More selective than 67% of District of Columbia colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $83,856. College Scorecard.
Higher than 86% of District of Columbia colleges we cover and 92% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 86% of District of Columbia colleges we cover and 97% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
GWU acceptance rate & admissions
Of 27,094 applicants, George Washington University admitted 11,798 and 2,539 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1350–1500 on the SAT or 31–34 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
GWU tuition, cost & net price
What families actually pay per year, by income
Average net price after grants and scholarships for students who receive federal aid. Tap your income band.
College Scorecard, latest reported year (federal aid recipients)
Sticker price (before aid)
IPEDS 2023-24 cost items; total from College Scorecard
College Scorecard; Urban Institute Education Data Portal
What GWU costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of George Washington University took 4.1 years on average to finish, so the yearly price adds up to the total below. Payback compares former students' earnings with what high school graduates earn in District of Columbia. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $17,440 | $70,981 | 1.3 years |
| $30–48k | $17,292 | $70,378 | 1.3 years |
| $48–75k | $22,080 | $89,866 | 1.7 years |
| $75–110k | $28,100 | $114,367 | 2.2 years |
| $110k+ | $55,337 | $225,222 | 4.3 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.1 years, the average time graduates took (79% finished in 4 years; students who entered fall 2017, IPEDS). Years to pay back = cost to finish ÷ the earnings gain: median earnings of former students 10 years after starting ($90,873) minus $38,184 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in DC (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $52,689 a year. Before taxes, loan interest and earnings given up while in school. Method
College Scorecard (net price, earnings); IPEDS Graduation Rates (time to finish); U.S. Census Bureau ACS (high school earnings). Calculated by EducationGuide.
Best-value colleges in District of Columbia for your income →
GWU majors, earnings & careers
George Washington University offers 81 bachelor's majors across 9 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Humanities & Languages · 17
- Business & Finance · 12
- Science & Math · 12
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 11
- Arts & Design · 7
- Engineering · 7
- Health & Medicine · 7
- Technology & Computing · 5
- Communications & Media · 3
Highest-earning majors at GWU
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Computer Science | $150,716 | $19,500 |
| Finance | $126,638 | $19,000 |
| Systems Engineering | $120,976 | — |
| Management Science / Analytics | $120,730 | $21,000 |
| Accounting | $116,795 | $24,875 |
| Information Technology | $112,554 | $18,143 |
| Business | $107,023 | $20,500 |
| Information Science / Studies | $105,145 | — |
Quick list of all 81 majors
- Accounting$116,795
- Allied Health (Imaging / Therapy / Tech)—
- Anthropology$65,172
- Archeology—
- Area Studies—
- Astronomy and Astrophysics—
- Biochemistry—
- Biology$70,444
- Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology—
- Biomedical Engineering$100,601
- Business$107,023
- Business Administration—
- Chemistry—
- Civil Engineering$100,990
- Classical and Ancient Studies—
- Classics—
- Communications$79,112
- Computer and Information Sciences$93,692
- Computer Engineering—
- Computer Science$150,716
- Criminal Justice$80,070
- Dance—
- East Asian Languages (Chinese / Japanese / Korean)—
- Economics$99,406
- Electrical Engineering—
- Engineering—
- English$70,766
- Entrepreneurship—
- Environmental Science / Conservation$66,178
- Ethnic / Gender Studies—
- Film and Photography—
- Finance$126,638
- Geography$78,390
- Geology / Earth Science—
- German—
- Graphic / Interior / Fashion Design—
- Health Administration$92,810
- History$70,734
- Homeland Security—
- Hospitality Management$75,683
- Human Resources$97,126
- Human Services$65,190
- Information Science / Studies$105,145
- Information Technology$112,554
- International Business$99,018
- International Relations$76,751
- Journalism$81,927
- Literature—
- Management Science / Analytics$120,730
- Marketing$95,528
- Mathematics—
- Mechanical Engineering$101,196
- Medical Laboratory Science$82,325
- Middle / Near Eastern and Semitic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics—
- Multi / Interdisciplinary Studies, Other—
- Music—
- Neuroscience—
- Nursing$96,741
- Nutrition Science—
- Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution—
- Philosophy$64,898
- Physics—
- Physiology$81,548
- Political Science$79,692
- Psychology$79,187
- Psychology (Research)$72,325
- Public Health$87,217
- Public Relations and Advertising$85,459
- Real Estate—
- Religious Studies—
- Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics—
- Sociology$78,857
- Software and Media Applications—
- Spanish / French / Romance Languages$88,114
- Speech-Language Pathology / Communication Disorders—
- Statistics$100,578
- Studio Art$34,734
- Systems Engineering$120,976
- Theatre—
- Visual and Performing Arts—
- Writing—
— means too few graduates to report earnings.
College Scorecard field of study, latest release
All majors by area with earnings 1 and 4 years out, and debt →Nursing → Registered nurse
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 5.6% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Finance → Financial analyst
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 7.2% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Washington
Overall prices in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $2,438. Housing costs 51% above the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 42 inches of rain a year, 14 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: hurricane (relatively high); tornado (relatively high); river flooding (relatively high); heat wave (relatively high); winter weather (very high).
FEMA National Risk Index, District of Columbia
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
District of Columbia at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare GWU with similar schools
Similar private colleges in District of Columbia by selectivity, graduation rate and size. Tap “Why?” to see where the price difference comes from.
| School | Acceptance | You'd pay | Graduation | Earnings, 10 yrs | Price gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Washington University | 47% | $36,586 | 84% | $90,873 | This school |
| Howard University | 41% | $50,539 | 70% | $63,066 | |
| American University | 62% | $41,943 | 75% | $77,370 | |
| Georgetown University | 13% | $40,815 | 95% | $103,494 | |
| The Catholic University of America | 83% | $29,561 | 79% | $73,250 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
George Washington University would cost you $13,953 less per year than Howard University, on average.
- Higher sticker price at George Washington University, mostly from higher tuition & fees (+$31,900).
- George Washington University gives aided families $43,179 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, District of Columbia resident | GWU | HU | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $67,710 | $35,810 | +$31,900 |
| Books & supplies | $1,400 | $1,360 | +$40 |
| Housing & meals | $16,300 | $16,474 | −$174 |
| Personal & travel | $1,625 | $3,452 | −$1,827 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$3,179 | −$2,466 | −$713 |
| Sticker price | $83,856 | $54,630 | +$29,226 |
| Average grants | −$47,270 | −$4,091 | −$43,179 |
| You pay | $36,586 | $50,539 | −$13,953 |
“+” means GWU costs more; “−” means it costs less. Grants are the sticker price minus the net price. Cost items: IPEDS, on-campus budget. Sticker and net price: College Scorecard, latest reported year; the adjustment reconciles the two. Net price is an average for first-time, full-time students receiving federal aid, not a quote.
Common questions about GWU
What is the GWU acceptance rate?
George Washington University accepts 47% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 11,798 of 27,094 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1350–1500 on the SAT or 31–34 on the ACT.
How much does George Washington University cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $83,856 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $36,586 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $17,440 and families earning $110k+ pay $55,337.
How much do GWU graduates earn?
Former George Washington University students earn a median $90,873 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the GWU graduation rate?
84% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 92% return for their second year.
How long does a GWU degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at George Washington University costs about $89,866 after grants ($22,080 a year for 4.1 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $90,873 ten years after starting, $52,689 more than high school graduates in District of Columbia ($38,184), so the cost is repaid in 1.7 years of that gain, before taxes and interest (EducationGuide calculation).
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Sources on this page: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS; U.S. Census Bureau (ACS); Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, Employment Projections); Bureau of Economic Analysis; HUD; NOAA; FEMA; Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By); Wikidata. “Colleges we cover” means colleges awarding bachelor's degrees to at least 100 undergraduates. Averages are not quotes; confirm costs with the school. How we score
Data: download this school's data (JSON) · Markdown · all datasets
Cite this: “George Washington University: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/george-washington-university (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).