Best colleges for psychology in Virginia
Virginia Military Institute ranks first in Virginia for psychology value (#18 nationally, value score 85.4): graduates earn $75,059 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $15,585 a year.
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition · Source: College Scorecard field of study, reporting year 2025 · 24 Virginia colleges ranked · Updated November 4, 2026
Best psychology colleges in Virginia
Virginia Military Institute ranks first in Virginia for psychology value (#18 nationally, value score 85.4): graduates earn $75,059 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $15,585 a year. 24 Virginia colleges qualify. At the median one, psychology graduates earn $51,674 and the average net price is $22,930 a year.
Source: U.S. College Scorecard field of study, 2025
What the data shows
Key findings
- 24 Virginia colleges qualify. At the median one, psychology graduates earn $51,674 and the average net price is $22,930 a year.
- The lowest average net price among them is at Old Dominion University: $12,913 a year.
- Median earnings
- $51,674
- National: $51,007
- Median net price
- $22,930
- National: $18,874
- Median federal debt
- $21,600
- psychology graduates
- Public colleges
- 13 of 24
- in this list
24 colleges
The Virginia ranking
Ordered by the national value score; the national rank is shown with each college. Earnings are medians 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
- Earnings
- $75,059
- Net price
- $15,585
- Federal debt
- $21,700
- Graduation rate
- 72%
- Earnings
- $62,794
- Net price
- $18,056
- Federal debt
- $14,475
- Graduation rate
- 94%
- Earnings
- $62,563
- Net price
- $14,697
- Federal debt
- $15,750
- Graduation rate
- 66%
- Earnings
- $59,226
- Net price
- $18,880
- Federal debt
- $14,500
- Graduation rate
- 88%
- Earnings
- $56,212
- Net price
- $23,550
- Federal debt
- $19,500
- Graduation rate
- 80%
- Rank in Virginia 6
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Blacksburg, VA · Public · #183 nationally
64.4Value- Earnings
- $56,365
- Net price
- $25,808
- Federal debt
- $20,500
- Graduation rate
- 86%
- Rank in Virginia 7
Winchester, VA · Private nonprofit · #224 nationally
60.9Value- Earnings
- $58,144
- Net price
- $31,149
- Federal debt
- $19,500
- Graduation rate
- 63%
- Rank in Virginia 8
Christopher Newport University
Newport News, VA · Public · #246 nationally
60.0Value- Earnings
- $53,600
- Net price
- $22,310
- Federal debt
- $20,500
- Graduation rate
- 75%
- Rank in Virginia 9
Fredericksburg, VA · Public · #255 nationally
59.5Value- Earnings
- $53,388
- Net price
- $23,821
- Federal debt
- $16,250
- Graduation rate
- 65%
- Earnings
- $51,907
- Net price
- $12,913
- Federal debt
- $22,500
- Graduation rate
- 43%
- Earnings
- $51,440
- Net price
- $25,037
- Federal debt
- $18,750
- Graduation rate
- 65%
- Earnings
- $55,869
- Net price
- $28,521
- Federal debt
- $25,000
- Graduation rate
- 55%
- Rank in Virginia 13
Randolph-Macon College-Virginia
Ashland, VA · Private nonprofit · #448 nationally
47.4Value- Earnings
- $53,687
- Net price
- $28,145
- Federal debt
- $27,000
- Graduation rate
- 74%
- Earnings
- $48,935
- Net price
- $13,701
- Federal debt
- $22,567
- Graduation rate
- 48%
- Earnings
- $48,942
- Net price
- $20,773
- Federal debt
- $21,375
- Graduation rate
- 62%
- Earnings
- $49,018
- Net price
- $25,867
- Federal debt
- $27,000
- Graduation rate
- 64%
- Earnings
- $45,749
- Net price
- $26,214
- Federal debt
- $21,500
- Graduation rate
- 64%
- Rank in Virginia 18
Staunton, VA · Private nonprofit · #714 nationally
29.0Value- Earnings
- $45,703
- Net price
- $15,810
- Federal debt
- $25,000
- Graduation rate
- 38%
- Rank in Virginia 19
Lynchburg, VA · Private nonprofit · #718 nationally
28.7Value- Earnings
- $48,610
- Net price
- $27,198
- Federal debt
- $27,000
- Graduation rate
- 59%
- Rank in Virginia 20
Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit · #753 nationally
24.4Value- Earnings
- $43,511
- Net price
- $20,237
- Federal debt
- $21,500
- Graduation rate
- 45%
- Earnings
- $45,340
- Net price
- $29,235
- Federal debt
- $25,000
- Graduation rate
- 64%
- Rank in Virginia 22
Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit · #782 nationally
21.0Value- Earnings
- $41,007
- Net price
- $18,135
- Federal debt
- $28,062
- Graduation rate
- 52%
- Earnings
- $37,861
- Net price
- $14,893
- Federal debt
- $25,138
- Graduation rate
- 37%
- Rank in Virginia 24
Buena Vista, VA · Private nonprofit · #813 nationally
9.7Value- Earnings
- $36,808
- Net price
- $23,913
- Federal debt
- $24,504
- Graduation rate
- 40%
Method: the same value score as the national psychology ranking (earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate, each a national percentile). Data: College Scorecard, reporting year 2025; 2026–27 edition, verified Nov 2026.
Questions about psychology colleges in Virginia
What are the best colleges for psychology in Virginia?
By CollegesRef value score, the top 3 Virginia colleges for psychology are Virginia Military Institute (value score 85.4), University of Virginia (value score 84) and George Mason University (value score 82.9). The score weighs graduate earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate.
Which Virginia college has the highest earnings for psychology graduates?
Virginia Military Institute: its psychology graduates have median earnings of $75,059 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
What is the most affordable psychology college in Virginia on this list?
Old Dominion University has the lowest average net price of the ranked Virginia colleges, $12,913 a year after grants. A family's own price depends on income and aid.
How many Virginia colleges are ranked for psychology?
24 Virginia colleges have a psychology bachelor's program with enough graduates and reported earnings, plus a published net price and graduation rate. Ranks shown are national; the state rank is their order within Virginia.