University profileFairfax, VAFiscal year 2025
How much federal money does George Mason University get?
George Mason University received $152.7 million in federal awards in FY2025, 122nd of 998 institutions (top 12%).In fiscal year 2025, federal agencies obligated $152.7 million to George Mason University (Fairfax, VA), counting grants, contracts, loans and other awards.
Ranked 122nd of 998 by federal awards
FY2025 federal awards, institutions ranked either side of George Mason University.
| Medical University of South Carolina #119 · SC | $159M |
| Georgia State University #120 · GA | $159M |
| Harvard University (Boston) #121 · MA | $156M |
| George Mason University #122 · VA | $153M |
| Dartmouth College #123 · NH | $151M |
| Strayer University, LLC #124 · VA | $150M |
| Temple University #125 · PA | $149M |
What the money is
That is up 5.2% from FY2024 ($145.1 million). Compared with FY2019, the last year before pandemic relief, it is up 56.2%. The largest share came as grants ($66.8 million, 43.8%). The Department of Education was the biggest funder ($68.8 million). Its largest programs were Federal Pell Grant Program ($63.7 million); Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs ($10.9 million); Science ($7.2 million). It ranks 122nd of the 998 institutions on this site by FY2025 total.
What is counted: awards made directly to this institution, under the registered names GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY (UEI EADLFP7Z72E5). Money that reaches it as a subaward through another organization is not included. Separately incorporated foundations, hospitals and laboratories have their own records and are not added in. Grouping rules are explained in the methodology.
Federal awards by year
George Mason University: $153M in FY2025, up 56% on FY2019
Federal award obligations by fiscal year and type, FY2018–FY2026, nominal dollars. FY26* is preliminary and still filling in.
- Insurance and other
- Loans (subsidy cost)
- Direct payments
- Grants
- Contracts
View every year as a table
| Fiscal year | Contracts | Grants | Direct payments | Loans | Insurance and other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2018 | $43.6M | $56.0M | $0 | $0 | $479,996 | $100.1M |
| FY2019 | $36.2M | $61.6M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $97.8M |
| FY2020 | $46.3M | $84.3M | $0 | $0 | -$1 | $130.6M |
| FY2021 | $40.6M | $158.7M | $1.5M | $0 | -$52,857 | $200.7M |
| FY2022 | $37.2M | $79.1M | $26.3M | $0 | $80,000 | $142.7M |
| FY2023 | $37.0M | $90.9M | $51.7M | $0 | $42,317 | $179.6M |
| FY2024 | $4.3M | $84.3M | $56.5M | $0 | $39,938 | $145.1M |
| FY2025 | $19.3M | $66.8M | $66.4M | $0 | $171,139 | $152.7M |
| FY2026* | $9.7M | $53.4M | $64.7M | $0 | $5.5M | $133.2M |
Source: USAspending.gov (U.S. Treasury).
Who pays and for what, FY2025
The agencies that obligated the most to George Mason University, and the largest federal programs. Programs are federal Assistance Listings (formerly CFDA numbers); contracts have no listing number, so they do not appear there.
Top awarding agencies
| Agency | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Education | $68.8 million | 45.0% |
| Department of Defense | $27.1 million | 17.7% |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $19.4 million | 12.7% |
| National Science Foundation | $17.7 million | 11.6% |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | $7.3 million | 4.8% |
| Executive Office of the President | $3.8 million | 2.5% |
| Small Business Administration | $3.5 million | 2.3% |
| Department of Commerce | $1.9 million | 1.2% |
| Department of Justice | $1.7 million | 1.1% |
| Department of Transportation | $1.3 million | 0.9% |
Top programs
| Program | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Pell Grant Program Assistance Listing 84.063 | $63.7 million | 41.7% |
| Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs Assistance Listing 93.279 | $10.9 million | 7.2% |
| Science Assistance Listing 43.001 | $7.2 million | 4.7% |
| Computer and Information Science and Engineering Assistance Listing 47.070 | $6.1 million | 4.0% |
| Basic and Applied Scientific Research Assistance Listing 12.300 | $4.8 million | 3.2% |
| Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships Assistance Listing 47.084 | $4.4 million | 2.9% |
| High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program Assistance Listing 95.001 | $3.8 million | 2.5% |
| Small Business Development Centers Assistance Listing 59.037 | $3.5 million | 2.3% |
| Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research Assistance Listing 93.855 | $2.5 million | 1.6% |
| STOP School Violence Assistance Listing 16.839 | $1.9 million | 1.3% |
Other institutions in Virginia
- Rector & Visitors of the University of Virginia$398M
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University$235M
- Virginia Commonwealth University$221M
- Liberty University$185M
- Strayer University, LLC$150M
- Virginia Community College System Office (Annandale)$79M
- Old Dominion University$66M
- Virginia State University$56M
Questions and answers
- How much federal funding does George Mason University receive?
- $152.7 million in fiscal year 2025, according to USAspending.gov award data for its registered UEI(s).
- Where does George Mason University's federal money come from?
- The largest funder in FY2025 was the Department of Education ($68.8 million, 45.0%). By type, grants were $66.8 million and contracts $19.3 million.
- Did George Mason University's federal funding go up or down?
- FY2025: $152.7 million; FY2024: $145.1 million (+5.2%).
Sources and notes
- USAspending.gov (U.S. Department of the Treasury), API endpoints spending_over_time and spending_by_category, filtered by recipient ID(s) 959a5b47-d407-9807-55f0-ee776cca4bce-C, fiscal years 2018–2026. Amounts are obligations in nominal dollars. Data retrieved 2026-10-04. Public domain.
- How the figures are built, and what they leave out: sources and methods.