College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

George Washington University

DCLarge private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #245 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Overall, George Washington University sits in Azimuth's 83rd percentile nationally.

Who it’s a good fit for

George Washington University is a private nonprofit university in Washington, District of Columbia, where the largest degree families are Social Sciences and Business. Return is among the highest we track, and the university's strongest sits far above its weakest.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes more of that gain to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market — than to what it cannot explain.

Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study, so the four-year earnings picture captures most of the class. The price case turns on income.

Families in the lowest band pay well below the published cost, while those at the top pay closer to it. Pell students complete at a rate below the cohort as a whole, and affordability is below the levels seen at many peers.

The admission rate sits close to the median for comparable institutions. A student who wants the largest programs should know that the best-paid ones are smaller: the highest-earning fields are not the ones awarding the most degrees.

GWU at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
47.1%
Six-year completion[2]
84.0%
Four-year earnings[3]
$95,967

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$22,080
Median student debt[4]
$20,449
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$30,881

GWU rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

George Washington University is a private nonprofit university in Washington, District of Columbia, enrolling 11,182 undergraduates. The university admits 47.1% of applicants, a rate well below the 47.1% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size.

Among full-time first-year students, 92.2% return for a second year and 84.0% finish within six years. Both figures run above the peer medians of 90.1% and 80.0%.

An estimated 19.4% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students. The four pillars sit far apart.

Return is the strongest, at the 94th percentile, while affordability is the weakest, at the 11th percentile. Access and mobility fall between them, at the 71st and 80th percentiles respectively.

Return is the clearest strength in the Azimuth profile for George Washington University, which sits in the 94th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Access is in the 71st percentile, and mobility is in the 80th percentile. Affordability is the weakest pillar, at the 11th percentile.

15.8% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants, a measure of financial access that captures the share of the student body receiving federal need-based aid. Those students complete at 74.5%, a rate that sits 9.5 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate (84.0%).

Azimuth ranks George Washington University #431 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks the university #299 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students.

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

GWU rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#245
District of Columbia#2
South#86

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 80
Access & reach
National percentile: 71
Affordability
National percentile: 11
Return on investment
National percentile: 94

Top-ranked majors

  1. Journalism#1
  2. Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences#1
  3. Criminal Justice and Corrections#2

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 / GWU briefing

GWU cost & financial aid[6][7]

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, George Washington University reported sticker charges of $420 in required fees and $18,160 for on-campus food and housing. The published federal cost of attendance is $83,856 (an average across living arrangements), so the starting price remains substantial before aid.

For aid recipients, average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $36,586. Average aid savings from the published cost are $47,270, and aid covers about 56% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $36,211, leaving this university $375 above that mark. Azimuth places its affordability pillar in the 11th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The above-peer net price and low affordability standing point the same way.

The published cost of attendance at George Washington University is $83,856 (an average across living arrangements). Azimuth ranks the university #1,260 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 $17,440, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $22,080, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $55,337. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $37,897.

The average aid recipient sees $47,270 in savings against the published cost, leaving an of $36,586 across all income bands. That is $375 above the $36,211 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Tuition and fees alone are $67,710. Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $20,449 in federal student loans, which is $2,719 below the peer median of $23,168.

92.8% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $30,881.

If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$22,080

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at GWU

George Washington University’s median federal student loan debt is below the comparable-institution benchmark, though federal borrowing is common among undergraduates. 92.8% of federal aid recipients take federal loans, and borrowers who complete have median federal student loan debt of $20,449.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $23,168, placing the university $2,719 below it. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $30,881.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 32% of graduates borrowed from any source, including 31% with federal loans. Average cumulative borrowing per borrower was $34,685, with average federal borrowing of $19,173.

Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students. That measure, earnings beyond expectations—the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students—sits in the 86th percentile, according to Azimuth among nonprofit four-year institutions.

At George Washington University, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $95,967 four years after completion, in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The downside earnings scenario is $67,671, and the upside scenario is $111,369; the typical scenario matches the observed median.

These are scenarios based on the program mix, rather than earnings for separate observed groups. Median federal student loan debt at completion is $20,449.

The peer median is $23,168, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size). It is $2,719 below that benchmark.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 a month if repaid over ten years. Higher-than-expected earnings and debt below the peer median point in the same direction.

Among the separate population of Parent PLUS borrowers, median borrowing is $30,881. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 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
$20,449
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$30,881

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$232/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$392/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 / GWU briefing

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

For federally aided completers working and not enrolled, $95,967 is the median earned four years after completion, placing the university's earnings in the 96th percentile. Azimuth places George Washington University's return pillar in the 94th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Completers earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students four years after completion. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, falls in the 86th 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 $9,247. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $2,609.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $83,615; the university's earnings are $12,352 above it. The return picture mixes above-expected earnings with earnings below the peer median.

Four years after completing their degrees, federally aided graduates of George Washington University who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $95,967. That median sits in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The result is drawn from a cohort of 4,296 completers. Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix run from $67,671 on the downside to $111,369 on the upside.

The typical earnings scenario lands at $95,967. Based on the program mix, an estimated 32.7% of graduates continue on to graduate study. Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students.

Federally aided graduates of George Washington University who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $95,967 four years after completing a degree, reflecting a cohort of 4,296 completers. That places the university at the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, a level that is $12,352 above the $83,615 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks the university #82 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students.

The outcome falls at the 86th percentile among institutions 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 $9,247.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $2,609. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $845.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, span from $67,671 on the downside to $111,369 on the upside. An estimated 32.7% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Earnings can differ widely by field at the university. Earnings scenarios run from $67,671 in the downside case to $111,369 in the upside case; these are scenarios based on the program mix, not observed graduate groups.

Among higher-earning fields, Computer Science has median earnings of $150,716, Finance has $126,638, and Systems Engineering has $120,976, all four years after completion. The field results help explain the breadth of the modeled range.

For borrowers completing at George Washington University, lower debt than the peer benchmark gives the return picture a favorable starting point. Median federal student loan debt is $20,449 among federal-loan borrowers who completed; it does not describe every undergraduate.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $23,168, and the university’s debt figure is below it by $2,719. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 a month if repaid over ten years.

Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, provides a second part of the return picture. Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students.

Lower borrower debt and higher-than-expected earnings point in the same direction.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$9,247
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$2,609
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$11,856

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 / GWU briefing

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

Admission to George Washington University was 47.1%, a smaller share than the median of 47.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size). The rate records the share admitted from the reported applicant pool, rather than setting an academic threshold.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 27,034 first-year applicants, 12,741 admitted applicants, and 2,405 enrolled students. Applicants should use the published score ranges and grade information to decide how this university fits within an application list.

This rate summarizes a past applicant pool and does not forecast an individual admission decision.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
47.1%
25th percentile
1310
Median
1390
75th percentile
1450

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / GWU briefing

What are the largest majors at GWU?[12]

George Washington University's top-ranked programs show a clear spread in four-year earnings, with Public Health at the higher end of this group. Its completers had median earnings of $87,217 four years after completion, and the program awarded 116 degrees.

Azimuth ranks it #3 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. At more moderate earnings levels, Criminal Justice recorded $80,070 and awarded 86 degrees; Azimuth ranks it #2 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences had $81,548 across 26 degrees awarded and ranks #1 nationally by Azimuth. Journalism posted $81,927 with 69 degrees awarded, ranking #1 nationally by Azimuth.

The program results span higher and more moderate earnings even among fields with strong national rankings.

Social Sciences accounts for 31.8% of bachelor’s degrees awarded, and George Washington University has 28 nationally ranked fields. Earnings vary by field four years after completion.

The bachelor's degrees at George Washington University are anchored in the social sciences, with Social Sciences accounting for 31.8% of degrees awarded, followed by Business at 15.7% and Health Professions at 14.9%. Across 42 programs with published four-year earnings data, Azimuth ranks 28 of them nationally within their fields.

The largest program is International Relations and National Security Studies, at 537 degrees awarded, with Nursing and Political Science next at 311 and 310 degrees awarded. The strongest programs by national rank include Journalism, which awards 69 degrees a year and ranks #1 in District of Columbia.

Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences is ranked #1 nationally and #1 in District of Columbia. The highest-earning program is a smaller one: Computer Science graduates earn a median of $150,716 four years after completion, from 71 degrees awarded.

Finance is the second-highest-earning, at $126,638 and 119 degrees awarded. Accounting carries a benchmark ratio of 1.53x against the national median for its field, with earnings of $116,795.

The pattern is a university whose largest programs are in the social sciences, where earnings are solid but not at the top of the page. The highest pay is concentrated in technical and quantitative fields that graduate fewer students.

International Relations and National Security Studies, the largest program, earns $76,751, while Computer Science earns nearly double that from a fraction of the degrees. 15.1% of degrees awarded are in STEM fields, so the high-earning programs are a smaller part of the overall mix.

The five highest-earning programs together account for fewer degrees than International Relations and National Security Studies alone.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
International Relations and National Security Studies 537 degrees awarded
$76,751
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 311 degrees awarded
$96,741
Political Science and Government 310 degrees awarded
$79,692
Research and Experimental Psychology 154 degrees awarded
$72,325
Economics 145 degrees awarded
$99,406
Finance and Financial Management Services 119 degrees awarded
$126,638

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 / GWU briefing

How does GWU serve students from different backgrounds?

George Washington University records a six-year graduation rate of 84.0% for the first-time full-time cohort, while Pell recipients complete at 74.5%, trailing the overall rate by 9.5 percentage points. Azimuth ranks the university #299 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions.

That places the mobility pillar in the 80th percentile. Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students, a result that falls in the 86th percentile for earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students.

George Washington University has an access profile shaped by a 47.1% admission rate and a substantial undergraduate enrollment of 11,182 undergraduates. Pell Grants reach 15.8% of undergraduates, and the estimated share of entrants outside the first-time, full-time group is 19.4%, showing that entry is not limited to one route.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth puts the access pillar in the 71st percentile. The enrollment scale and multiple entry measures give the access picture its range.

06 / GWU briefing

What colleges are similar to GWU?[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 GWU.

Admissions peerDickinson College42.1% admitted
Comparison with GWU
MeasureGWUDickinson College
Peer earnings · 4 years$95,967$67,139-$28,828 vs GWU
Average annual net price$36,586$37,607+$1,021 vs GWU · higher cost
Admission rate47.1%42.1%
Higher-admission alternativeCapitol Technology University74.4% admitted
Comparison with GWU
MeasureGWUCapitol Technology University
Peer earnings · 4 years$95,967$104,028+$8,061 vs GWU
Average annual net price$36,586$22,102-$14,484 vs GWU · lower cost
Admission rate47.1%74.4%
Explore Capitol Technology University →
Nearby alternativeAmerican UniversityNearby option · DC
Comparison with GWU
MeasureGWUAmerican University
Peer earnings · 4 years$95,967$79,081-$16,886 vs GWU
Average annual net price$36,586$41,943+$5,357 vs GWU · higher cost
Admission rate47.1%62.0%
Explore American University →
Higher-earnings alternativeBentley University$108,577 earnings
Comparison with GWU
MeasureGWUBentley University
Peer earnings · 4 years$95,967$108,577+$12,610 vs GWU
Average annual net price$36,586$37,930+$1,344 vs GWU · higher cost
Admission rate47.1%45.1%
Explore Bentley University →
Lower-cost alternativeUniversity of Maryland-College Park$15,678 average net price
Comparison with GWU
MeasureGWUUniversity of Maryland-College Park
Peer earnings · 4 years$95,967$84,365-$11,602 vs GWU
Average annual net price$36,586$15,678-$20,908 vs GWU · lower cost
Admission rate47.1%44.8%
Explore University of Maryland-College Park →
Similar profileUniversity of MiamiMatched across several measures
Comparison with GWU
MeasureGWUUniversity of Miami
Peer earnings · 4 years$95,967$85,019-$10,948 vs GWU
Average annual net price$36,586$37,244+$658 vs GWU · higher cost
Admission rate47.1%18.9%
Explore University of Miami →

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