Best Data Scientist programs in Virginia, ranked by enrollment
Develop and implement a set of techniques or analytics applications to transform raw data into meaningful information using data-oriented programming languages and visualization software.
56 schools in Virginia run programs that feed this job, graduating 6,962 people a year. The job pays a median of $126,430 in Virginia across about 8,920 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.
23 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 11.0103In Virginia → | 1,985 | 28.5% | 16 | $57,986 | $24,286 |
| 2 | CIP 11.0701In Virginia → | 1,045 | 15.0% | 36 | $70,374 | $23,250 |
| 3 | CIP 52.1301In Virginia → | 963 | 13.8% | 9 | $62,069 | $23,500 |
| 4 | CIP 45.0603In Virginia → | 775 | 11.1% | 9 | $51,725 | $22,907 |
| 5 | CIP 27.0101In Virginia → | 439 | 6.3% | 30 | $48,772 | $21,544 |
| 6 | CIP 11.0802In Virginia → | 403 | 5.8% | 2 | $33,504 | $27,000 |
| 7 | Data Science, Generalmain feeder CIP 30.7001In Virginia → | 368 | 5.3% | 7 | — | — |
| 8 | CIP 27.0501In Virginia → | 229 | 3.3% | 4 | $59,718 | $20,150 |
| 9 | CIP 30.7102In Virginia → | 192 | 2.8% | 8 | — | — |
| 10 | CIP 27.0305In Virginia → | 153 | 2.2% | 4 | $60,930 | $21,143 |
| 11 | CIP 30.0801In Virginia → | 127 | 1.8% | 4 | $89,651 | $23,175 |
| 12 | CIP 30.7101In Virginia → | 95 | 1.4% | 5 | — | — |
| 13 | CIP 27.0301In Virginia → | 67 | 1.0% | 6 | $60,930 | $21,143 |
| 14 | CIP 26.1103In Virginia → | 48 | 0.7% | 3 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
| 15 | CIP 27.0601In Virginia → | 24 | 0.3% | 1 | — | — |
| 16 | CIP 27.0503In Virginia → | 21 | 0.3% | 1 | $59,718 | $20,150 |
| 17 | CIP 11.0804In Virginia → | 8 | 0.1% | 1 | $33,504 | $27,000 |
| 18 | CIP 52.1302In Virginia → | 7 | 0.1% | 1 | $62,069 | $23,500 |
| 19 | CIP 27.9999In Virginia → | 5 | 0.1% | 1 | $59,063 | $21,500 |
| 20 | CIP 27.0502In Virginia → | 3 | 0.0% | 1 | $59,718 | $20,150 |
| 21 | CIP 11.0102In Virginia → | 2 | 0.0% | 1 | $57,986 | $24,286 |
| 22 | CIP 26.1104In Virginia → | 2 | 0.0% | 1 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
| 23 | Computational Sciencemain feeder CIP 30.3001In Virginia → | 1 | 0.0% | 1 | $50,745 | $27,000 |
Top 25 schools in Virginia
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 17 of the 56 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | George Mason University Fairfax, VA Public · 13 feeder programs | 1,459 | Information Technology | $78,800 | 68% | — | 87% |
| 2 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA Public · 10 feeder programs | 967 | Management Science | $77,877 | 86% | — | 55% |
| 3 | University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA Public · 6 feeder programs | 911 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $74,958 | 96% | — | 17% |
| 4 | Northern Virginia Community College Annandale, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 855 | Information Technology | $39,679 | 33% | — | — |
| 5 | William & Mary Williamsburg, VA Public · 7 feeder programs | 572 | Computer Science | $84,956 | 89% | — | 34% |
| 6 | Washington University of Science and Technology Alexandria, VA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 304 | Information Technology | — | 67% | — | 7% |
| 7 | Liberty University Lynchburg, VA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 302 | Information Technology | $56,258 | 65% | $28,911 | 99% |
| 8 | Strayer University - Virginia Arlington, VA Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 203 | Information Technology | $67,315 | 36% | — | — |
| 9 | Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA Public · 7 feeder programs | 140 | Data Analytics, General | — | 63% | — | 93% |
| 10 | University of North America Fairfax, VA Private for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 108 | Information Technology | — | — | — | — |
| 11 | James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA Public · 4 feeder programs | 107 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $62,286 | 80% | — | 72% |
| 12 | Christopher Newport University Newport News, VA Public · 3 feeder programs | 91 | Computer Science | $72,128 | 72% | — | 86% |
| 13 | Marymount University Arlington, VA Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 91 | Information Technology | $68,364 | 54% | $25,803 | 93% |
| 14 | Tidewater Community College Norfolk, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 91 | Computer Science | — | 32% | — | — |
| 15 | University of Richmond University of Richmond, VA Private not-for-profit · 5 feeder programs | 79 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $61,027 | 85% | $24,049 | 22% |
| 16 | Shenandoah University Winchester, VA Private not-for-profit · 5 feeder programs | 76 | Management Science | — | 67% | $27,455 | 77% |
| 17 | Brightpoint Community College Chester, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 48 | Computer Science | — | 38% | — | — |
| 18 | Virginia State University Petersburg, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 46 | Computer Science | — | 39% | — | 89% |
| 19 | Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA Public · 4 feeder programs | 44 | Data Science, General | — | 46% | — | 90% |
| 20 | Radford University Radford, VA Public · 4 feeder programs | 42 | Computer Science | $66,857 | 49% | — | 90% |
| 21 | Laurel Ridge Community College Middletown, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 37 | Computer Science | — | 45% | — | — |
| 22 | Virginia Military Institute Lexington, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 35 | Computer Science | $58,225 | 76% | — | 71% |
| 23 | Virginia Peninsula Community College Hampton, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 33 | Information Technology | — | 34% | — | — |
| 24 | University of Management and Technology Arlington, VA Private for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 30 | Information Technology | — | 33% | — | — |
| 25 | Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 30 | Computer Science | — | 94% | $11,983 | 14% |
All 56 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 | 1,459 | 13 |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | Blacksburg | Public | 967 | 10 |
| University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville | Public | 911 | 6 |
| Northern Virginia Community College | Annandale | Public | 855 | 2 |
| William & Mary | Williamsburg | Public | 572 | 7 |
| Washington University of Science and Technology | Alexandria | Private for-profit | 304 | 1 |
| Liberty University | Lynchburg | Private not-for-profit | 302 | 3 |
| Strayer University - Virginia | Arlington | Private for-profit | 203 | 2 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | Richmond | Public | 140 | 7 |
| University of North America | Fairfax | Private for-profit | 108 | 3 |
| James Madison University | Harrisonburg | Public | 107 | 4 |
| Christopher Newport University | Newport News | Public | 91 | 3 |
| Marymount University | Arlington | Private not-for-profit | 91 | 4 |
| Tidewater Community College | Norfolk | Public | 91 | 1 |
| University of Richmond | University of Richmond | Private not-for-profit | 79 | 5 |
What data scientists earn in Virginia
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $120,230. 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 Data Scientists page.
How to become a Data Scientist
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
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 25 majors mapped to Data Scientists25 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 11.0102Artificial Intelligence
- 11.0103Information Technology
- 11.0701Computer Science
- 11.0802Data Modeling/Warehousing and Database Administration
- 11.0804Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation
- 26.1103Bioinformatics
- 26.1104Computational Biology
- 26.1199Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology, Other
- 27.0101Mathematics, General
- 27.0301Applied Mathematics, General
- 27.0303Computational Mathematics
- 27.0304Computational and Applied Mathematics
- 27.0305Financial Mathematics
- 27.0306Mathematical Biology
- 27.0399Applied Mathematics, Other
- 27.0501Statistics, General
- 27.0502Mathematical Statistics and Probability
- 27.0503Mathematics and Statistics
- 27.0601Applied Statistics, General
- 27.9999Mathematics and Statistics, Other
- 30.0801Mathematics and Computer Science
- 30.3001Computational Science
- 30.3901Economics and Computer Science
- 30.4801Linguistics and Computer Science
- 30.7001Data Science, General
Common questions
Answers for people weighing data scientists programs in Virginia.
What degree do you need to become a Data Scientist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Information Technology, which awarded 1,985 degrees in Virginia in 2024-25, 28.5% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Data Scientist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 23 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer Science, Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods, Economics, plus 11 more. Together they graduate about 6,962 people a year in Virginia.
How much do data scientists earn in Virginia?+
The median is $126,430 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 5.2% above the U.S. median of $120,230. 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 data scientists growing?+
BLS projects a +33.5% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 23,400 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Virginia?+
56 institutions in Virginia reported graduates from at least one of the 23 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 data scientists work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Intelligence Analyst, Clinical Data Manager, Data Management Manager, Market Intelligence Consultant, Competitive Intelligence Analyst, Business Intelligence Analyst (BI Analyst) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-2051.
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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