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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia

10 Ranked Colleges
3,333 Degrees Awarded
$14,800 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor's in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 200,458 engineering students received their degree, making the major the 6th most popular in the country. In 2017-2018, engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $64,888 and had an average of $23,564 in loans still to pay off.

Across Virginia, there were 5,222 engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 3,333 engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 10 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent engineering programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the engineering program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for virginia bachelor’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 10 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia

#1

University of Virginia - Main Campus

Charlottesville, Virginia
#1 in overall quality

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Virginia - Main Campus landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Charlottesville, Virginia, and it awarded 511 bachelors’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

University of Virginia did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. It costs about $8,882 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Virginia.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Engineering at University of Virginia - Main Campus

#2

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, Virginia
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Virginia Tech. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k. Virginia Tech is a large school located in Blacksburg, Virginia that handed out 1,524 bachelors’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Virginia Tech, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Virginia Tech is $11,138 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read more about Engineering at Virginia Tech

#3

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, Virginia
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, James Madison University landed the #3 spot on the list. JMU is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 78 bachelors’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

JMU also took the #3 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $14,196 for virginia bachelor’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend James Madison University.

The low student loan default rate of 2.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Engineering at JMU

#4

Virginia Military Institute

Lexington, Virginia
#8 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Virginia Military Institute. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k. Virginia Military Institute is a public institution located in Lexington, Virginia. The school has a small population, and it awarded 85 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

VMI also made our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #8. It costs about $8,789 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Virginia Military Institute.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering at Virginia Military Institute

#5

George Mason University

Fairfax, Virginia
#4 in overall quality

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, George Mason University landed the #5 spot on the list. Fairfax, Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s engineering degrees to 340 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at GMU, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend GMU is $16,204 for virginia bachelor’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read more about Engineering at George Mason University

#6

Old Dominion University

Norfolk, Virginia
#7 in overall quality

Old Dominion University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Old Dominion University is a large public school situated in Norfolk, Virginia. It awarded 306 bachelors’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Old Dominion also took the #7 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Old Dominion University is $12,017 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Engineering at Old Dominion

#6 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, Virginia Commonwealth University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. Virginia Commonwealth University is a public institution located in Richmond, Virginia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 260 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

VCU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The estimated yearly cost for Virginia Commonwealth University is $16,768 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 4.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering at Virginia Commonwealth University

#8

Christopher Newport University

Newport News, Virginia
#5 in overall quality

With a ranking of #8, Christopher Newport University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. CNU is located in Newport News, Virginia and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 27 bachelors’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

CNU also took the #5 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CNU is $16,529 for virginia bachelor’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The low student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full CNU Engineering Report

#9

Virginia State University

Petersburg, Virginia
#9 in overall quality

With a ranking of #9, Virginia State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. Virginia State University is a small school located in Petersburg, Virginia that handed out 25 bachelors’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Virginia State, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $15,586 for virginia bachelor’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Virginia State University.

Full Virginia State Engineering Report

#10

Liberty University

Lynchburg, Virginia
#10 in overall quality

Liberty University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #10. Located in Lynchburg, Virginia, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 80 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s engineering students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Liberty University, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Liberty University is $27,896 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Engineering at Liberty University

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Notes and References

References

  • 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.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

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