2025 Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools in Virginia
Ranked #20 in popularity,
history is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.
College Factual reviewed 16 schools in Virginia to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of history. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,160 bachelor's degrees in history during the 2022-2023 academic year.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology
Choosing a Great History School for Your Bachelor's Degree

The history bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality history program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:
Quality Overall Is Important
A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Average Earnings
To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
- Major Focus - How much a school focuses on history students vs. other majors.
- Major Demand - How many other history students want to attend this school to pursue a bachelor's degree.
- Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
- Student Debt - How easy is it for history to pay back their student loans after receiving their bachelor's degree.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized history related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for history students working on their bachelor's degree.
One Size Does Not Fit All
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 History Bachelor's Degree Schools in Virginia 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 Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study History in Virginia
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in history.
10 Top Virginia Schools for a Bachelor's in History
Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in history has to take a look at University of Virginia - Main Campus. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public university with a fairly large student population.
Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the history program report average early career income of $34,028.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from University of Virginia - Main Campus
Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in history has to check out William & Mary. Located in the suburb of Williamsburg, William & Mary is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the history program make an average of $31,595 for their early career.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from William & Mary
Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in history has to take a look at George Mason University. GMU is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Fairfax.
Soon after graduation, history bachelor's recipients generally make about $25,992 in their early careers.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from George Mason University
James Madison University is a wonderful choice for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in history. JMU is a very large public university located in the small city of Harrisonburg.
After graduation, history bachelor's recipients usually earn around $29,000 in the first five years of their career.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from James Madison University
Located in the small city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public school with a very large student population.
Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the history program make an average of $33,319 for their early career.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from Virginia Tech
Located in the city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.
Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the history program report average early career income of $33,456.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from Liberty University
Located in the town of Lexington, VMI is a public school with a small student population.
History bachelor's degree recipients from Virginia Military Institute receive an earnings boost of around $9,723 over the typical income of history majors.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from Virginia Military Institute
Located in the medium-sized city of Richmond, VCU is a public university with a fairly large student population.
Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the history program state that they receive average early career wages of $29,794.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from Virginia Commonwealth University
CNU is a small public university located in the medium-sized city of Newport News.
After graduating, history bachelor's recipients typically make around $29,386 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from Christopher Newport University
Located in the rural area of Hampden-Sydney, Hampden - Sydney is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
History bachelor's degree recipients from Hampden - Sydney College receive an earnings boost of around $10,129 above the average income of history majors.
More information about a bachelor’s in history from Hampden - Sydney College