2023 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k
4
Ranked Colleges
177
Degrees Awarded
$10,200
Avg Net Price*
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 6,966 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 115th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $33,127 and had an average of $20,927 in loans still to pay off.
Across Virginia, there were 177 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $28,514 and $21,358 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 4 colleges that offered a degree in area studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great area studies 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 area studies program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools
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 Area Studies 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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k.
Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k) in Virginia
Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies 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 awarded 63 degrees to qualified ’s area studies students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at William & Mary, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $5,972 for virginia area studies students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend William & Mary.
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%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Area Studies at William & Mary
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Richmond. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in University of Richmond, Virginia, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 19 diplomas to qualified ’s area studies students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our virginia area studies students whose families make $0-$30k list, URichmond has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Richmond is $8,010 for virginia area studies 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 low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.9% 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Area Studies at URichmond
Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Virginia - Main Campus landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Virginia is located in Charlottesville, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 11 ’s area studies degrees to qualified students.
University of Virginia did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Virginia” list. It costs about $12,476 for Virginia Area Studies students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Virginia.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.
Full University of Virginia - Main Campus Area Studies Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Virginia Commonwealth University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Virginia For Those Making $0-$30k list. Virginia Commonwealth University is a public institution located in Richmond, Virginia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 60 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
VCU also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #4. The estimated yearly cost for VCU is $14,507 for virginia area studies students whose families make $0-$30k.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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 more about Area Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University
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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
- *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.
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