by our College Data Analytics TeamWith all of the options you have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take when you want to pursue a degree. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our Best Virginia Schools For The Money For Those Making $0-$30k for a Master's ranking - to help you make that decision. This list is proof that you shouldn't avoid normally high-priced schools, since the actual price may be very affordable if you qualify for financial aid.
In This Year's Value Report:
We analyzed 31 schools across Virginia to determine which have the best value Master's Degree programs. Our ranking methodology focuses on different objective factors to make this determination of the best value schools. In the next few paragraphs, we'll talk a little about what we use in our analysis and why.
When determining the value of a school in our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking, we first look at its average net price of a student coming from a family that makes $0-$30k a year. The net price is defined as the sum of room and board, tuition, and fees minus any financial aid that the student receives. In addition, the overall quality of a school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how much it costs.
To make it into this list a school must offer a quality education like the schools in our Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considers factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Find out more about our best value ranking methodology.
You can scroll down to see the top schools for this ranking, but you may also want to view some of the other ranking methods listed below.
Know what field you want to major in? Make sure you check out our best value schools by major. In addition, you can select one of the links below to see the best value colleges for other degree levels.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
William & Mary tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $0-$30k) school for master’s degrees in Virginia for overall quality. William & Mary is a public institution located in Williamsburg, Virginia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, William & Mary is ranked #4 for quality in the state of Virginia.
A rank of #2 on our Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia list means University of Virginia - Main Campus is a great place for students working on their degree. University of Virginia is a large public school situated in Charlottesville, Virginia.
University of Virginia - Main Campus has the honor of being ranked #1 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Learn More About Value at University of Virginia - Main Campus
The quality degree programs at Virginia Tech helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia. This large public school is located in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Virginia Tech has the honor of being ranked #2 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Out of the 31 master’s degree schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, George Mason University landed the #4 spot on the list. Fairfax, Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is George Mason University a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Virginia for overall quality.
Out of the 31 master’s degree schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, James Madison University landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, the school is a large public institution.
James Madison University has the honor of being ranked #5 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
With a ranking of #6, University of Richmond did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia list. University of Richmond is a small private not-for-profit school located in University of Richmond, Virginia.
University of Richmond has the honor of being ranked #6 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Virginia Commonwealth University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. VCU is a large public school situated in Richmond, Virginia.
Not only is Virginia Commonwealth University a great value, but it is also ranked #9 in Virginia for overall quality.
Old Dominion University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking, coming in at #8. Old Dominion is located in Norfolk, Virginia and has a large student population. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Old Dominion University is ranked #10 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Radford University landed the #9 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Radford is a medium-sized public school situated in Radford, Virginia.
Radford University has the honor of being ranked #13 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Longwood University landed the #10 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Farmville, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Longwood University is ranked #15 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Norfolk State University landed the #11 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Located in Norfolk, Virginia, the school is a medium-sized public institution.
Not only is Norfolk State University a great value, but it is also ranked #29 in Virginia for overall quality.
University of Mary Washington ranked #12 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia list. UMW is located in Fredericksburg, Virginia and has a small student population. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Mary Washington is ranked #19 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Regent University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia list. Virginia Beach, Virginia is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Not only is Regent University a great value, but it is also ranked #14 in Virginia for overall quality.
With a ranking of #14, Mary Baldwin University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia list. Mary Baldwin is a private not-for-profit institution located in Staunton, Virginia.
Not only is Mary Baldwin University a great value, but it is also ranked #20 in Virginia for overall quality.
Virginia State University landed the #15 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Virginia State is a small public school situated in Petersburg, Virginia.
Virginia State University has the honor of being ranked #27 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Shenandoah University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking, coming in at #16. Shenandoah is located in Winchester, Virginia and has a small student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Shenandoah University is ranked #7 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Bluefield College did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking, coming in at #17. Bluefield College is located in Bluefield, Virginia and has a small student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Not only is Bluefield College a great value, but it is also ranked #21 in Virginia for overall quality.
University of Lynchburg came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Located in Lynchburg, Virginia, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
University of Lynchburg has the honor of being ranked #22 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Eastern Mennonite University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Eastern Mennonite is a private not-for-profit institution located in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
Not only is Eastern Mennonite University a great value, but it is also ranked #12 in Virginia for overall quality.
Strayer University - Virginia did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking, coming in at #20. Located in Arlington, Virginia, the school is a small private for-profit institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Strayer University - Virginia is ranked #17 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Christopher Newport University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Newport News, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Christopher Newport University a great value, but it is also ranked #16 in Virginia for overall quality.
Hollins University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Hollins is located in Roanoke, Virginia and has a small student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Hollins University has the honor of being ranked #24 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Virginia Wesleyan University landed the #23 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. VWU is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Virginia Wesleyan University is ranked #25 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Virginia Union University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia ranking. Richmond, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Virginia Union University has the honor of being ranked #30 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
With a ranking of #25, Averett University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Danville, Virginia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Averett University is ranked #28 for quality in the state of Virginia.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.