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2023 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid

6 Ranked Colleges
470 Degrees Awarded
$22,800 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

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.

This year’s “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 6 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s 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.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the public policy program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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The public policy 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 “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid”.

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.

Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid.

Top 6 Best Value Colleges for Public Policy in Virginia (With Aid)

1
University of Virginia crest
University of Virginia - Main Campus
Charlottesville, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid. Located in Charlottesville, Virginia, this large public school handed out 165 degrees to qualified ’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

University of Virginia also made our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #3. The estimated yearly cost for University of Virginia is $22,006 for Virginia Public Policy students with aid.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default 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 Public Policy at University of Virginia

2
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Virginia Tech landed the #2 spot on the list. Virginia Tech is located in Blacksburg, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 27 ’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

Virginia Tech not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” list. The yearly cost to attend Virginia Tech is $21,301 for virginia public policy students with aid.

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 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%.

Read full report on Public Policy at Virginia Tech

3
William & Mary crest
William & Mary
Williamsburg, Virginia

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend William & Mary. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid list. William & Mary is a medium-sized school located in Williamsburg, Virginia that handed out 55 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our virginia public policy students with aid list, William & Mary has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for William & Mary is $19,593 for virginia public policy students with aid.

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%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full William & Mary Public Policy Report

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 Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Fairfax, Virginia, and it awarded 88 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at GMU, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend GMU is $19,551 for Virginia Public Policy students with aid.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read more about Public Policy at GMU

5
Regent crest
Regent University
Virginia Beach, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Regent University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid. Regent University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 37 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Regent also took the #6 spot in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Regent is $24,888 for virginia public policy students with aid.

Read more about Public Policy at Regent

6
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, Virginia

Liberty University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Virginia For Those Getting Aid ranking. Lynchburg, Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s public policy degrees to 98 students in 2020-2021.

Liberty University also made our “Best Public Policy Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $29,382 for Virginia Public Policy students with aid per year to attend Liberty University.

Read more about Public Policy at Liberty University

Notes and References

References

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