Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium ProgramsPublicHBCULand-grant

Virginia State University

Petersburg, Virginia·Public, 4-year or above·Southeast·vsu.edu
6-yr Graduation
39%
-1.0pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Total enrollment
5,605
peer median 6,048
Avg net price
$14,553
+$941 vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
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Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

Applied
11,775
11,775 candidates competed
Admitted
10,436
88.6% acceptance rate
Enrolled
1,489
14.3% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
39%-1.0pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
4-year graduation
24%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
39%
Full-time retention
69%

Pell equity

14.0pp gap
Pell recipients
35%
Non-Pell
49%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 14.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 59 Title IV programs, 22 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 37 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
59
Passing
22
37.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

59programs
  • Passing22 · 37.3%
  • No Data37 · 62.7%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
2
Watch
3
Safe
17
No data
37

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

22
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+5.3%
$37,861 vs $35,969
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Master's Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+5.5%
$54,395 vs $51,545
Sociology
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
+12.4%
$40,432 vs $35,969
Communication and Media Studies
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+13.7%
$40,896 vs $35,969
Political Science and Government
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
+22.3%
$44,002 vs $35,969
Family and Consumer Economics and Related Studies
Bachelor Degree · Family And Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences
+29.3%
$46,514 vs $35,969
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Subject Areas
Bachelor Degree · Education
+34.5%
$48,362 vs $35,969
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
+35.2%
$48,624 vs $35,969

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

21
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
98%
$64,734 debt · $66,322 earn
Sociology
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
77%
$31,000 debt · $40,432 earn
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Master's Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
76%
$41,184 debt · $54,395 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
75%
$28,467 debt · $37,861 earn
Political Science and Government
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
71%
$31,000 debt · $44,002 earn
Family and Consumer Economics and Related Studies
Bachelor Degree · Family And Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences
69%
$31,990 debt · $46,514 earn
Communication and Media Studies
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
67%
$27,375 debt · $40,896 earn
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
64%
$31,000 debt · $48,624 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges

Accredited since 1933Next review Dec 2028

Programmatic accreditations · 6

Action history · 17

  1. Jun 2025Heightened Monitoring or Focused Review
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  2. Aug 2024Grant Substantive Change: Program
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  3. Jul 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Didactic Program in Dietetics
  4. Jul 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Dietetics (DIETI) - Dietetic Internship
  5. Jun 2024Grant Substantive Change: Program
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$12,432
$30–48k$13,665
$48–75k$17,511
$75–110k$19,774
$110k+$22,390

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$14,553
+$941vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs median $13,612
Federal loans
75.7%
In-state tuition
$9,755
Out-of-state
$22,006

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 3,842 students received $23.7M in Pell grants, alongside $40.3M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
3,842
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$23.7M
$23,686,331 total
Direct Loans
$40.3M
6,851 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

3k
20
3k
21
3k
22
3k
23
4k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$10.7M
2,828 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$8.9M
2,862 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$6.2M
358 loan awards
Parent PLUS$13.5M
730 loan awards
Grad PLUS$1.1M
73 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 1,619 borrowers who entered repayment, 87 (5.3%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
5.3%
+3.0pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,619
Defaulted
87
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
15.2%
2017
15.1%
2018
13.0%
2019
5.3%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Virginia State

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs50
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

601 total completions
01Business
12520.8%
02Education
10016.6%
03Psychology
7512.5%
04Security/Protective
599.8%
05Communication
498.2%
06Biological Sciences
488.0%
07Social Sciences
457.5%
08Engineering Tech
376.2%
09Multi/Interdisciplinary
325.3%
10Computer Sciences
315.2%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
5,605
12-mo unduplicated
6,003
Undergraduate
5,556
Graduate
447

Gender split

Men
40%2,420
Women
60%3,583

Race / ethnicity composition

Black
92.9%
Unknown
3.3%
White
2.6%
Non-resident
0.6%
Asian
0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.3%
Hispanic
0.0%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

Athletes
290
200 M · 90 W
Women athletes
31.0%
Athletic aid
$2.0M
Total student aid
Budget
$8.6M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$1.2M
$801K
Recruiting expense
$15K
$5K
Head-coach salaries
$68K
$49K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 11

Football
137 M ·
$1.8M
Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)
80 M · 56 W
$760K
Lacrosse
37 M · 23 W
$544K
Baseball
41 M ·
$80K
Basketball
25 M · 15 W
$1.8M
Softball
· 20 W
$156K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
7.53
35 offenses · 4,648 students

3-year trend

1.742 yrs ago8.841 yr ago7.53Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
80
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
66
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
3
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
1

Criminal offenses by type

Aggravated assault
12
Burglary
9
Motor vehicle theft
7
Robbery
5
Rape
1
Fondling
1

By location

35total
  • On campus26
  • Public property9

Includes 13 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
30
Dating violence
5
Stalking
35 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • Race1

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons93
Drugs466
Liquor527

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Data quality: 2 reports were later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
13.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
334

Virginia State vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Virginia State selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectVirginia State University
39%5,605$14,553Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Longwood University
61%90.2%4,612$20,814Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Norfolk State University
39%87.8%6,053$12,973Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Nicholls State University
54%90.8%6,043$12,091Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Clayton State University
41%68.4%6,163$10,145Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Albany State University
33%73.0%6,768$14,251Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Peer group median40%87.8%6,048$13,612

Frequently asked questions about Virginia State University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Virginia State.

What is the graduation rate at Virginia State University?

Virginia State University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 39% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Virginia State University?

Virginia State University reports a total enrollment of 5,605 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Virginia State University?

The average net price at Virginia State University is $14,553 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Virginia State University?

Virginia State University's yield rate is 14.3%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Virginia State University located?

Virginia State University is located in Petersburg, Virginia 23806.

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