Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

10 Colleges
$16,739 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$52,474 Avg Salary

Finding the Best General Education School for You

In 2020-2021, 864 degrees and certificates were awarded to general education students who went to a Virginia college or university. This makes it the #12 most popular major in the state.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 10 schools in Virginia to see which programs offered the best value experiences for education students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia

Check out the education programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best General Education Schools

#1

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA
$12,638 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found James Madison University to be the best value school for general education students who want to pursue a degree in Virginia. Located in the small city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public college with a very large student population.

JMU undergraduate students pay an average of $12,638 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

JMU also made our Best General Education Schools in Virginia list, coming in at #5.

Full General Education at James Madison University Report

#2

Longwood University

Farmville, VA
$14,090 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Longwood University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia list. Longwood is a small public school located in the town of Farmville.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Longwood are $14,090 per year.

Read full report on General Education at Longwood University

#3

University of Mary Washington

Fredericksburg, VA
$13,800 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of Mary Washington helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best general education schools in Virginia. UMW is a small public school located in the midsize suburb of Fredericksburg.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UMW are $13,800 a year.

Full General Education at University of Mary Washington Report

#4

University of Lynchburg

Lynchburg, VA
$33,500 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of Lynchburg helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best general education schools in Virginia. Lynchburg is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Lynchburg.

Lynchburg undergraduate students pay an average of $33,500 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on General Education at University of Lynchburg

$19,785 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia list. University of Virginia is a very large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at University of Virginia are $19,785 per year.

University of Virginia also took the #1 spot in our Best General Education Schools in Virginia rankings.

Read full report on General Education at University of Virginia - Main Campus

#6

Radford University

Radford, VA
$11,542 Average Tuition & Fees

Radford University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia list. Located in the suburb of Radford, Radford is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Radford are $11,542 per year.

Read More…

#7

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA
$13,119 Average Tuition & Fees

George Mason University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia list. GMU is a very large public school located in the suburb of Fairfax.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at GMU are $13,119 a year.

GMU also claimed a spot on our Best General Education Schools in Virginia list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

Read full report on General Education at George Mason University

#8

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA
$16,160 Average Tuition & Fees

Liberty University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general education students. It came in at #8 on the list. Liberty University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Liberty University are $16,160 per year.

Read More…

$15,028 Average Tuition & Fees

Virginia Commonwealth University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value General Education Schools in Virginia list. VCU is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Richmond.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at VCU are $15,028 a year.

Read full report on General Education at Virginia Commonwealth University

#10

Shenandoah University

Winchester, VA
$34,490 Average Tuition & Fees

Shenandoah University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general education programs. Shenandoah is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Winchester.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Shenandoah are $34,490 per year.

Full General Education at Shenandoah University Report

Best Value General Education Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value General Education Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Florida 407
Georgia 106
North Carolina 144
Tennessee 309
Kentucky 87
Louisiana 77
Alabama 115
South Carolina 286
Mississippi 276
Arkansas 51
West Virginia 230

General Education is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Education

Related Major Annual Graduates
Educational Administration 45,458
Teacher Education Grade Specific 34,451
Special Education 25,158
Teacher Education Subject Specific 20,616
Curriculum & Instruction 19,784

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 10 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to KOKUYO.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Graduate Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited graduate schools across the U.S.