Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
EarningsPluscompares student earnings after college against a benchmark that Degreechoices adjusts based on each school’s unique mix of academic programs and the in-state/out-of-state composition of the student body.
Schools are assigned a value from 1-100, where 100 is best for students from households earning up to $30,000. This value is multiplied by the percentage of the school’s student body that received a Pell Grant, to calculate the economic mobility score. A higher score is better. Read the full explanation
The percentage of a school’s student body that has received a Pell Grant.
Payback measures how long it takes the average student to pay back the total cost of attending college with marginal earnings. Marginal earnings are the difference between what the average student would have earned before attending college and what they earn afterwards.
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
The total debt accrued by the median student at the time of graduation.
The debt-to-earnings ratio is calculated by dividing student debt upon graduation by the annual salary. A debt to earnings ratio of 1 means that annual educational debt is the same as annual earnings.
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
EarningsPluscompares student earnings after college against a benchmark that Degreechoices adjusts based on each school’s unique mix of academic programs and the in-state/out-of-state composition of the student body.
Payback measures how long it takes the average student to pay back the total cost of attending college with marginal earnings. Marginal earnings are the difference between what the average student would have earned before attending college and what they earn afterwards.
The best colleges in D.C. offer a mix of top-ranking private colleges and universities, a dynamic, culturally diverse environment, and extensive employment opportunities. Washington, D.C. boasts some of the best colleges nationwide, including the famed Georgetown University and George Washington University. Because the University of the District of Columbia is the only public university in D.C., the D.C. Tuition Assistance Program (DCTAG) helps residents reduce the cost of attending public universities outside the District. Still, tuition costs typically remain higher for DC residents compared to those enjoyed by in-state residents.
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$35,965
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$103,494
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate94%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
#2 in District of Columbia|#78 in National Universities
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$34,462
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$90,873
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate86%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
#3 in District of Columbia|#187 in National Universities
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$33,417
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$73,250
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate74%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
#4 in District of Columbia|#209 in National Universities
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$43,412
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$77,370
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate79%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$12,253
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$53,804
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate49%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
#6 in District of Columbia|#354 in National Universities
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$45,180
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$63,066
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate63%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
#7 in District of Columbia|#380 in National Universities
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$12,167
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$43,101
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate57%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
Our economic score ranks programs based on a combination of payback and EarningsPlus. Lower scores are better. Check our methodology page for details and data sources.
Cost$14,144
The median net cost of students who receive federal financial aid. This is lower than the price advertised by the school.
Earnings$44,236
Median earnings of all students 10 years after enrollment. Includes students that did not graduate.
Graduation rate40%
Graduation rates below the school’s state average are shown in red. Schools with graduation rates in the bottom 25% nationally (49%) are not displayed.
Explore more schools without data
www.degreechoices.com is an advertising-supported site. Featured or trusted partner programs and all school search, finder, or match results are for schools that compensate
us. This compensation does not influence our school rankings, resource guides, or other editorially-independent information published on this site.
Average income based on education level
The following figures are the average salaries in D.C. for each level of education.
Average Income
The average income of people in this state with a high-school diploma, certificate, associate degree, bachelor’s degree, or master’s degree, 10 years after enrollment, based on 2021-2022 CSC data.
HS Diploma$38,599
Certificate$80,686
Associate$66,317
Bachelor$64,174
Master$78,513
Cost of attending college in District of Columbia
In-state-tuition$30,253
The average in-state tuition, before financial aid, of all 4-year institutions in the state. Includes public, private, online, on-campus, non-profit, and for-profit institutions. Based on 2021-2022 CSC data.
Out-of-state-tuition$30,824
The average tuition for out-of-state students, before financial aid of all 4-year institutions in the state. Includes public, private, online, on-campus, non-profit, and for-profit institutions. Based on 2021-2022 CSC data.
Most popular degrees in DC
In DC the most popular degrees are Business Administration, International Relations, and Poli Sci/Government. To create this list, we complied and analyzed data from IPEDS and College Scorecard.
They both provide information on how many graduates each program has annually. The list below is both undergraduate- and graduate-level programs.
Popular degrees
1Business Administration 2,459graduates
2International Relations 2,117graduates
3Poli Sci/Government 1,084graduates
4Legal Research 965graduates
5Registered Nursing 931graduates
6Public Health 731graduates
7Business and Commerce 579graduates
8Finance 571graduates
9Economics 529graduates
10Advertising & PR 504graduates
Fastest growing careers
District of Columbia job growth
12.9%
Massage Therapists
76.9%
Fitness Trainers and Aerobics Instructors
53.2%
Epidemiologists
50%
Loan Interviewers and Clerks
50%
Nurse Practitioners
41.9%
Speech-Language Pathologists
41.7%
Interpreters and Translators
36.7%
Information Security Analysts
36.6%
Veterinary Technologists and Technicians
35.3%
Physician Assistants
31.4%
Best bachelor’s degrees in DC
These majors are most likely to pay off economically after graduation.
Program NamesEconomic Score
1Liberal Arts and Sciences 1.04
2Diagnostic, Intervention & Treatment 1.13
3Bioethics 1.53
4Computer and Information Sciences 1.87
5Science, Tech, & Society 2.18
6Hospitality Mgmt. 2.22
7Human Resource Mgmt. 2.24
8Biomedical/Medical Engineering 2.36
9Finance 2.46
10Computer Science 3.13
11Registered Nursing 3.13
12Advertising & PR 3.13
13Human Services 3.17
14Accounting 3.3
15Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. 3.44
Higher education is supposed to act as an economic elevator that lifts students from low-income households into the middle class. But not all colleges do this: unfortunately, many of the nation’s most “prestigious” schools accept very few students from low-income backgrounds.
To determine what colleges are doing the best job at lifting students out of poverty, we have devised a Social Mobility Index (SMI).
The best colleges for social mobility in DC are shown below.
Bachelor's degree holders or higher
61.2%
Filters
District of Columbia
12.9%
