Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, VA · Public · 30,923 undergrads (large, city) · website ↗

Test-optional
$60 application fee

What you'll actually pay

Average net price per year — tuition, fees, room & board minus grant and scholarship aid — for in-state students by household income.

Household income	Avg net price / year
Under $30,000	$11,689
$30,000 – $48,000	$11,670
$48,000 – $75,000	$17,894
$75,000 – $110,000	$25,835
Over $110,000	$34,201
All incomes (average)	$24,953

Sticker tuition and fees: $15,948 in-state, $37,764 out-of-state — before aid, from the same earlier College Scorecard release as the net prices above.

These are averages. For an estimate for your family, use Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University's own net price calculator — every college that takes federal student aid must publish one.

Net price calculator ↗

Other costs of attendance, 2025–26

The college's own estimate for a full-time undergraduate for the year, before aid, from the October 2026 College Scorecard. It is a newer year than the tuition and net prices above, so don't add the two together.

Housing and meals, on campus	$16,046
Housing and meals, off campus (not with family)	$12,578
Books and supplies	$3,270
Other expenses, on campus	$5,612
Other expenses, off campus	$5,612

Grants and loans for first-year students, 2022–23

What the college reported for its full-time, first-time students (7,158 of them) in 2022–23; 69% got some kind of aid, loans included. Each average is over the students who received that kind of aid, not over everyone. It is an older year than the 2025–26 costs above.

Type of aid	Students awarded	Average amount
Any grant or scholarshipFederal, state, local and the college's own	55%	$8,542
Federal Pell GrantNeed-based, from the federal government	15%	$5,258
The college's own grants and scholarshipsNeed- or merit-based, funded by the college	55%	$5,568
Federal student loansBorrowed by the student; repaid with interest. No Parent PLUS or private loans	39%	$5,390

IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education, Student Financial Aid 2022–23 (SFA2223, provisional release); full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates; public domain.

Admissions & outcomes

Acceptance rate: 55%
Average SAT: 1364
Median ACT: 29
Students with Pell grants: 15%
Graduation rate (6yr): 86%
Freshman retention: 93%
Median earnings @ 10yr: $81,698
Median debt at graduation: $21,500
International undergrads: 1,378 (4.5%)

For comparison, the median across all 1,596 four-year colleges on this site: graduation rate 56%, earnings ten years after entering $54,869, debt at graduation $23,250.

Admission policy, test scores and teaching

SAT/ACT policy: Test-optional
Application fee: $60
Students per faculty member: 17 to 1
Faculty who are full-time: 99%
Open admission: No

Middle 50% of test scores, fall 2024

25th to 75th percentile of enrolled first-year students who submitted scores. A quarter scored below the first figure and a quarter above the second. Section ranges can't be added together into a total-score range.

SAT Reading and Writing: 640–710
SAT Math: 640–740
ACT composite: 28–32

What the college considers in admission decisions, fall 2023

How the college said it used each item when deciding on first-time, degree- or certificate-seeking applicants for fall 2023. For SAT and ACT scores, see the fall 2024 policy above.

High school GPA	Required
High school class rank	Not considered
High school record	Required
Completion of a college-preparatory program	Considered if submitted
Recommendations	Not considered
Formal demonstration of competencies (e.g. portfolio)	Not considered
English proficiency test (for applicable students)	Required
Other test (Wonderlic, WISC-III, etc.)	Not considered
Work experience	Not considered
Personal statement or essay	Required
Legacy status	Not considered

First-time applicants: 47,208
Admitted: 26,923
Enrolled: 7,196

Counts of first-time, degree- or certificate-seeking students, including early decision and early action. The acceptance rate higher up this page comes from a different College Scorecard release, so it may not match these counts.

IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education, Admissions 2023–24 (ADM2023, provisional release), fall 2023; open admission from IPEDS Institutional Characteristics 2023–24 (revised); public domain.

Most popular fields of study

Share of bachelor's degrees awarded.

Business24%

Engineering20%

Social Sciences8%

Biology & Life Sciences7%

Computer Science7%

Agriculture4%

Communications & Media4%

Environmental Studies3%

Psychology3%

Physics & Chemistry3%

Earnings and debt by field of study

Median annual earnings of graduates who received federal student aid and were working, not studying: one year after completing (graduates of 2020–21 and 2021–22) and four years after (2017–18 and 2018–19), measured in 2022 and 2023 and shown in 2024 dollars. Median debt is federal Direct and Grad PLUS loans borrowed at this college by 2022–23 and 2023–24 graduates; it leaves out Parent PLUS and private loans. “National” is the median for the same field and credential across all US colleges.

Bachelor's degrees (69)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods	542	$82,823	$108,726national $86,176	$19,500
Computer and Information Sciences, General	517	$98,085	$144,103national $92,374	$18,500
Mechanical Engineering	352	$77,490	$96,376national $92,135	$20,750
Finance and Financial Management Services	330	$71,665	$102,902national $83,343	$20,500
Biology, General	293	$38,872	$61,703national $57,214	$20,500
Marketing	279	$59,926	$86,338national $69,303	$19,500
Psychology, General	256	$38,457	$56,365national $50,706	$20,500
Communication and Media Studies	249	$48,643	$66,106national $56,359	$19,500
Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services	224	$30,289	$74,005national $54,945	$20,500
Business Administration, Management and Operations	223	$61,883	$80,023national $68,257	$20,875
Neurobiology and Neurosciences	219	$37,916	$59,714national $62,451	$18,750
Civil Engineering	215	$76,438	$88,142national $86,517	$21,500
Industrial Engineering	207	$81,066	$116,641national $98,442	$20,500
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering	202	$81,370	$106,633national $98,207	$22,000
Computer Engineering	192	$90,545	$122,026national $109,015	$20,372
Political Science and Government	181	$44,976	$75,687national $63,293	$19,800
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services	172	$37,621	$58,340national $48,568	$19,750
Sociology	165	$42,067	$63,654national $52,657	$20,500
Animal Sciences	159	$34,859	$47,224national $49,634	$20,500
Data Science	158	$87,322	—	$20,181
Architectural Sciences and Technology	133	$62,547	—national $70,074	$30,710
Accounting and Related Services	128	$74,516	$99,528national $76,194	$20,500
International Relations and National Security Studies	116	$49,579	$71,988national $66,596	$20,500
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology	114	$42,750	$67,621national $65,466	$20,500
Economics	109	$59,662	$92,653national $82,686	$19,598
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering	107	$82,059	$104,839national $100,647	$21,892
Public Health	105	$46,449	—national $58,808	$20,500
Forestry	99	$47,556	$64,204national $58,784	$19,750
Construction Management	94	$77,148	$95,165national $95,124	$21,750
Real Estate	87	$68,467	$95,576national $84,821	$19,573
English Language and Literature, General	82	$38,866	$64,225national $48,590	$18,500
Chemical Engineering	78	$78,879	$106,011national $98,158	$26,250
Design and Applied Arts	74	$58,660	$72,213national $51,490	$22,000
Mathematics	72	$67,231	$67,763national $69,562	$19,875
Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management	71	$32,295	$47,496national $45,338	$18,125
Construction Engineering	69	$78,168	$102,699national $97,303	$23,250
Biomedical/Medical Engineering	67	—	—national $93,451	$20,500
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences Business Services	61	$53,673	$65,248national $64,926	$20,500
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services	60	$44,759	$68,263national $49,984	$20,500
Fine and Studio Arts	60	$42,499	$58,652national $41,367	$22,500
Chemistry	58	$49,342	$73,395national $65,120	$25,945
Philosophy	56	$37,416	—national $54,455	$20,500
Physics	50	$68,081	$92,746national $76,786	$20,942
Public Policy Analysis	48	$46,119	$66,177national $73,721	$20,500
Natural Resources Conservation and Research	46	$49,776	$59,868national $55,012	$21,750
Plant Sciences	42	$43,317	$56,630national $56,567	$19,500
Hospitality Administration/Management	42	$59,633	$72,817national $56,726	$22,000
Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology	39	$45,862	$67,892national $60,997	$21,456
History	39	$36,534	$59,819national $50,680	$20,000
Materials Engineering	37	$78,513	$90,828national $91,449	$21,271
Agricultural Business and Management	34	$47,329	$62,398national $66,647	$20,190
Geography and Cartography	33	$45,252	$65,259national $57,853	$23,808
Agricultural Engineering	31	$73,824	$88,315national $84,624	$27,000
Microbiological Sciences and Immunology	27	$44,523	$67,253national $62,582	$20,000
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft	25	—	—national $39,775	$20,500
Food Science and Technology	23	$48,488	$80,161national $70,873	—
Statistics	21	$79,570	$94,300national $92,425	—
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences	21	$45,793	$59,969national $60,190	$26,084
Landscape Architecture	18	—	—national $66,387	$20,000
Engineering-Related Fields	17	$68,675	$81,618national $89,619	—
Music	14	—	$48,028national $42,892	$25,749
Mining and Mineral Engineering	12	$75,078	$94,397national $101,390	$27,187
Physical Sciences, Other	12	$53,114	—national $63,096	—
Agriculture, General	10	—	$53,568national $53,676	—
Architecture	0	—	$75,074national $66,914	—
Engineering Mechanics	0	$75,603	$101,509national $93,437	—
Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering	—	$80,106	—national $114,055	$27,500
Applied Mathematics	—	$83,020	$117,990national $91,532	—
Business/Managerial Economics	0	—	$95,271national $77,981	—

Associate degrees (1)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Agricultural Production Operations	54	$42,136	$46,669national $42,438	$11,000

Master's degrees (21)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Computer and Information Sciences, General	253	$103,683	—national $124,201	$20,500
Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other	160	$118,129	$148,000national $139,553	$35,156
Business Administration, Management and Operations	131	$102,889	$154,688national $103,485	$41,000
Civil Engineering	106	$83,146	$99,698national $98,323	—
Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy	94	$71,365	$85,049national $72,563	$30,750
Curriculum and Instruction	87	$55,349	$58,513national $63,399	$28,534
Mechanical Engineering	66	$98,920	$119,843national $115,974	—
Architectural Sciences and Technology	65	$65,186	—national $77,466	$41,000
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering	65	$103,593	$115,736national $122,434	$26,000
Industrial Engineering	65	—	$117,338national $119,184	—
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering	62	—	$130,029national $133,654	—
Accounting and Related Services	58	$76,602	$96,906national $95,833	$20,500
Public Health	47	$60,702	$73,036national $82,751	$29,500
Agriculture, General	37	$53,199	$62,078national $61,941	—
City/Urban, Community, and Regional Planning	33	$66,510	$86,237national $79,665	—
Student Counseling and Personnel Services	20	$46,870	—national $60,111	—
Public Administration	18	$75,686	$88,961national $81,408	—
Materials Engineering	17	—	$108,485national $112,282	—
Educational Administration and Supervision	14	$49,996	$57,587national $71,685	—
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas	9	—	$56,901national $63,707	—
Architecture	0	—	$84,023national $74,139	—

First professional degrees (1)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Medicine	42	$64,271	$94,416national $112,460	$244,222

Doctoral degrees (5)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Biology, General	32	$68,686	—national $92,983	—
Educational Administration and Supervision	29	$100,022	$93,304national $100,573	$57,151
Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical Sciences	15	—	$123,078national $135,581	—
Curriculum and Instruction	12	$60,861	$84,607national $83,031	—
Veterinary Medicine	—	$111,973	—national $139,914	$173,910

Graduate certificates (2)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Educational Administration and Supervision	8	$82,000	—national $86,288	—
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities	—	$83,364	$70,335national $65,226	$30,750

A dash means the Department of Education suppressed the figure because too few graduates were measured — not zero. 157 more programmes at this college have every figure suppressed and are not listed.

Contact and accreditation

Address: 210 Burruss Hall, 800 Drillfield Dr., Blacksburg, VA 24061-0131
Phone: (540) 231-6994
Institutional accreditor: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

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Sources: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts) and IPEDS Fall Enrolment for international student counts. College Scorecard, October 2026 release: net price calculator link, mission flags and religious affiliation (2025–26), enrolment shares, test policy, SAT/ACT ranges and student-to-faculty ratio (fall 2024), cost-of-attendance components (2025–26), and earnings and debt by field of study. IPEDS Institutional Characteristics 2023–24 for the application fee and the IPEDS 2024 directory for the phone number. IPEDS Admissions 2023–24 (ADM2023, provisional release) for admission requirements and first-time applicants, admits and enrolments (fall 2023). IPEDS Student Financial Aid 2022–23 (SFA2223, provisional release) for grants and loans to full-time, first-time students. All are U.S. Department of Education data in the public domain. Verify current costs and requirements with the school.

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