Public · Community college
Virginia Highlands Community College
Abingdon, Virginia · Small suburb
- 9%
- Transfer rate
- $5,375
- Avg net price
- 40%
- Grad / completion
- $32,681
- Median earnings
Virginia Highlands Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Abingdon, Virginia (small suburb setting), enrolling 1,349 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Abingdon, Virginia
Abingdon is a town in and the county seat of Washington County, Virginia, United States, 133 miles (214 km) southwest of Roanoke. From the late 17th-century, it was occupied by the Cherokee Nation, whose territory extended from the present-day area of borders of Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky through the spine of North Carolina and later into Georgia. Abingdon Historic District, which includes architecture dating back to the late 1700s, as well as notable buildings like the Abingdon Arts Depot, Barter Theatre and the Martha Washington Inn. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small suburb
- Highest degree offered
- Associate
- Nearest big city
- 82 miles to Asheville, NC
- To the ocean
- 264 miles
- Nearest airport
- 27 miles to Tri-Cities Regional TN/VA (TRI)
How Virginia Highlands Community College compares
Higher than 26% · #49 of 65 in Virginia
Higher than 23%
Higher than 41% · #37 of 62 in Virginia
Cheaper than 89% · #11 cheapest of 61 in Virginia
Lower than 44%
Larger than 77%
Percentiles compare Virginia Highlands Community College 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
Undergraduates by gender
- Women81460%
- Men53540%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White88%
- Black3.5%
- Hispanic3.6%
- Asian0.8%
- Other or multiracial4.3%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,349
- Student–faculty ratio
- 17 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 43%
- First-generation students
- 50%
- Students over 25
- 24%
- Median family income
- $19,517
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $71,379
- Endowment
- $1,435,090
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Where students come from
Home state of the 384 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Virginia94%
- Other U.S. states6.2%
Most first-years stay in state — Virginia Highlands Community College draws overwhelmingly from Virginia.
Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $5,022
- Out-of-state tuition
- $11,460
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $1,800
- Total cost of attendance
- $12,955
- Average net price
- $5,375
Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.
Outcomes
- Graduated
- 40%
- First-year retention
- 60%
- Transferred to another college
- 9%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $31,926
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $32,681
- Median debt at graduation
- —
- Students with federal loans
- 0%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
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
- Free
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
- 0.2 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 1
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (2,082 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.
By offense type, per year
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.
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.
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.
Modest institutional aid: 14% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,445. 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 244 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)
- $32,681
- Typical debt at graduation
- —
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- —
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 37%
The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.
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.
Men out-earn women by $7,803 (25%) 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
- 85°F
- Winter low
- 24°F
- Annual rain
- 47.3″
- Annual snow
- 12.4″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Abingdon 3S, VA US station (2.9 mi from campus).
What Virginia Highlands Community College 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 Virginia Highlands Community College
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Virginia Highlands Community College side by side →
Southside Virginia Community College
Alberta, Virginia · Remote rural · 55 mi to Richmond
- Students
- 1,807
- Tuition
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- Transfer
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- Earnings
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Southwest Virginia Community College
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- Transfer
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Wytheville Community College
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- Tuition
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- Transfer
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- Earnings
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Danville Community College
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- Students
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- Tuition
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- Transfer
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Patrick & Henry Community College
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- Tuition
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- Transfer
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Rappahannock Community College
Glenns, Virginia · Distant rural · 45 mi to Richmond
- Students
- 1,367
- Tuition
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- Transfer
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- Earnings
- $36k
Colleges near Virginia Highlands Community College
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King University
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Southwest Virginia Community College
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Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Elizabethton
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Northeast State Community College
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Ross Medical Education Center-Johnson City
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Milligan University
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Jung Tao School of Classical Chinese Medicine
Sugar Grove, NC · Private nonprofit · Graduate
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.