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2026 Highest Paid Public Relations Advertising Grads in District of Columbia

[Public Relations Advertising](/majors/communication-journalism-media/public-relations-advertising/) is a field where your choice of school can shape what you earn after graduation. The highest-paying schools turn a public relations advertising degree into the strongest early-career earnings.

For its 2026 highest-paid-graduates ranking, College Factual looked at 3 schools to find where public relations advertising graduates earn the most.

What’s on this page:

• Highest Paid Public Relations Advertising Grads in District of Columbia

2026 Highest Paid Public Relations Advertising Grads in District of Columbia

Below are the schools whose public relations advertising graduates go on to earn the most.

Highest Paid Public Relations Advertising Graduates

1

George Washington University
Washington, DC

$98,321 Average Early-Career Salary

George Washington University earned the #1 spot for highest-paid public relations advertising graduates in District of Columbia. Set in the city of Washington, George Washington University is a private not-for-profit institution. Students who complete the public relations advertising program here go on to a median salary of roughly $98,321.

2

American University
Washington, DC

$94,957 Average Early-Career Salary

Strong graduate earnings at American University earned it the #2 place for public relations advertising. Set in the city of Washington, American University is a private not-for-profit institution. Early-career public relations advertising graduates from American University make a median of around $94,957 per year.

3

Howard University
Washington, DC

$39,120 Average Early-Career Salary

Howard University came in at #3 on our 2026 list of the highest-paying public relations advertising schools. Set in the city of Washington, Howard University is a private not-for-profit institution. Early-career public relations advertising graduates from Howard University make a median of around $39,120 per year.

View All Public Relations Advertising Rankings >

Notes and References

The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition. Schools are ranked on the median early-career earnings of their public relations advertising graduates, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard field-of-study earnings and IPEDS).

Ranking method: College Major Earnings · 3 schools evaluated.

*Salary figures reflect median early-career earnings (about 5 years after graduation) and may vary by how long a person takes to complete their degree.

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Graduate earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard) field-of-study earnings.

More about our data sources and methodologies.