2023 Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Virginia
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities School for You
Out of the majors we analyze each year, liberal arts / sciences and humanities was ranked 4th in Virginia. In fact, 9,302 were awarded in the state in 2020-2021.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
The Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Virginia ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 32 schools in Virginia to see which ones offered the best value programs for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 10 Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Schools
Our analysis found Northern Virginia Community College to be the best value school for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students who want to pursue a degree in Virginia. Located in the suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public college with a very large student population.
Northern Virginia Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,565 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Northern Virginia Community College take out is $11,000.
In addition to its great value ranking, Northern Virginia Community College is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Virginia list.
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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Southside Virginia Community College is a great value for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the rural area of Alberta, Southside Virginia Community College is a public school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Southside Virginia Community College are $4,695 a year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Southside Virginia Community College accumulate an average of around $5,875 in student debt.
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Out of the 32 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, Germanna Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the rural area of Locust Grove, Germanna Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Germanna Community College are $4,913 per year. Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at Germanna Community College take out an average of $9,285 in student loans while working on their egree.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means John Tyler Community College is a great value for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. John Tyler Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Chester.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at John Tyler Community College are $4,800 per year. Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at John Tyler Community College take out an average of $9,125 in student loans while working on their egree.
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The excellent programs at Tidewater Community College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best liberal arts / sciences and humanities schools in Virginia. Located in the city of Norfolk, Tidewater Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Tidewater Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,561 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Tidewater Community College accumulate an average of around $12,577 in student debt.
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Lord Fairfax Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs. Located in the rural area of Middletown, Lord Fairfax Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Lord Fairfax Community College are $4,739 per year. Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at Lord Fairfax Community College take out an average of $9,132 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Patrick Henry Community College ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Virginia list. Patrick Henry is a small public school located in the rural area of Martinsville.
Patrick Henry undergraduate students pay an average of $4,720 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at Patrick Henry take out an average of $6,826 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Piedmont Virginia Community College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Virginia list. PVCC is a small public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.
PVCC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,790 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at PVCC accumulate an average of around $10,046 in student debt.
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With a ranking of #9, New River Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. NRCC is a small public school located in the town of Dublin.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at NRCC are $4,697 a year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at NRCC accumulate an average of around $8,467 in student debt.
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Wytheville Community College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Virginia ranking. WCC is a small public school located in the town of Wytheville.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at WCC are $4,725 a year. After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from WCC carry an average student debtload of $9,589.
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Request InformationBest Value Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Colleges in the Southeast Region
Explore all the Best Value Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.
State | Degrees Awarded |
---|---|
North Carolina | 18,234 |
West Virginia | 3,558 |
Mississippi | 5,696 |
South Carolina | 4,243 |
Florida | 64,444 |
Arkansas | 5,205 |
Alabama | 5,890 |
Kentucky | 6,493 |
Georgia | 7,724 |
Tennessee | 10,186 |
Louisiana | 2,864 |
More Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Rankings in Virginia
Majors Related to Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Majors to Study
Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Liberal Arts General Studies | 556,813 |
Majors Similar to Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities
Related Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Visual & Performing Arts | 149,215 |
English Language & Literature | 54,635 |
Foreign Languages & Linguistics | 33,333 |
Theology & Religious Vocations | 27,459 |
Philosophy & Religious Studies | 19,993 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 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 Jacques Sablet (Switzerland, Morges, 1749-1803).
More about our data sources and methodologies.