Finance and Financial Management Services at George Washington University

George Washington's finance program places graduates into $73,833 starting salaries—38% above the national median and in the 95th percentile nationally. That's excellent positioning for a program with just $19,000 in median debt. However, within DC's competitive finance landscape, the picture shifts: this ranks 40th percentile among local programs, trailing Georgetown ($106K), American ($84K), and Howard ($81K). For context, DC's median finance graduate earns $81,074, putting GW slightly below the city benchmark despite its strong national standing.

The financial fundamentals remain solid. A 0.26 debt-to-earnings ratio means graduates can reasonably pay off loans in under four months of gross salary, and earnings climb to $101,012 by year four—a 37% increase. The $19,000 debt figure sits below both national and DC medians, making this one of the more affordable options at a selective private university (44% admission rate, 1433 SAT average).

The question is whether paying GW's premium makes sense when DC's finance market is saturated with graduates from higher-earning programs. If your child can gain admission to Georgetown, that $32,000 salary gap is substantial. But compared to national finance programs, GW delivers strong outcomes with manageable debt—particularly valuable if you're already planning to stay in DC, where the finance job market is robust enough to support multiple strong programs.