2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy in Virginia (With Aid)

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 6,199 people earned their degree in public policy, making the major the 116th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, public policy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $52,077 and had an average of $35,743 in loans still to pay off.

Across Virginia, there were 477 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,725 and $29,647 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 190 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 4 colleges that offered a degree in public policy. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great public policy programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

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

More Ways to Rank Public Policy Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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 for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for virginia bachelor’s degree public policy students with aid.

Top 4 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy in Virginia (With Aid)

#1

University of Virginia - Main Campus

Charlottesville, Virginia

#1 in overall quality

$20,397 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Charlottesville, Virginia, this large public school handed out 82 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s public policy students in 2019-2020.

University of Virginia not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Virginia is $20,397 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Public Policy students with aid.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%.

Full University of Virginia - Main Campus Public Policy Report

#2

William & Mary

Williamsburg, Virginia

#2 in overall quality

$19,800 Average Net Price

$39,369 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, William & Mary landed the #2 spot on the list. William & Mary is a medium-sized public school situated in Williamsburg, Virginia. It awarded 54 bachelors’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

William & Mary also made our “Best Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for William & Mary is $19,800 for virginia bachelor’s degree public policy students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full William & Mary Public Policy Report

#3

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, Virginia

#3 in overall quality

$21,198 Average Net Price

$43,798 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Virginia Tech landed the #3 spot on the list. This large school is located in Blacksburg, Virginia, and it awarded 28 bachelors’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Virginia Tech, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $21,198 for virginia bachelor’s degree public policy students with aid per year to attend Virginia Tech.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Public Policy at Virginia Tech

#4

Regent University

Virginia Beach, Virginia

#4 in overall quality

$15,267 Average Net Price

$33,281 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Regent University landed the #4 spot on the list. Virginia Beach, Virginia is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s public policy degrees to 26 students in 2019-2020.

Regent not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The yearly cost to attend Regent is $15,267 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Public Policy students with aid.

Read more about Public Policy at Regent University

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy in the Southeast Region (With Aid)
• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy (With Aid)

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.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to The Official CTBTO Photostream.

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