Nashville, US · 21 months · class of 160
Vanderbilt Owen MBA: cost, salary and payback
A Nashville program of 160 students whose report says how many graduates each top employer hired.
Paid back after graduation in
5.5 years
Total cost $349,416 · 10-year NPV $70,498
| Tuition and fees, whole program | $159,252 |
| Living budget | $54,114 |
| Salary given up, 21 months | $157,500 |
| Summer internship earned | −$21,450 |
| Total cost | $349,416 |
| Salary after: median base salary | $142,800 |
| Signing bonus × share receiving it | $26,700 |
| 10-year net present value | $70,498 |
| Return on the cost (present values) | 20% |
US dollars at the ECB rate of the last update. Raises of 5% a year with the MBA and 3% without, discounted at 5%, before tax. How this is calculated.
Fees and budget read on October 13, 2026 · employment: Class of 2025 (MBA CSEA standard) · Built by Radif Partners · Method
- Tuition and fees
- $159,252
- Total cost, salary given up included
- $349,416
- median base salary
- $142,800
- Payback, reference person
- 5.5 years
The Vanderbilt Owen full-time MBA costs $153,400 in tuition and $5,852 in fees for two years, and the school budgets $54,114 for living in Nashville, for $213,366 before the salary you stop earning. For a person earning $90,000 today, the 21 months away add $157,500, the summer internship gives back about $21,450, and the total is $349,416. The class of 2025 reported a median base salary of $142,800, and 89% of those hired received a signing bonus, at a median of $30,000. On those figures the degree pays back 5.5 years after graduation, with a ten-year net present value of $70,498. Owen stands out for what its report counts: hires by employer, Amazon with 12, Deloitte Consulting with 7 and Highspring Consulting with 5, and a split of consulting jobs between strategy firms and internal teams.
Employers named with head counts
Most schools list their recruiters without numbers. Owen gives numbers: Amazon with 12, Deloitte Consulting with 7 and Highspring Consulting with 5 were the largest hirers of the class of 2025. Only 9 of the 75 schools on this site publish hire counts at all. For a class of 160, a single employer taking 12 graduates is a large share, which tells a candidate where the school's recruiting relationships run deepest; it also means one company changing its plans would move the figures for the next class.
The signing bonus is just as widely spread. 89% of graduates who took a job received one, a share that only 1 school on this site exceeds, at a median of $30,000. The calculator counts it once, in the first year.
Consulting and finance at the same median
Consulting took 29% of the class and finance 21%, both at a median of $175,000, so either path repays the degree in 3.6 years for the reference person, faster than the school-wide 5.5 years. The function table splits consulting in two: 29% in management and strategy firms and 5% in internal consulting teams inside companies. Healthcare is the third group at 16%, number 9 of 22 in our healthcare ranking, but its median of $130,000 stretches the payback to 6.8 years. Operations is a smaller strength: Owen ranks number 2 of 18 for operations jobs.
Vanderbilt Owen: where the class went
Share of the class
29%
| Salary reported | $175,000 |
| Graduates, about | 46 |
| Payback with that salary | 3.6 years |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
A Nashville budget, and what it leaves out
The living budget of $54,114 for two nine-month years is lower than at all but 5 of the 29 two-year American programs on this site that publish one. It counts housing, food, personal costs and transport; the school lists health insurance and loan fees on separate lines, and both stay out of the figure here. A student who keeps the university health plan should add it. 100% of graduates who took a job stayed in the United States, which puts Owen number 2 of 39 in our ranking for working in the United States. The class is 24% women; only 1 school on this site reports a lower one.
Vanderbilt Owen: when the MBA pays back, for your salary
Payback after graduation
5.5 years
| Total cost with the salary given up | $349,416 |
| Salary after (median base salary) | $142,800 |
| 10-year NPV | $70,498 |
Same assumptions as the main calculator; US dollars.
Where Vanderbilt Owen stands in our rankings
- #18 of 40 · Any industry (whole class)
- #14 of 38 · Consulting
- #10 of 39 · Finance, all segments
- #21 of 40 · Technology
- #2 of 39 · Working in the United States
Our fit score, reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA (method). Third-party rankings play no part in it.
What the Vanderbilt Owen MBA costs
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tuition, whole program | $153,400 |
| Mandatory fees | $5,852 |
| Living budget, whole program | $54,114 |
| Salary given up: $90,000 a year for 21 months | $157,500 |
| Summer internship earned | −$21,450 |
| Total cost, reference person | $349,416 |
Vanderbilt Owen employment report: Class of 2025
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median base salary | $142,800 |
| Signing bonus (median) | $30,000, received by 89% |
| Summer internship, per month (median) | $8,580 |
| Graduates who accepted an offer within three months | 86% |
| Response rate to the survey | 93% |
Vanderbilt Owen graduates by industry
| Industry, as the school names it | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Consulting | 29% | $175,000 |
| Financial Services | 21% | $175,000 |
| Healthcare | 16% | $130,000 |
| Technology | 13% | $142,800 |
| Consumer Products + Retail | 9% | not published |
| Manufacturing | 6% | $140,000 |
| Other | 5% | $135,000 |
| Energy | 3% | not published |
Where Vanderbilt Owen graduates went to work
| Region | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| US (US Mid-Atlantic + US Midwest + US Northeast + US South + US Southwest + US West) | 100% | not published |
Vanderbilt Owen graduates by job function
| Function | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Consulting | 34% | $175,000 |
| Consulting - Management/Strategy | 29% | $175,000 |
| Consulting - Internal | 5% | $140,000 |
| Finance/Accounting | 22% | $175,000 |
| Finance - Investment Banking/Capital Markets | 11% | $175,000 |
| Finance - Corporate Finance | 10% | $130,000 |
| Marketing | 12% | $126,000 |
| Marketing - Brand Management | 5% | $126,000 |
| Operations Management | 12% | $142,800 |
| Business/Data Analytics | 7% | $130,000 |
| General Management | 6% | $140,000 |
| Human Resources | 3% | $117,000 |
| Information Technology | 1% | not published |
| Other | 3% | not published |
Employers named by Vanderbilt Owen
Amazon (12) · Deloitte Consulting (7) · Highspring Consulting (5) · Wells Fargo Corporate & Investment Banking (3) · Boston Consulting Group (3) · EY (3) · EY-Parthenon (3) · UnitedHealth Group (3)
Number of hires in brackets where the school gives it.
The Vanderbilt Owen class
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| International students | 29% |
| Women | 24% |
| Average age | 28 |
| Average years of work experience | 6 |
| Class size | 160 |