Private for-profit · Community college

ECPI University

Virginia Beach, Virginia · Large city

#5 most selective in Virginia
17%
Transfer rate
$22,965
Avg net price
42%
Grad / completion
$42,837
Median earnings

ECPI University is a private for-profit associate-granting institution in Virginia Beach, Virginia (large city setting), enrolling 12,090 undergraduates.

Private for-profitMidsize · 12,090 undergradsLarge cityAccessible · 75% admitCold wintersNear the coast

About Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia Beach is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The Chesepian occupied an area which is now defined as the independent cities of Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, and Virginia Beach. The Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art features regularly changing exhibitions in a variety of media. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
6 miles to Norfolk, VA
To the ocean
6 miles
Nearest airport
4 miles to Norfolk (ORF) · major hub

How ECPI University compares

Selectivity74.5%

More selective than 64% · #5 most selective of 8 in Virginia

Graduation rate42%

Higher than 29% · #43 of 65 in Virginia

First-year retention56%

Higher than 17%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$42,837

Higher than 79% · #15 of 62 in Virginia

Average net price$22,965

Cheaper than 23% · #45 cheapest of 61 in Virginia

Median debt at graduation$20,000

Lower than 6%

Student–faculty ratio13 : 1

Lower than 67%

Undergraduate enrollment12,090

Larger than 98%

Percentiles compare ECPI University with the nation's 3,519 two-year and certificate schools, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count two-year and certificate schools in Virginia.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

12,498students
  • Undergraduate12,09097%
  • Graduate4083%

Undergraduates by gender

12,090undergrads
  • Women7,70664%
  • Men4,38436%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White31%
  • Black41%
  • Hispanic16%
  • Asian3.3%
  • Other or multiracial8.6%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
12,090
Graduate enrollment
408
Student–faculty ratio
13 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
53%
First-generation students
48%
Students over 25
69%
Median family income
$22,890
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$59,796

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Cost

In-state tuition
$18,484
Room & board
Total cost of attendance
$30,055
Average net price
$22,965

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Admissions

Admission rate
74.5%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
42%
Graduated on time (4 years)
27%
First-year retention
56%
Transferred to another college
17%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$41,278
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$42,837
Median debt at graduation
$20,000
Students with federal loans
57%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
27%

About 15% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
27%
Low-income (Pell)
45%
First-generation
47%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
No
Application fee
$15

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
0
Property offenses (2022–2024)
4

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 16 campuses (12,572 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

1.3reported offenses a year
0 violent a year1.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft
1.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$21,807
$30–48k
$22,649
$48–75k
$23,467
$75–110k
$25,439
$110k+
$28,701

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$106,685

$23,467/year × about 4.5 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

45%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$4,564
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 45% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $4,564. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 930 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$42,837
Typical debt at graduation
$20,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
47%
Out-earn a HS grad
52%

Typical debt would take roughly 4.7 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$39,017
Men
$52,928

Men out-earn women by $13,911 (36%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
88°F
Winter low
32°F
Annual rain
53.3″
Annual snow
6.2″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.03.36.6JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Norfolk S, VA US station (3.4 mi from campus).

What ECPI University graduates study — and earn

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to ECPI University

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare ECPI University side by side →

Colleges near ECPI University

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.