Best Computer Network Architect programs in Virginia, ranked by enrollment
Design and implement computer and information networks, such as local area networks (LAN), wide area networks (WAN), intranets, extranets, and other data communications networks.
57 schools in Virginia run programs that feed this job, graduating 9,550 people a year. The job pays a median of $141,340 in Virginia across about 9,380 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Virginia that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
8 programs in Virginia that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Virginia (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Virginia page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 11.0101In Virginia → | 4,329 | 45.3% | 42 | $57,986 | $24,286 |
| 2 | CIP 11.1003In Virginia → | 2,137 | 22.4% | 22 | $48,185 | $25,250 |
| 3 | CIP 11.0103In Virginia → | 1,985 | 20.8% | 16 | $57,986 | $24,286 |
| 4 | CIP 14.0901In Virginia → | 618 | 6.5% | 11 | $78,333 | $24,098 |
| 5 | CIP 11.1001In Virginia → | 441 | 4.6% | 2 | $48,185 | $25,250 |
| 6 | CIP 11.0901In Virginia → | 35 | 0.4% | 4 | $43,901 | $22,822 |
| 7 | CIP 11.0902In Virginia → | 4 | 0.0% | 1 | $43,901 | $22,822 |
| 8 | CIP 11.0501In Virginia → | 1 | 0.0% | 1 | $51,805 | $46,000 |
Top 25 schools in Virginia
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 16 of the 57 schools in this state.
All 57 schools in Virginia
Every school in Virginia with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Mason University | Fairfax | Public | 1,514 | 5 |
| Northern Virginia Community College | Annandale | Public | 1,394 | 3 |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | Blacksburg | Public | 1,357 | 4 |
| ECPI University | Virginia Beach | Private for-profit | 984 | 2 |
| University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville | Public | 779 | 4 |
| Old Dominion University | Norfolk | Public | 682 | 3 |
| Liberty University | Lynchburg | Private not-for-profit | 362 | 4 |
| Washington University of Science and Technology | Alexandria | Private for-profit | 304 | 1 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | Richmond | Public | 265 | 2 |
| Strayer University - Virginia | Arlington | Private for-profit | 218 | 2 |
| James Madison University | Harrisonburg | Public | 195 | 2 |
| Tidewater Community College | Norfolk | Public | 151 | 2 |
| Marymount University | Arlington | Private not-for-profit | 145 | 3 |
| Germanna Community College | Locust Grove | Public | 113 | 2 |
| University of Mary Washington | Fredericksburg | Public | 82 | 1 |
What computer network architects earn in Virginia
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $134,050. Virginia pays above the national figure.
Concentrated here: Virginia employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in Virginia
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Computer Network Architects page.
How to become a Computer Network Architect
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- Work experience needed
- 5 years or more
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Virginia
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 9 majors mapped to Computer Network Architects9 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 11.0101Computer and Information Sciences, General
- 11.0103Information Technology
- 11.0501Computer Systems Analysis/Analyst
- 11.0901Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications
- 11.0902Cloud Computing
- 11.1001Network and System Administration/Administrator
- 11.1003Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance
- 14.0901Computer Engineering, General
- 14.0999Computer Engineering, Other
Common questions
Answers for people weighing computer network architects programs in Virginia.
What degree do you need to become a Computer Network Architect?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Computer and Information Sciences, General, which awarded 4,329 degrees in Virginia in 2024-25, 45.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Computer Network Architect?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 8 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management, Computer Engineering, Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications, plus 1 more. Together they graduate about 9,550 people a year in Virginia.
How much do computer network architects earn in Virginia?+
The median is $141,340 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 5.4% above the U.S. median of $134,050. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for computer network architects growing?+
BLS projects a +11.9% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 11,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Virginia?+
57 institutions in Virginia reported graduates from at least one of the 8 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do computer network architects work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Engineer, Network Analyst, Systems Engineer, Solutions Architect, Communications Engineer, Infrastructure Engineer among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-1241.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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