History
The university's formal history began in 1957 as University College, theNorthern Virginia branch of the University of Virginia, offering coursesin engineering and the liberal arts. It opened in a renovated elementaryschool in the Bailey's Crossroads area with an enrollment of 17 students.
Education
This is one of the best times of your life — endless prospects lie ahead. hat's where we come in. Mason's academic programs aren't just courses of study; they're pathways to the accomplishments you want to make, the global problems you want to solve, and the life you want to live. Our top-rated faculty prepare you to compete with the best in the world through experiential learning, research projects, and connections to internships. You'll also study in state-of-the-art classrooms and labs.
Research
George Mason University conducts research that goes beyond the desire to know and understand; we want to make a difference. Research is vital to expanding our knowledge, sparking new ideas, and developing innovative techniques that have an impact on society, the economy, and the environment. It’s a critical part of the university’s purpose and mission.
Career
University Career Services is George Mason University’s nationally recognized centralized career center. We are specialists taking an industry-focused approach to serving our students and employers.
We prepare and connect career-ready students for post-graduate success.
Career Services:- Held 140+ career programs
- Served 21,000+ students
- Awarded $28,000 in scholarships for unpaid internships
- Supported a network of 400+ faculty & staff university-wide
- Promoted 80K+ jobs and internships through Handshake
- Hosted 100s of employers recruiting Mason students and alumni
Distance Learning Courses
- M.A. Anthropology
- Postgraduate Certificate Applied Behavior Analysis
- M.Sc. Biodefense
- Postgraduate Certificate Cognitive Neuroscience
- M.A. Communication
- Postgraduate Certificate Computational Social Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Conflict Analysis and Resolution
- Postgraduate Certificate Contemporary Dispute Resolution
- MEd Counseling
- M.A. Economics
- Postgraduate Certificate Emergency Management and Homeland Security
- Postgraduate Certificate Folklore Studies
- M.A. Global Affairs
- Postgraduate Certificate Global Health and Security
- Postgraduate Certificate Government Accounting
- Postgraduate Certificate Illicit Trade Analysis
- Postgraduate Certificate Mass Atrocity and Genocide Prevention
- Postgraduate Certificate Middle East and Islamic Studies
- Postgraduate Certificate National Security and Public Policy
- M.A. Political Science
- M.A. Psychology
- MPP Public Policy
- Postgraduate Certificate Science Communication
- Postgraduate Certificate Science, Technology, and Security
- M.A. Sociology
- Postgraduate Certificate Spanish Heritage Language Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Strategic Trade
- Postgraduate Certificate Terrorism and Homeland Security
- Postgraduate Certificate Women and Gender Studies
- Postgraduate Certificate Add-On Endorsement in Special Education - General Curriculum
- MAT Art Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Postgraduate Certificate Blindness and Visual Impairments PK-12 Licensure
- Postgraduate Certificate Early Childhood Education (PK-3)
- Postgraduate Certificate Education Assessment, Evaluation, and Data Literacy
- Postgraduate Certificate Education Leadership
- M.Ed. Education Leadership
- M.Sc. Educational Psychology
- Postgraduate Certificate Gifted Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Higher Education Administration
- Postgraduate Certificate International School Leadership Practice
- Postgraduate Certificate Learning Technologies
- Postgraduate Certificate Linguistics - Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
- Postgraduate Certificate Music Education Licensure for PK-12
- Postgraduate Certificate Nursing Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Nursing Education
- Postgraduate Certificate School Psychology
- Postgraduate Certificate Secondary Education Licensure
- M.Ed. Special Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Specialized Reading Instruction for Students with Specific Learning Disabilities
- Postgraduate Certificate Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) for PK-12 Practitioners
- Postgraduate Certificate Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) for PK-12 Practitioners
- Postgraduate Certificate Teaching Theatre PK-12
- Postgraduate Certificate Advanced Networking Protocols for Telecommunications
- Postgraduate Certificate Assistive Technology
- Postgraduate Certificate Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
- Postgraduate Certificate Business Analytics
- M.Sc. Computational Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Computational Social Science
- M.Sc. Computer Engineering
- M.Sc. Computer Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Data Analytics
- Postgraduate Certificate Data Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Digital Public Humanities
- Postgraduate Certificate Environmental GIS and Biodiversity Conservation
- Postgraduate Certificate Geographic Information Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Geospatial Intelligence
- M.Sc. Health Informatics
- Postgraduate Certificate Health Informatics and Data Analytics
- Postgraduate Certificate IT Strategy and Digital Transformation
- M.Sc. Information Systems
- Postgraduate Certificate Remote Sensing and Image Processing
- Postgraduate Certificate Software Engineering
- M.Sc. Statistical Science
- M.Sc. Accounting
- Postgraduate Certificate Accounting for Government Contracts
- Postgraduate Certificate Actuarial Sciences
- M.A. Arts Management
- M.B.A. Business Administration
- Postgraduate Certificate Business Analytics
- Postgraduate Certificate Business Fundamentals
- M.Sc. Finance
- Postgraduate Certificate Forensic Accounting
- Postgraduate Certificate Government Accounting
- Postgraduate Certificate Illicit Trade Analysis
- M.Sc. Management
- Postgraduate Certificate Nonprofit Management
- Postgraduate Certificate Public Management
- Postgraduate Certificate Science Communication
- Postgraduate Certificate Strategic Trade
- Postgraduate Certificate Artist
- MFA Creative Writing
- Postgraduate Certificate Digital Public Humanities
- Postgraduate Certificate Folklore Studies
- M.A. Foreign Languages
- Postgraduate Certificate Linguistics - Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
- Postgraduate Certificate Literature and Composition
- Postgraduate Certificate Middle East and Islamic Studies
- M.A. Philosophy
- Postgraduate Certificate Professional and Technical Writing
- Postgraduate Certificate Spanish Heritage Language Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) for PK-12 Practitioners
- Postgraduate Certificate Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) for PK-12 Practitioners
- Postgraduate Certificate Advanced Biomedical Sciences
- Postgraduate Certificate Advanced Networking Protocols for Telecommunications
- Postgraduate Certificate Biodefense
- M.Sc. Bioengineering
- M.Sc. Electrical Engineering
- Postgraduate Certificate Naval Ship Design
- Postgraduate Certificate Operations Research and Engineering
- Postgraduate Certificate Science, Technology, and Security
- Postgraduate Certificate Small Satellite Engineering
- Postgraduate Certificate Systems Engineering
- M.Sc. Systems Engineering
- M.Sc. Technology Management
- M.Sc. Telecommunication
- Postgraduate Certificate Applied Statistics
- M.Sc. Biodefense
- Postgraduate Certificate Biodefense
- Postgraduate Certificate Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
- M.Sc. Biology
- M.Sc. Biostatistics
- M.Sc. Chemistry
- Postgraduate Certificate Cognitive Neuroscience
- M.Sc. Mathematics
- M.Sc. Operations Research
- Postgraduate Certificate Operations Research and Engineering
- M.Sc. Statistical Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Advanced Biomedical Sciences
- Postgraduate Certificate Gerontology
- Postgraduate Certificate Global Health and Security
- Postgraduate Certificate Nursing Education
- Postgraduate Certificate Nursing Education
- M.Sc. Nutrition
- Postgraduate Certificate Nutrition
- Postgraduate Certificate Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
- Postgraduate Certificate Tactical Athlete Strength, Conditioning and Injury Prevention
- M.A. Art History
- Postgraduate Certificate Artist
- MM Music
- Postgraduate Certificate Music Education Licensure for PK-12
- Postgraduate Certificate Music for Well-Being
- Postgraduate Certificate Naval Ship Design
- Postgraduate Certificate Teaching Theatre PK-12
- M.Sc. Digital Forensics
- Postgraduate Certificate Emergency Management and Homeland Security
- M.Sc. Forensic Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Forensics
- Postgraduate Certificate Mass Atrocity and Genocide Prevention
- M.Sc. Real Estate Development
- MSW Social Work
- M.Sc. Climate Science
- M.Sc. Earth Systems Science
- Postgraduate Certificate Environmental GIS and Biodiversity Conservation
- Postgraduate Certificate Environmental and Sustainability Management
- M.Sc. Athletic Training
- Postgraduate Certificate Sport Management
- Postgraduate Certificate Tactical Athlete Strength, Conditioning and Injury Prevention
- M.Sc. Criminal Justice
- Postgraduate Certificate Terrorism and Homeland Security
- Postgraduate Certificate Contemporary Dispute Resolution
Student services
The Mason Student Services Center is the first stop and the central resource for information and solutions related to registration, enrollment, financial aid, billing, academic records and other student support services.
A team of cross-trained Mason Student Services Center Representatives provide assistance to new and continuing students at all points of their academic career, in one convenient location, thus eliminating the need to visit multiple offices on campus.
Housing services
Most first-year students will live in traditional residence hall communities such as Presidents Park, a complex of 12 residence halls.
- All rooms are furnished with beds, desks, chairs, dressers, and closets. Carpets and window treatments are provided.
- Most bedrooms in Presidents Park are double or triple occupancy. A small number of quads and singles are also available.
- Bedrooms are accessed off the main hallway, and residents share bathrooms (designated by gender).
- Each of these buildings has two or three floors and is home to 26 to 40 residents.
- All halls are coed by floor or floor section.
- Common areas, such as lounges and laundry, are distributed throughout the community.
Library services
Fenwick Library, located centrally on the Fairfax campus, is George Mason University's main research library and houses the majority of the University Libraries' 1.5 million volumes. Fenwick is a hub of research services, learning spaces, digital technology, and numerous resources for the Mason Community.
ICT services
Mason offers three Wi-Fi networks to the university community:
- eduroam is an encrypted Wi-Fi network open to all guests who are members of the eduroam federation.
- MASON is an unencrypted Wi-Fi network targeted for use by visitors and guests only.
- MASON-SECURE is a legacy network serving Mason faculty, staff, and students only.
Medical services
Student Health Services’ dedicated doctors, nurse practitioners and nurses provide accessible and affordable health care to all currently enrolled Mason students in a caring and confidential environment.
Campus life
Mason’s campus has more than 40 residence halls, from suites to apartments. Many are new or have been recently renovated to be even more spacious and comfortable. More than 75 percent of all freshmen live on campus, so there’s always plenty going on. A variety of amenities are available within each building, including high-speed Internet access and free laundry facilities (but you still have to fold)
Sports facilities
- A division of University Life, Mason Recreation offers state-ofthe- art facilities for the university and surrounding community. Fitness memberships that include access to all three recreation and athletic facilities—the Aquatic and Fitness Center, the Recreation and Athletic Complex, and Skyline Fitness Center— are available to university-affiliated and nonaffiliated individuals.
Student clubs
Learn to juggle. Celebrate Arabic culture. Sing your heart out. With more than 350 student organizations at Mason, there are so many ways for students to find their niches, get involved, and meet new friends in the process. Our student groups are responsible for many of the programs and events on campus each year and contribute to lively, engaged campus community.
George Mason University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACSCOC) to award bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. Every ten years, the university engages in the process of reaffirmation of accreditation. This activity takes three years, and involves faculty, staff, and students from across the institution.