Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, Virginia · Public

Of 87 assessed programs, 86 leave graduates out-earning a typical Virginia high-school graduate (about $36,613/yr) and 1 fall short. Another 171 could not be assessed.

What would this cost you?

My family earns and I expect to take

Family income	Net price per year
Under $30k	$11,689
$30k to $48k	$11,670
$48k to $75k	$17,894
$75k to $110k	$25,835
$110k and up	$34,201
All families (average)	$24,953

Net price is the yearly cost after grants and scholarships, by family income (College Scorecard). It reflects students who received federal aid.

Program earnings vs a high-school graduate

Earnings are measured four years after completion when available. Where four-year earnings are suppressed, one-year earnings are shown and marked 1-year earnings. One-year and four-year figures reflect different career stages and should not be compared as if measured at the same time.

87 of 258 programs could be assessed 34% have an earnings verdict

Programs by earnings versus a typical Virginia high-school graduate.
Program	Degree	Median earnings	vs a high-school grad	Verdict	Median debt	Years to repay	Recent completers
Management Science	Bachelor's Degree	$108,726	+$72,113	clears the bar	$21,500	0.3 yrs	444
Computer and Information Science	Bachelor's Degree	$144,103	+$107,490	clears the bar	$20,500	0.2 yrs	366
Mechanical Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$96,376	+$59,763	clears the bar	$22,500	0.4 yrs	319
Finance	Bachelor's Degree	$102,902	+$66,289	clears the bar	$21,500	0.3 yrs	294
Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services	Bachelor's Degree	$74,005	+$37,392	clears the bar	$24,017	0.6 yrs	252
Biology	Bachelor's Degree	$61,703	+$25,090	clears the bar	$20,164	0.8 yrs	250
Psychology	Bachelor's Degree	$56,365	+$19,752	clears the bar	$21,500	1.1 yrs	236
Communications and Media	Bachelor's Degree	$66,106	+$29,493	clears the bar	$20,500	0.7 yrs	219
Marketing	Bachelor's Degree	$86,338	+$49,725	clears the bar	$22,500	0.5 yrs	211
Human Development and Family Studies	Bachelor's Degree	$58,340	+$21,727	clears the bar	$20,500	0.9 yrs	209
Sociology	Bachelor's Degree	$63,654	+$27,041	clears the bar	$22,562	0.8 yrs	209
Neuroscience	Bachelor's Degree	$59,714	+$23,101	clears the bar	$22,300	1.0 yrs	205
Civil Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$88,142	+$51,529	clears the bar	$25,000	0.5 yrs	204
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$106,633	+$70,020	clears the bar	$25,833	0.4 yrs	198
Industrial Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$116,641	+$80,028	clears the bar	$22,625	0.3 yrs	191
Political Science	Bachelor's Degree	$75,687	+$39,074	clears the bar	$23,500	0.6 yrs	185
Computer Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$122,026	+$85,413	clears the bar	$25,929	0.3 yrs	184
Business Administration	Bachelor's Degree	$80,023	+$43,410	clears the bar	$22,017	0.5 yrs	165
Animal Sciences	Bachelor's Degree	$47,224	+$10,611	clears the bar	$22,250	2.1 yrs	164
Accounting	Bachelor's Degree	$99,528	+$62,915	clears the bar	$18,500	0.3 yrs	162
Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other	Master's Degree	$148,000	+$111,387	clears the bar	$33,240	0.3 yrs	161
International Relations	Bachelor's Degree	$71,988	+$35,375	clears the bar	$21,250	0.6 yrs	130
Architectural Sciences and Technology	Bachelor's Degree	$56,797 1-year earnings	+$20,184	clears the bar	$30,750	1.5 yrs	129
Business Administration	Master's Degree	$154,688	+$118,075	clears the bar	$32,567	0.3 yrs	120
Real Estate	Bachelor's Degree	$95,576	+$58,963	clears the bar	$26,529	0.4 yrs	112
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology	Bachelor's Degree	$67,621	+$31,008	clears the bar	$24,000	0.8 yrs	106
Electrical Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$104,839	+$68,226	clears the bar	$23,562	0.3 yrs	104
Construction Management	Bachelor's Degree	$95,165	+$58,552	clears the bar	$27,000	0.5 yrs	101
Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy	Master's Degree	$85,049	+$48,436	clears the bar	$38,924	0.8 yrs	94
Civil Engineering	Master's Degree	$99,698	+$63,085	clears the bar	$19,050	0.3 yrs	89
Forestry	Bachelor's Degree	$64,204	+$27,591	clears the bar	$20,663	0.7 yrs	87
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences Business Services	Bachelor's Degree	$65,248	+$28,635	clears the bar	$22,450	0.8 yrs	86
English	Bachelor's Degree	$64,225	+$27,612	clears the bar	$21,625	0.8 yrs	86
Economics	Bachelor's Degree	$92,653	+$56,040	clears the bar	$22,125	0.4 yrs	79
Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management	Bachelor's Degree	$47,496	+$10,883	clears the bar	$21,390	2.0 yrs	72
Mathematics	Bachelor's Degree	$67,763	+$31,150	clears the bar	$22,375	0.7 yrs	72
Chemical Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$106,011	+$69,398	clears the bar	$24,875	0.4 yrs	71
Design	Bachelor's Degree	$72,213	+$35,600	clears the bar	$23,900	0.7 yrs	70
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services	Bachelor's Degree	$68,263	+$31,650	clears the bar	$22,500	0.7 yrs	69
Accounting	Master's Degree	$96,906	+$60,293	clears the bar	$18,304	0.3 yrs	68
Curriculum and Instruction	Master's Degree	$58,513	+$21,900	clears the bar	$20,500	0.9 yrs	66
Materials Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$90,828	+$54,215	clears the bar	$27,000	0.5 yrs	66
Construction Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$102,699	+$66,086	clears the bar	$26,349	0.4 yrs	65
Natural Resources and Conservation	Bachelor's Degree	$59,868	+$23,255	clears the bar	$26,816	1.2 yrs	59
Fine Arts	Bachelor's Degree	$58,652	+$22,039	clears the bar	$26,000	1.2 yrs	59
Hospitality Management	Bachelor's Degree	$72,817	+$36,204	clears the bar	$24,500	0.7 yrs	54
Physics	Bachelor's Degree	$92,746	+$56,133	clears the bar	$26,224	0.5 yrs	51
History	Bachelor's Degree	$59,819	+$23,206	clears the bar	$20,499	0.9 yrs	49
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering	Master's Degree	$115,736	+$79,123	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	47
Electrical Engineering	Master's Degree	$130,029	+$93,416	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	47
Plant Sciences	Bachelor's Degree	$56,630	+$20,017	clears the bar	$18,955	0.9 yrs	46
Agricultural Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$88,315	+$51,702	clears the bar	$26,125	0.5 yrs	42
Medicine	First Professional Degree	$94,416	+$57,803	clears the bar	$251,904	4.4 yrs	41
Educational Administration	Doctoral Degree	$93,304	+$56,691	clears the bar	$61,500	1.1 yrs	39
Public Health	Master's Degree	$73,036	+$36,423	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	38
Mechanical Engineering	Master's Degree	$119,843	+$83,230	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	36
Agricultural Production Operations	Associate's Degree	$46,669	+$10,056	clears the bar	$11,000	1.1 yrs	35
Geography and Cartography	Bachelor's Degree	$65,259	+$28,646	clears the bar	$19,500	0.7 yrs	35
Statistics	Bachelor's Degree	$94,300	+$57,687	clears the bar	$15,500	0.3 yrs	34
Chemistry	Bachelor's Degree	$73,395	+$36,782	clears the bar	$22,875	0.6 yrs	33
Mining and Mineral Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	$94,397	+$57,784	clears the bar	$20,907	0.4 yrs	32
Agricultural Business and Management	Bachelor's Degree	$62,398	+$25,785	clears the bar	$22,999	0.9 yrs	31
Public Administration	Master's Degree	$88,961	+$52,348	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	28
Food Science and Technology	Bachelor's Degree	$80,161	+$43,548	clears the bar	$26,875	0.6 yrs	25
Industrial Engineering	Master's Degree	$117,338	+$80,725	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	25
Geology and Earth Science	Bachelor's Degree	$59,969	+$23,356	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	25
Engineering-Related Fields	Bachelor's Degree	$81,618	+$45,005	clears the bar	$23,750	0.5 yrs	24
Microbiological Sciences and Immunology	Bachelor's Degree	$67,253	+$30,640	clears the bar	$24,817	0.8 yrs	24
Theatre	Bachelor's Degree	$36,557 1-year earnings	-$56	falls short	$25,188	insufficient data	24
Physics	Bachelor's Degree	$67,892	+$31,279	clears the bar	$23,250	0.7 yrs	23
Engineering Mechanics	Bachelor's Degree	$101,509	+$64,896	clears the bar	$27,500	0.4 yrs	22
Agriculture, General	Master's Degree	$62,078	+$25,465	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	21
Music	Bachelor's Degree	$48,028	+$11,415	clears the bar	$27,000	2.4 yrs	21
City/Urban, Community, and Regional Planning	Master's Degree	$86,237	+$49,624	clears the bar	$27,486	0.6 yrs	20
Curriculum and Instruction	Doctoral Degree	$84,607	+$47,994	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	19
Educational Administration	Master's Degree	$57,587	+$20,974	clears the bar	$29,395	1.4 yrs	18
Public Policy Analysis	Bachelor's Degree	$66,177	+$29,564	clears the bar	$15,500	0.5 yrs	15
Agriculture, General	Bachelor's Degree	$53,568	+$16,955	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	13
Teacher Education (by subject)	Master's Degree	$56,901	+$20,288	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	9
Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical Sciences	Doctoral Degree	$123,078	+$86,465	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	5
Materials Engineering	Master's Degree	$108,485	+$71,872	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	5
Architecture	Bachelor's Degree	$75,074	+$38,461	clears the bar	$29,000	0.8 yrs	0
Architecture	Master's Degree	$84,023	+$47,410	clears the bar	$44,712	0.9 yrs	0
Applied Mathematics	Bachelor's Degree	$117,990	+$81,377	clears the bar	$20,000	0.2 yrs	0
Business/Managerial Economics	Bachelor's Degree	$95,271	+$58,658	clears the bar	insufficient data	insufficient data	0
Veterinary Medicine	Doctoral Degree	$99,632 1-year earnings	+$63,019	clears the bar	$170,773	2.7 yrs	insufficient data
Liberal Arts and General Studies	Graduate/Professional Certificate	$70,335	+$33,722	clears the bar	$57,501	1.7 yrs	insufficient data
Data Science	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	174
Veterinary Medicine	First Professional Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	119
Computer and Information Science	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	107
Sustainability Studies	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	102
Security Science and Technology	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	64
Computer Engineering	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	62
Teacher Education (by level)	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	58
Public Health	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	58
Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	53
Biomedical Engineering	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	42
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	42
Electrical Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	40
Architectural Sciences and Technology	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	38
Business Administration	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	36
Data Analytics	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	35
Civil Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	34
Philosophy	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	34
Chemistry	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	27
Computer Programming	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	26
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	25
Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	25
Mechanical Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	24
Computer and Information Science	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	22
Biology	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	21
Physical Sciences, Other	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	21
Management Information Systems	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	21
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	20
Forestry	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	19
School Counseling	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	17
Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	16
Animal Sciences	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	15
Educational Administration	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	15
Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	14
Religion/Religious Studies	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	14
Applied Statistics	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	13
Physics	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	13
Public Administration	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	13
Geography and Cartography	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	13
Systems Engineering	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	12
Industrial Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	12
Psychology	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	12
Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	12
Computer Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	11
Human Development and Family Studies	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	11
Political Science	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	11
Public Health	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	11
Business	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	11
Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical Sciences	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	10
Landscape Architecture	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	10
Engineering Mechanics	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	10
Human Development and Family Studies	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	10
Economics	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	10
Polymer/Plastics Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	9
Botany/Plant Biology	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	9
Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology	Bachelor's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	9
Philosophy	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	9
Construction Management	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	9
Agricultural Business and Management	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	8
Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	8
Data Processing	Graduate/Professional Certificate	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	8
Materials Engineering	Doctoral Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	8
Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	8
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies	Master's Degree	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	insufficient data	8

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, release 2026-06-10. Earnings are medians measured four years after completion where available (programs shown with a 1-year figure are marked), compared with the state high-school-graduate benchmark ($36,613/yr). Debt is federal loans only. Suppressed values are shown as insufficient data, never imputed. Figures describe past graduates and are never a promise.