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. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking is part of that endeavor. You may be surprised that some normally high-priced schools offer very generous financial aid packages to those who qualify.
In This Year's Value Report:
Our analysis looked at 30 schools in Virginia to determine which ones 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. We explain more about what we look at and why we do so below.
When determining the value of a school in our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking, we first look at its average net price of a student coming from a family that makes $30-$48k 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.
We go into more detail on these factors on our best value ranking methodology page.
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:
Our 2024 rankings named University of Virginia - Main Campus the best value (income $30-$48k) school in Virginia for students working on their master’s degree. University of Virginia - Main Campus is a large public school located in Charlottesville, Virginia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Virginia - Main Campus is ranked #1 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Read full value report on University of Virginia - Main Campus
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend William & Mary. It ranked #2 on our 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. William & Mary is a medium-sized public school located in Williamsburg, Virginia.
William & Mary has the honor of being ranked #4 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Virginia Tech. It ranked #3 on our 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Virginia Tech is a large public school situated in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Virginia Tech has the honor of being ranked #2 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
The quality degree programs at George Mason University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia. This large public school is located in Fairfax, Virginia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, George Mason University is ranked #3 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Out of the 30 master’s degree schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Richmond landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in University of Richmond, Virginia, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
University of Richmond has the honor of being ranked #6 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
James Madison University landed the #6 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. JMU is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia and has a large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is James Madison University a great value, but it is also ranked #5 in Virginia for overall quality.
With a ranking of #7, Virginia Commonwealth University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. 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.
With a ranking of #8, Old Dominion University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. This large public school is located in Norfolk, Virginia.
Old Dominion University has the honor of being ranked #10 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
With a ranking of #9, Radford University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Radford University is a medium-sized public school located in Radford, Virginia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Radford University is ranked #13 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Longwood University landed the #10 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. Located in Farmville, Virginia, the school is a small public institution.
Not only is Longwood University a great value, but it is also ranked #15 in Virginia for overall quality.
Regent University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. Virginia Beach, Virginia is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Regent University is ranked #14 for quality in the state of Virginia.
With a ranking of #12, Norfolk State University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Located in Norfolk, Virginia, the school is a medium-sized public institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Norfolk State University is ranked #29 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Eastern Mennonite University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Harrisonburg, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Not only is Eastern Mennonite University a great value, but it is also ranked #12 in Virginia for overall quality.
University of Mary Washington did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking, coming in at #14. Located in Fredericksburg, Virginia, the school is a small public institution.
Not only is University of Mary Washington a great value, but it is also ranked #19 in Virginia for overall quality.
With a ranking of #15, Virginia State University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Located in Petersburg, Virginia, the school is a small public institution.
Virginia State University has the honor of being ranked #27 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Mary Baldwin University landed the #16 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. Staunton, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Mary Baldwin University is ranked #20 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Virginia Wesleyan University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking, coming in at #17. Located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
Not only is Virginia Wesleyan University a great value, but it is also ranked #25 in Virginia for overall quality.
With a ranking of #18, Shenandoah University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Shenandoah University is a small private not-for-profit school located in Winchester, Virginia.
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 ranked #19 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Bluefield, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Bluefield College is ranked #21 for quality in the state of Virginia.
Hollins University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. Roanoke, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. 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.
Liberty University landed the #21 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. Lynchburg, Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Liberty University is ranked #8 for quality in the state of Virginia.
With a ranking of #22, Christopher Newport University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Located in Newport News, Virginia, the school is a small public institution.
Christopher Newport University has the honor of being ranked #16 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
University of Lynchburg landed the #23 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia ranking. Lynchburg, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
University of Lynchburg has the honor of being ranked #22 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Marymount University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. Marymount University is a small private not-for-profit school located in Arlington, Virginia.
Marymount University has the honor of being ranked #11 in Virginia for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Averett University ranked #25 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia list. AU is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Danville, Virginia.
Not only is Averett University a great value, but it is also ranked #28 in Virginia for overall quality.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.