Public · Community college

Virginia Western Community College

Roanoke, Virginia · Small city

14%
Transfer rate: $4,966
Avg net price: 40%
Grad / completion: $38,787
Median earnings

Virginia Western Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Roanoke, Virginia (small city setting), enrolling 3,898 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 3,898 undergradsSmall cityCold winters

About Roanoke, Virginia

Roanoke is an independent city in Virginia, United States. By 1838, the area was populated enough that Roanoke County was created out of parts of Botetourt and Montgomery Counties, and the area's first railroad, the Virginia and Tennessee, arrived in 1852. Serving as a hub for arts and culture in Southwest Virginia, Roanoke is home to several museums and cultural institutions in addition to being the host of several festivals, many centering around Elmwood Park in downtown Roanoke. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Small city
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 2 miles to Roanoke, VA
To the ocean: 148 miles
Nearest airport: 6 miles to Roanoke–Blacksburg (ROA)

How Virginia Western Community College compares

Graduation rate40%

Higher than 26% · #48 of 65 in Virginia

First-year retention63%

Higher than 28%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$38,787

Higher than 64% · #24 of 62 in Virginia

Average net price$4,966

Cheaper than 91% · #8 cheapest of 61 in Virginia

Median debt at graduation$11,000

Lower than 36%

Student–faculty ratio23 : 1

Lower than 18%

Undergraduate enrollment3,898

Larger than 89%

Percentiles compare Virginia Western 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

Women2,27158%
Men1,62742%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White66%
Black14%
Hispanic8.2%
Asian3.2%
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: 3,898
Student–faculty ratio: 23 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 30%
First-generation students: 44%
Students over 25: 21%
Median family income: $23,676
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $76,257
Endowment: $24,991,010

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 1,106 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Virginia99%
Other U.S. states0.6%

Most first-years stay in state — Virginia Western 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: $5,400
Out-of-state tuition: $11,838
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,500
Total cost of attendance: $11,768
Average net price: $4,966

Outcomes

Graduated: 40%
First-year retention: 63%
Transferred to another college: 14%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $33,847
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $38,787
Median debt at graduation: $11,000
Students with federal loans: 5%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 31%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

40%

Low-income (Pell)

23%

First-generation

22%

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

Campus safety

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

Reported offenses in an average year

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

0.7reported offenses a year

0.3 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape

0.3

Burglary

0.3

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

$4,105

$30–48k

$4,770

$48–75k

$5,332

$75–110k

$7,206

$110k+

$10,786

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.

33%

of first-years get a grant from the school

$3,766

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 33% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $3,766. 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 676 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): $38,787
Typical debt at graduation: $11,000
Debt vs. one year's pay: 28%
Out-earn a HS grad: 42%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.8 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

$35,506

Men

$43,121

Men out-earn women by $7,615 (21%) 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: 29°F
Annual rain: 42.8″
Annual snow: 14.8″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Roanoke Rgnl AP, VA US station (5 mi from campus).

What Virginia Western Community College graduates study — and earn

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesCert.

113 grads$23k 1 yr$35k 5 yr$11k debt

113$22,692$34,934$11,075 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

94 grads$22k 1 yr$35k 5 yr$11k debt

94$22,071$35,443$10,900 Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

82 grads$38k 1 yr$45k 5 yr$9k debt

82$38,214$44,613$9,350 Biological and Physical SciencesAssoc.

69 grads$28k 1 yr$42k 5 yr$7k debt

69$27,786$42,298$7,334 Social Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

53 grads$19k 1 yr$36k 5 yr$9k debt

53$19,220$35,551$9,128 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssoc.

48 grads$64k 1 yr$66k 5 yr$24k debt

48$64,052$66,295$23,500 Mental and Social Health Services and Allied ProfessionsCert.

46 grads— 1 yr$42k 5 yr— debt

46—$42,436—Health and Medical Administrative ServicesCert.

41 grads$29k 1 yr$33k 5 yr$29k debt

41$28,754$32,974$28,627 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsAssoc.

40 grads$54k 1 yr$65k 5 yr$12k debt

40$54,480$65,360$12,000 Electrical/Electronic Engineering Technologies/TechniciansCert.

36 grads$40k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

36$40,104——Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)Cert.

29 grads$41k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

29$40,629——Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied ProfessionsCert.

29 grads$32k 1 yr— 5 yr$6k debt

29$31,772—$5,919

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 Western Community College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Virginia Western Community College side by side →

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Students: 3,195
Tuition: $5k
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Brightpoint Community College

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Students: 5,792
Tuition: $5k
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Students: 3,941
Tuition: $5k
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Earnings: $38k

Colleges near Virginia Western Community College

Paul Mitchell the School-Roanoke

Roanoke, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 169 students

1 mi

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Roanoke, VA · Private for-profit · Associate · 315 students

4 mi

American National University

Salem, VA · Private for-profit · Associate · 630 students

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Roanoke College

Salem, VA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,767 students

6 mi

Hollins University

Roanoke, VA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 665 students

8 mi

Ferrum College

Ferrum, VA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 699 students

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Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine

Blacksburg, VA · Private nonprofit · Graduate

24 mi

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, VA · Public · Bachelor's · 30,923 students

25 mi

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.