Private nonprofit · University

Virginia Union University

Richmond, Virginia · Midsize city

#3 best value in Virginia
98.0%
Admit rate
$13,235
Avg net price
34%
Graduation rate
$38,275
Median earnings

Virginia Union University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Richmond, Virginia (midsize city setting), enrolling 1,203 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). It has a Baptist religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 1,203 undergradsMidsize cityAccessible · 98% admitNCAA Division II with football · Central Intercollegiate Athletic AssociationCold wintersNear the coast

Will you get in?

See where your numbers land against Virginia Union University's admitted students.

Admit rate
98.0%
SAT (mid 50%)
850–885
Avg GPA (est.)
2.60

Enter a test score to see where you land against Virginia Union University's admitted students.

A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Virginia Union University's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.

About Richmond, Virginia

Richmond is the capital city of the U.S. state of Virginia. After the first permanent English-speaking settlement was established at Jamestown, Virginia, in April 1607, Captain Christopher Newport led explorers northwest up the James River to an inhabited area in the Powhatan Nation, which takes its name from the location Pawat-hanne, or "falls in a stream," referring to the falls in the James River at present day Richmond, specifically Powhatan Hill. The Virginia Historical Society and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts are on the Boulevard. Nearby is the Science Museum of Virginia, housed on Broad Street in the neoclassical former 1919 Broad Street Union Station. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Midsize city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
2 miles to Richmond, VA
To the ocean
18 miles
Nearest airport
8 miles to Richmond (RIC) · major hub

How Virginia Union University compares

Selectivity98.0%

More selective than 8% · #39 most selective of 43 in Virginia

SAT average850

Higher than 1%

Graduation rate34%

Higher than 16% · #43 of 49 in Virginia

First-year retention67%

Higher than 23%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$38,275

Higher than 11% · #45 of 51 in Virginia

Average net price$13,235

Cheaper than 80% · #3 cheapest of 47 in Virginia

Median debt at graduation$29,000

Lower than 5%

Student–faculty ratio16 : 1

Lower than 28%

Undergraduate enrollment1,203

Larger than 43%

Percentiles compare Virginia Union University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Virginia.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

1,644students
  • Undergraduate1,20373%
  • Graduate44127%

Undergraduates by gender

1,203undergrads
  • Women65354%
  • Men55046%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White0.6%
  • Black75%
  • Hispanic1.3%
  • Other or multiracial22%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,203
Graduate enrollment
441
Student–faculty ratio
16 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
69%
First-generation students
41%
Students over 25
17%
Median family income
$26,681
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$52,866
Endowment
$31,909,591

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

Admissions

Admission rate
98.0%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
850–885
SAT average
850
SAT reading
450–475
SAT math
400–410
ACT composite
Average GPA (estimated)
2.60

Cost

In-state tuition
$17,450
Room & board
$11,016
Total cost of attendance
$29,075
Average net price
$13,235

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 (within 6 years)
34%
Graduated on time (4 years)
25%
First-year retention
67%
Transferred to another college
35%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$27,977
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$38,275
Median debt at graduation
$29,000
Students with federal loans
71%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
14%

About 9% 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
25%
Low-income (Pell)
33%
First-generation
33%

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
Yes
Dorm capacity
667
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
55%
Housing charge (year)
$3,976
Meal plan (year)
$5,576
Application fee
$25
Athletics
NCAA Division II with football
Football conference
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
Varsity athletes
343 (222 men · 121 women)

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%.

Varsity sports (10)

Football113
Track and Field (Indoor)59
Basketball49
Track and Field (Outdoor)48
Cross Country21
Softball19
Volleyball14
Tennis9
Bowling6
Golf5

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
3.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
10
Property offenses (2022–2024)
5

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,646 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.

5.0reported offenses a year
3.3 violent a year1.7 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
1.7
Aggravated assault
1.7
Burglary
1.7

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
$11,424
$30–48k
$12,372
$48–75k
$14,420
$75–110k
$21,362
$110k+
$18,301

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
$63,475

$14,420/year × about 4.4 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.

41%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$7,799
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 41% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $7,799. 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 296 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)
$38,275
Typical debt at graduation
$29,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
76%
Out-earn a HS grad
36%

Typical debt would take roughly 7.6 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Weigh it value

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.

Women
$38,286
Men
$38,278

Women out-earn men by $8 (0%) 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
90°F
Winter low
29°F
Annual rain
45.5″
Annual snow
8.8″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.54.9JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Richmond Intl AP, VA US station (8.2 mi from campus).

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 Union University

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

Colleges near Virginia Union 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.