Best Editor programs in Virginia, ranked by enrollment
Plan, coordinate, revise, or edit written material.
30 schools in Virginia run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,798 people a year. The job pays a median of $80,590 in Virginia across about 2,720 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.
12 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 | Creative Writingmain feeder CIP 23.1302In Virginia → | 472 | 26.3% | 11 | $28,725 | $25,250 |
| 2 | CIP 09.0102In Virginia → | 442 | 24.6% | 9 | $34,858 | $25,000 |
| 3 | CIP 09.0100In Virginia → | 264 | 14.7% | 6 | $34,858 | $25,000 |
| 4 | CIP 09.9999In Virginia → | 246 | 13.7% | 2 | $36,931 | $24,500 |
| 5 | Rhetoric and Compositionmain feeder CIP 23.1304In Virginia → | 178 | 9.9% | 4 | $28,725 | $25,250 |
| 6 | CIP 23.1303In Virginia → | 89 | 4.9% | 6 | $28,725 | $25,250 |
| 7 | CIP 09.0401In Virginia → | 71 | 3.9% | 6 | $34,515 | $24,250 |
| 8 | General Literaturemain feeder CIP 23.1401In Virginia → | 22 | 1.2% | 1 | $23,868 | $26,552 |
| 9 | CIP 23.1399In Virginia → | 8 | 0.4% | 1 | $28,725 | $25,250 |
| 10 | Publishingmain feeder CIP 09.1001In Virginia → | 3 | 0.2% | 1 | $17,585 | $27,000 |
| 11 | Writing, Generalmain feeder CIP 23.1301In Virginia → | 2 | 0.1% | 2 | $28,725 | $25,250 |
| 12 | CIP 09.0908In Virginia → | 1 | 0.1% | 1 | $39,658 | $24,500 |
Top 25 schools in Virginia
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 11 of the 30 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liberty University Lynchburg, VA Private not-for-profit · 5 feeder programs | 572 | Creative Writing | — | 65% | $28,911 | 99% |
| 2 | Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 229 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | $35,808 | 63% | — | 93% |
| 3 | James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 228 | Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other | — | 80% | — | 72% |
| 4 | Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA Public · 4 feeder programs | 139 | Rhetoric and Composition | $35,716 | 46% | — | 90% |
| 5 | University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 116 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | $47,368 | 96% | — | 17% |
| 6 | Norfolk State University Norfolk, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 64 | Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other | — | 38% | — | 88% |
| 7 | George Mason University Fairfax, VA Public · 4 feeder programs | 61 | Creative Writing | $40,114 | 68% | — | 87% |
| 8 | Virginia State University Petersburg, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 53 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | $23,897 | 39% | — | 89% |
| 9 | University of Richmond University of Richmond, VA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 39 | Rhetoric and Composition | — | 85% | $24,049 | 22% |
| 10 | Randolph College Lynchburg, VA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 33 | Creative Writing | — | 46% | $18,525 | 94% |
| 11 | University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 33 | Communication, General | — | 66% | — | 80% |
| 12 | Roanoke College Salem, VA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 24 | Communication, General | $36,220 | 67% | $24,604 | 83% |
| 13 | Bridgewater College Bridgewater, VA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 23 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | $29,477 | 53% | $19,485 | 92% |
| 14 | Hampton University Hampton, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 23 | Journalism | $28,324 | 57% | $34,268 | 62% |
| 15 | Hollins University Roanoke, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 21 | Creative Writing | — | 65% | $21,981 | 68% |
| 16 | Randolph - Macon College Ashland, VA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 20 | Communication, General | $40,328 | 70% | $26,498 | 87% |
| 17 | Radford University Radford, VA Public · 2 feeder programs | 18 | Journalism | $25,675 | 49% | — | 90% |
| 18 | Brightpoint Community College Chester, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | — | 38% | — | — |
| 19 | Northern Virginia Community College Annandale, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 13 | Professional, Technical, Business, and Scientific Writing | — | 33% | — | — |
| 20 | Emory & Henry University Emory, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | — | 56% | $20,446 | 84% |
| 21 | Patrick Henry College Purcellville, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Journalism | — | 74% | — | 77% |
| 22 | Marymount University Arlington, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Communication, General | — | 54% | $25,803 | 93% |
| 23 | Virginia Union University Richmond, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Mass Communication/Media Studies | $18,076 | 34% | $21,249 | 98% |
| 24 | Regent University Virginia Beach, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 6 | Journalism | — | 57% | $18,677 | 38% |
| 25 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA Public · 1 feeder programs | 6 | Creative Writing | — | 86% | — | 55% |
All 30 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty University | Lynchburg | Private not-for-profit | 572 | 5 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | Richmond | Public | 229 | 2 |
| James Madison University | Harrisonburg | Public | 228 | 2 |
| Old Dominion University | Norfolk | Public | 139 | 4 |
| University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville | Public | 116 | 2 |
| Norfolk State University | Norfolk | Public | 64 | 1 |
| George Mason University | Fairfax | Public | 61 | 4 |
| Virginia State University | Petersburg | Public | 53 | 1 |
| University of Richmond | University of Richmond | Private not-for-profit | 39 | 3 |
| Randolph College | Lynchburg | Private not-for-profit | 33 | 2 |
| University of Mary Washington | Fredericksburg | Public | 33 | 1 |
| Roanoke College | Salem | Private not-for-profit | 24 | 2 |
| Bridgewater College | Bridgewater | Private not-for-profit | 23 | 2 |
| Hampton University | Hampton | Private not-for-profit | 23 | 1 |
| Hollins University | Roanoke | Private not-for-profit | 21 | 1 |
What editors earn in Virginia
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $77,920. Virginia pays above the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
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 Editors page.
How to become a Editor
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- Work experience needed
- Less than 5 years
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 18 majors mapped to Editors18 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 09.0100Communication, General
- 09.0102Mass Communication/Media Studies
- 09.0401Journalism
- 09.0402Broadcast Journalism
- 09.0908Technical and Scientific Communication
- 09.1001Publishing
- 09.9999Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other
- 23.1301Writing, General
- 23.1302Creative Writing
- 23.1303Professional, Technical, Business, and Scientific Writing
- 23.1304Rhetoric and Composition
- 23.1399Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies, Other
- 23.1401General Literature
- 23.1405Children's and Adolescent Literature
- 23.1499Literature, Other
- 52.0501Business/Corporate Communications, General
- 52.0502Grantsmanship
- 52.0599Business/Corporate Communications, Other
Common questions
Answers for people weighing editors programs in Virginia.
What degree do you need to become an Editor?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Creative Writing, which awarded 472 degrees in Virginia in 2024-25, 26.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming an Editor?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 12 programs to this occupation. The largest are Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies, Communication and Media Studies, Communication, Journalism, plus 3 more. Together they graduate about 1,798 people a year in Virginia.
How much do editors earn in Virginia?+
The median is $80,590 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.4% above the U.S. median of $77,920. 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 editors growing?+
BLS projects a +0.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 9,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Virginia?+
30 institutions in Virginia reported graduates from at least one of the 12 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 editors work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Editor, News Editor, Sports Editor, Newspaper Copy Editor among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-3041.
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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