,114. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $3,206.

The return pillar falls in the 91st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Four years after completing a bachelor's degree, federally aided graduates of George Mason University who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $78,425. That amount is $12,815 above the median for comparable institutions (same type and size), which is $65,610.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, that figure falls at the 87th percentile, based on a cohort of 7,152 completers. Graduates earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students.

That outcome sits at the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix span from $57,368 on the downside to $108,251 on the upside.

The typical earnings scenario lands at $78,425. An estimated 28.0% of graduates continue on to graduate study, based on the program mix.

George Mason University graduates who received federal aid and are working and not enrolled earn a median of $78,425 four years after completing a degree. That median is in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions and sits $12,815 above the $65,610 figure for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks George Mason University #128 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions nationally. Graduates earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students.

That result places the gap at the 89th 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 $10,114.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $3,206. Within the measured factors, the STEM component itself adds $2,812.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, include a typical value of $78,425, a downside of $57,368, and an upside of $108,251. An estimated 28.0% of graduates continue on to graduate study, based on the program mix.

These figures describe the broad range tied to program choice, not the specific outcome for any individual graduate.

Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix range from $57,368 on the downside to $108,251 on the upside. These are scenarios, not observed groups of graduates.

At the top end, Homeland Security graduates earn $143,972 four years after completion, from 122 degrees awarded a year. Computer Engineering follows at $117,942, and the largest program on campus, Computer and Information Sciences, reports $110,754 from 757 degrees a year. The range across programs is wide.

Graduates of George Mason University earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students. The median federal student debt for borrowers who complete is $19,500, which sits below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

If repaid over ten years, that debt would mean a monthly payment of $222. The university's earnings profile coincides with a financial-aid structure that keeps costs moderate for lower-income families.

The average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $11,942, and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands is $13,952. Aid covers about 37% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

The university has a 98th mobility percentile. The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 67.8%, and Pell recipients in that same cohort complete at a rate of 75.0%—7.2 percentage points above the overall rate.

An estimated 40.9% of undergraduates are not first-time full-time students, and the university admits 87.5% of applicants.

What explains value-added earnings?

Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.: +$10,114
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.: +$3,206
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.: +$13,320

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

Read the full outcomes brief

Read the full admissions brief

04 / GMU briefing

What are the largest majors at GMU?^[12]

George Mason University fields 48 ranked bachelor's programs, and the highest-earning among them reach well into six figures four years after completion. Homeland Security tops the list at $143,972, though it awarded 122 degrees.

Computer Engineering follows at $117,942 with 32 degrees awarded, and Systems Engineering reaches $114,815 alongside 25 degrees awarded. The largest program, Computer and Information Sciences, awarded 757 degrees and shows median earnings of $110,754, ranking #22 nationally in its field.

Management Science earned $97,049 with 371 degrees awarded and an Azimuth field rank of #16. In more moderate-earning fields, Psychology awarded 405 degrees and reports median earnings of $62,563, while Criminal Justice reached $69,511 on 329 degrees awarded, ranking #4 in its field.

George Mason University offers 48 bachelor's programs with an Azimuth national rank, and earnings data are available for 50 fields. The largest program, Computer and Information Sciences, awarded 757 degrees and ranks #22 nationally, with a median of $110,754 four years after completion.

Psychology awarded 405 degrees and ranks #25 nationally, while Management Science awarded 371 degrees and ranks #16. The top-ranked program in the university's portfolio is Homeland Security, which holds the #1 spot in its field and shows median earnings of $143,972 on 122 degrees awarded.

Visual and Performing Arts ranks #2 nationally, and Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution ranks #3.

George Mason University awards bachelor's degrees across 48 programs with an Azimuth national rank and 50 with published four-year earnings data. The degree mix is led by Business, which accounts for 19.9% of degrees awarded, followed by Computer & Information Sciences at 12.4% and Health Professions at 8.2%.

The largest single programs are Computer and Information Sciences at 757 degrees awarded, Psychology at 405, and Management Science at 371. The highest-ranked program is Homeland Security, which Azimuth ranks #1 nationally within its field and #1 in Virginia.

It awards 122 degrees a year and graduates earn a median of $143,972 four years after completion. Visual and Performing Arts is another top performer, ranking #2 nationally and #1 in Virginia with 113 degrees awarded.

The highest-earning program is Homeland Security, where graduates earn a median of $143,972 from 122 degrees awarded. Computer and Information Sciences, the largest program, also ranks among the top earners at $110,754 and holds a national rank of #22 within its field.

Homeland Security stands out for its return, with a benchmark ratio of 2.05x against the national median for its field and earnings of $143,972. Strength is spread across several fields rather than concentrated in one.

The largest programs carry strong national ranks, and the best-paid ones range from a large computer science department to a smaller homeland security program. Across all fields, 27.0% of degrees awarded are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields

Computer and Information Sciences, General 757 degrees awarded: $110,754
Psychology, General 405 degrees awarded: $62,563
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods 371 degrees awarded: $97,049
Criminal Justice and Corrections 329 degrees awarded: $69,511
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities 321 degrees awarded: $61,100
Biology, General 293 degrees awarded: $64,301

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 / GMU briefing

How does GMU serve students from different backgrounds?

Four years after completion, graduates of George Mason University earn about $13,320 more than the model expects for similar students. That result lands in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth ranks George Mason University #30 for mobility among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions. The mobility pillar falls in the 98th percentile.

For the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year graduation rate is 67.8%; Pell recipients complete at 75.0%, above the overall rate by 7.2 percentage points.

George Mason University admits 87.5% of applicants, a rate that runs above the peer median of 78.1% for a public university of its size. The university enrolls 27,752 undergraduates, and an estimated 40.9% of them enter as transfers or part-time students.

Pell Grant recipients make up 30.1% of the undergraduate body. Azimuth places the access pillar in the 83rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

06 / GMU briefing

What colleges are similar to GMU?^[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 GMU.

Admissions peerSalisbury University87.5% admitted

Comparison with GMU
Measure	GMU	Salisbury University
Peer earnings · 4 years	$78,425	$61,985-$16,440 vs GMU
Average annual net price	$17,915	$17,743-$172 vs GMU · lower cost
Admission rate	87.5%	87.5%

Explore Salisbury University →

Higher-admission alternativeDavenport University97.8% admitted

Comparison with GMU
Measure	GMU	Davenport University
Peer earnings · 4 years	$78,425	$69,009-$9,416 vs GMU
Average annual net price	$17,915	$17,707-$208 vs GMU · lower cost
Admission rate	87.5%	97.8%

Nearby alternativeUniversity of RichmondNearby option · VA

Comparison with GMU
Measure	GMU	University of Richmond
Peer earnings · 4 years	$78,425	$84,260+$5,835 vs GMU
Average annual net price	$17,915	$31,309+$13,394 vs GMU · higher cost
Admission rate	87.5%	22.2%

Lower-cost alternativeNer Israel Rabbinical College$13,572 average net price

Comparison with GMU
Measure	GMU	Ner Israel Rabbinical College
Peer earnings · 4 years	$78,425	$67,359-$11,066 vs GMU
Average annual net price	$17,915	$13,572-$4,343 vs GMU · lower cost
Admission rate	87.5%	65.7%

Similar profileNorth Carolina State University at RaleighMatched across several measures

Comparison with GMU
Measure	GMU	North Carolina State University at Raleigh
Peer earnings · 4 years	$78,425	$75,943-$2,482 vs GMU
Average annual net price	$17,915	$17,303-$612 vs GMU · lower cost
Admission rate	87.5%	41.7%

Explore North Carolina State University at Raleigh →

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 September 27, 2026Governed hub narrative September 27, 2026Governed spoke corpus September 27, 2026

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.

Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.
Source fields: ADM_RATE
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.
Source fields: RET_FT4
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
Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.
Source fields: PCTPELL
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
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