Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

10 Colleges
$16,739 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$52,474 Avg Salary

Finding the Best General Education School for You

General Education is the #42 most popular major in Virginia with 918 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia ranking. Our analysis looked at 10 schools in Virginia to see which programs offered the best value experiences for education students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia

Check out the education programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best General Education Schools

#1

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA
$12,638 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found James Madison University to be the best value school for general education students who want to pursue a degree in Virginia. Located in the small city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

JMU undergraduate students pay an average of $12,638 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

JMU excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best General Education Schools in Virginia list.

Read More…

#2

Longwood University

Farmville, VA
$14,090 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Longwood University is a great value for general education students. Longwood is a small public school located in the town of Farmville.

Longwood undergraduate students pay an average of $14,090 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on General Education at Longwood University

#3

University of Mary Washington

Fredericksburg, VA
$13,800 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of Mary Washington helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best general education schools in Virginia. UMW is a small public school located in the suburb of Fredericksburg.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UMW are $13,800 a year.

Read More…

#4

University of Lynchburg

Lynchburg, VA
$33,500 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of Lynchburg helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best general education schools in Virginia. Lynchburg is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

Lynchburg undergraduate students pay an average of $33,500 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on General Education at University of Lynchburg

$19,785 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia list. University of Virginia is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at University of Virginia are $19,785 per year.

University of Virginia also made our Best General Education Schools in Virginia list, coming in at #1.

Read full report on General Education at University of Virginia - Main Campus

#6

Radford University

Radford, VA
$11,542 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, Radford University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general education students. Located in the small suburb of Radford, Radford is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Radford are $11,542 per year.

Full General Education at Radford University Report

#7

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA
$13,119 Average Tuition & Fees

George Mason University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general education programs. GMU is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Fairfax.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at GMU are $13,119 per year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, GMU also did well on our Best General Education Schools in Virginia list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read More…

$15,028 Average Tuition & Fees

Virginia Commonwealth University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general education programs. VCU is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Richmond.

VCU undergraduate students pay an average of $15,028 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on General Education at Virginia Commonwealth University

#9

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA
$16,160 Average Tuition & Fees

Liberty University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia ranking. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Liberty University are $16,160 per year. Education majors at Liberty University take out an average of $39,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read More…

#10

Shenandoah University

Winchester, VA
$34,490 Average Tuition & Fees

Shenandoah University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia ranking. Shenandoah is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Winchester.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Shenandoah are $34,490 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Shenandoah also is in the top 20% of our Best General Education Schools in Virginia ranking.

Full General Education at Shenandoah University Report

Best Value General Education Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value General Education Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 117
North Carolina 255
Florida 622
Tennessee 605
Kentucky 95
South Carolina 352
Louisiana 116
Arkansas 133
Alabama 115
Mississippi 407
West Virginia 301

General Education is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Education

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 10 schools only.

  • 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 the rest 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to KOKUYO.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.