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2023 Best Public Administration Colleges for Veterans in Virginia

8 Ranked Colleges
604 Degrees Awarded
$32,600 Avg Cost*
Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin

Veterans have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual has developed its “Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Public Administration is the 60th most popular major in the country with 16,905 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, public administration graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $51,352 and had an average of $29,054 in loans still to pay off.

Across Virginia, there were 604 public administration graduates with average earnings and debt of $48,548 and $29,668 respectively.

This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin” ranking looked at 8 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in public administration. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great public administration programs and a strong support system for veterans and active service members.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the public administration program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran population. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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The public admin school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin”.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. 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.

Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin

The colleges and universities below are the best for virginia vets studying public admin.

Top 8 Best Public Administration Colleges for Veterans in Virginia

1
JMU crest
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend James Madison University. The school came in at #1 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin. James Madison University is a large public school situated in Harrisonburg, Virginia. It awarded 79 ’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia vets studying public admin list, JMU has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.According to our most recent data, James Madison University supports 21,594 students, and 842 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 464 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $5,824. To help with additional expenses, 3 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. James Madison University offers credit for military training for eligible students.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 89%.

Full James Madison University Veteran Student Life Report

2
GMU crest
George Mason University
Fairfax, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend George Mason University. The school came in at #2 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin. Located in Fairfax, Virginia, this large public school awarded 118 degrees to qualified ’s public admin students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at GMU, the school also landed the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 38,541 students enrolled at George Mason University, 2,334 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1,583 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $10,710. In addition to receiving other benefits, 42 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 full report on veteran student life at George Mason University]](/colleges/george-mason-university/student-life/veterans/)

3

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Virginia Commonwealth University. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin. Richmond, Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s public admin degrees to 41 students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia vets studying public admin list, VCU has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Of the 29,070 students enrolled at Virginia Commonwealth University, 1 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 2 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $13,085. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

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

Full VCU Veteran Student Life Report

4
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Virginia Tech. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin list. This large school is located in Blacksburg, Virginia, and it awarded 44 ’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

Virginia Tech not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Among the 37,024 students enrolled at Virginia Tech, 119 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 108 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $12,314. During this same period, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 veteran student life at Virginia Tech]](/colleges/virginia-polytechnic-institute-and-state-university/student-life/veterans/)

5
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, Virginia

Out of the 8 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin that were part of this year’s ranking, Liberty University landed the #5 spot on the list. Liberty University is a large school located in Lynchburg, Virginia that handed out 196 ’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia vets studying public admin list, Liberty University has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Of the 93,349 students enrolled at Liberty University, 13,282 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 8,897 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $4,888. On top of their other funding sources, 386 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Liberty University]](/colleges/liberty-university/student-life/veterans/)

6
Old Dominion crest
Old Dominion University
Norfolk, Virginia

With a ranking of #6, Old Dominion University did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin list. This large school is located in Norfolk, Virginia, and it awarded 44 ’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

Old Dominion did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Among the 24,286 students enrolled at Old Dominion, 1 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $0. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

Read More…

7
Regent crest
Regent University
Virginia Beach, Virginia

Regent University landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin ranking. Regent is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Virginia Beach, Virginia. It awarded 32 ’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia vets studying public admin list, Regent has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 10,483 students enrolled at Regent, 1,414 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1,139 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $9,203. During this same period, 42 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

Full Regent Veteran Student Life Report

8

Strayer University - Virginia did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Virginia for Public Admin ranking, coming in at #8. Located in Arlington, Virginia, this small private for-profit school awarded 20 degrees to qualified ’s public admin students in 2020-2021.

Strayer University - Virginia did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Our most recent data shows that 63 of the 4,797 students enrolled at Strayer University - Virginia were GI Bill® students, of which 59 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $8,224. During this same period, 1 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Strayer University - Virginia]](/colleges/strayer-university-virginia/student-life/veterans/)

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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