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2023 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k

6 Ranked Colleges
470 Degrees Awarded
$15,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.

In 2020-2021, 6,430 people earned their degree in public policy, making the major the 113th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, public policy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $49,451 and had an average of $21,866 in loans still to pay off.

Across Virginia, there were 470 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $54,843 and $24,525 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 6 colleges that offer a degree in public policy. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent public policy programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the public policy program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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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 Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 6 Best Value Colleges for Public Policy (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia

1
William & Mary crest
William & Mary
Williamsburg, Virginia

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, William & Mary landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Williamsburg, Virginia, this medium-sized public school handed out 55 degrees to qualified ’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

William & Mary also took the #4 spot in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for William & Mary is $5,972 for virginia public policy students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Public Policy at William & Mary

2
University of Virginia crest
University of Virginia - Main Campus
Charlottesville, Virginia

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Virginia is a large school located in Charlottesville, Virginia that handed out 165 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia public policy students whose families make $0-$30k list, University of Virginia has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Virginia is $12,476 for virginia public policy students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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 University of Virginia Public Policy Report

3
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Virginia Tech landed the #3 spot on the list. Virginia Tech is a public institution located in Blacksburg, Virginia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 27 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia public policy students whose families make $0-$30k list, Virginia Tech has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Virginia Tech is $11,934 for Virginia Public Policy students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read full report on Public Policy at Virginia Tech

4
GMU crest
George Mason University
Fairfax, Virginia

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend George Mason University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Fairfax, Virginia, and it awarded 88 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

GMU also took the #1 spot in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend George Mason University is $14,781 for Virginia Public Policy students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full GMU Public Policy Report

5
Regent crest
Regent University
Virginia Beach, Virginia

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Regent University landed the #5 spot on the list. Regent University is a fairly large school located in Virginia Beach, Virginia that handed out 37 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Regent not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” list. The estimated yearly cost for Regent University is $20,479 for Virginia Public Policy students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Public Policy at Regent

6
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, Virginia

Liberty University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Lynchburg, Virginia, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 98 diplomas to qualified ’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

Liberty University also made our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #5. The yearly cost to attend Liberty University is $29,786 for Virginia Public Policy students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Liberty University Public Policy Report

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