Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Liberal Arts General Studies

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts General Studies (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia

14 Ranked Colleges
2,389 Degrees Awarded
$17,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor's in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Liberal Arts General Studies is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 1st of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 559,661 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2017-2018, liberal arts general studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $26,786 and had an average of $16,538 in loans still to pay off.

Across Virginia, there were 14,701 liberal arts general studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $24,856 and $15,588 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 2,389 liberal arts general studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, we looked at 14 colleges that offer a degree in liberal arts general studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent liberal arts general studies programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the liberal arts general studies program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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 Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 14 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts General Studies (Income $30-$48k) in Virginia

#1

University of Richmond

University of Richmond, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Richmond. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k. University of Richmond, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.

URichmond also took the #4 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Richmond is $9,131 for virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Richmond Liberal Arts General Studies Report

#2

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend James Madison University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k. This large school is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and it awarded 290 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

JMU also made our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $15,726 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend James Madison University.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at JMU

#3

Longwood University

Farmville, Virginia

Out of the 14 schools in the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Longwood University landed the #3 spot on the list. Farmville, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to 121 students in 2019-2020.

Longwood did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The estimated yearly cost for Longwood University is $14,433 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Longwood Liberal Arts General Studies Report

#4

George Mason University

Fairfax, Virginia

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend George Mason University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k list. George Mason University is located in Fairfax, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 377 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.

GMU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The yearly cost to attend GMU is $17,060 for virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The low 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 Liberal Arts General Studies at George Mason University

#5

University of Mary Washington

Fredericksburg, Virginia

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Mary Washington. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k list. This small school is located in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and it awarded 129 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

UMW not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The estimated yearly cost for UMW is $14,997 for virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Mary Washington Liberal Arts General Studies Report

#6

Ferrum College

Ferrum, Virginia

Ferrum College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Ferrum College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Ferrum, Virginia. It awarded 4 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Ferrum College, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Ferrum College is $19,545 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Ferrum College Liberal Arts General Studies Report

#7

Bridgewater College

Bridgewater, Virginia

Bridgewater College ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k list. Bridgewater is located in Bridgewater, Virginia and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 16 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.

Bridgewater also took the #6 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Bridgewater College is $14,634 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Bridgewater College

#8

Virginia State University

Petersburg, Virginia

Virginia State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Virginia State University is a small public school situated in Petersburg, Virginia. It awarded 23 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Virginia State, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Virginia State University is $16,410 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Virginia State

#9

Eastern Mennonite University

Harrisonburg, Virginia

With a ranking of #9, Eastern Mennonite University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k list. Eastern Mennonite is a private not-for-profit institution located in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The school has a small population, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Eastern Mennonite not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” list. The estimated yearly cost for Eastern Mennonite University is $19,512 for virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Eastern Mennonite

#10

Mary Baldwin University

Staunton, Virginia

Mary Baldwin University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Mary Baldwin University is a small school located in Staunton, Virginia that handed out 36 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k list, Mary Baldwin has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Mary Baldwin is $14,502 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Mary Baldwin

#11

Southern Virginia University

Buena Vista, Virginia

Southern Virginia University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This small school is located in Buena Vista, Virginia, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

SVU also took the #14 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $15,787 for virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Southern Virginia University.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Southern Virginia University

#12

Averett University

Danville, Virginia

Averett University landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Averett University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Danville, Virginia. It awarded 6 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at AU, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $18,417 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Averett University.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Averett University

#13

Marymount University

Arlington, Virginia

Marymount University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k list. Marymount University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Arlington, Virginia. It awarded 8 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

Marymount also took the #11 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. It costs about $22,618 for Virginia Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Arts students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Marymount.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Marymount Liberal Arts General Studies Report

#14

Liberty University

Lynchburg, Virginia

With a ranking of #14, Liberty University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Bachelor’s in Virginia For Those Making $30-$48k list. Liberty University is a large school located in Lynchburg, Virginia that handed out 94 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k list, Liberty University has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Virginia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Liberty University is $26,124 for virginia bachelor’s degree liberal arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Liberty University Liberal Arts General Studies Report

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

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

Footnotes

  • *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.

Featured Liberal Arts Schools

Find Schools Near You