Let’s take it piece by piece.
Who this university is and where it stands
Virginia State University is a public, four-year university whose highest reported level is the doctorate. That is an institutional fact: it does not mean that your child’s specific major offers a path through graduate school. If your child is interested in a program that continues beyond a bachelor’s degree, ask about it by name.
The system that classifies US universities—Carnegie—describes it as a master’s university, with medium-sized programs, four-year, and highly residential. “Highly residential” has a precise meaning: at the time of that classification, at least half of degree-seeking undergraduate students lived in institution-owned housing, and at least 80 out of every 100 studied full time. That tells you something real about life there, but it does not tell you the price of room or board. Those are charged separately, and you need to request them separately before comparing this school with any other.
Carnegie also places it in an “inclusive” admissions category, which combines two distinct groups: schools that did not report admissions scores and schools whose scores indicated broad access. The label does not clarify which of the two applies here—later you will see the actual admissions figures, which are specific.
Geographically, it is in Petersburg, Virginia, in Chesterfield County, and its main campus is within the Richmond metropolitan area—which does not mean that the campus is in that city’s downtown. The census code places it in a suburb: within the urbanized area, but outside the principal city. The only way to know what living there feels like is to go see it. If your child plans to live at home, drive the route yourself on a weekday at the actual time of your child’s classes. GPS almost never tells the whole truth.
There is something else worth knowing: in the official file for 2023, Virginia State University is marked as a Historically Black College or University (HBCU) and as a Land Grant Institution. These are two distinct designations, and both are marked for this school. They tell you where the institution comes from. They do not tell you what the classroom is like today or whom it admits. Do not read them as a verdict on anything. What does matter is asking specifically: what student center exists, what scholarship applies, and who answers the phone in April when you have questions.
The community’s actual size
In the official fall count, Virginia State University had enrollment of 5,190. It is neither a tiny school nor an enormous one—it falls squarely within the band from 5,000 to 9,999, one of the most common sizes among its peers. Of that total, undergraduate enrollment was 4,829 and graduate enrollment was 361: it is primarily a bachelor’s-level school.
Now, here is something worth looking at directly. The percentage of undergraduates reported as Hispanic or Latino rounds to zero. IPEDS publishes this figure as a whole number, so a rounded zero does not mean there is no one—it means almost no one. Compared with 519 similar public schools in this census, it is among the lowest: nine out of ten of those schools report a higher share. Having few Latino students does not make the school bad, just as having many would not by itself make it good. If your child will be one of the few, the recommendation is concrete: ask what groups and support services exist, and speak with a student there before deciding. The figure is for the entire school; your child’s specific major may feel different.
Other features of that community: among undergraduates, there are more women than men—60 out of every 100 are women. Adults from ages 25 through 64 are a minority, only 8 out of every 100. And slightly more than half of first-time students, 66 out of every 100, reported a permanent address in Virginia when applying. None of these figures tells you whether your child will fit in. They tell you who is enrolled today, and nothing more.
How the academic year is structured
The calendar uses semesters: two long terms of about 15 weeks each. The university stated that it accepts credit for AP exams as well as what IPEDS calls “credit for life experiences”—learning through independent study, courses for adults, work experience, portfolios, prior licenses or certifications, and military or professional experience. It also reports accepting credit for military training. The school’s reporting of these pathways does not mean that your child will automatically receive credit for them. Request the transfer-credit evaluation in writing before enrolling, and do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand. By the way, the university does not enroll high school students in courses for college credit.
As for its academic offerings: in the reported year, it awarded 620 bachelor’s degrees across 21 program families. None accounts for a large share—the most common was business and management, with only 19 out of every 100 degrees awarded that year. Compared with 514 similar schools, it ranks in the quartile awarding the fewest degrees per year. Keep in mind: 21 active families are not 21 distinct majors, nor do they guarantee that your child’s field has a strong presence there. Verify the exact program that interests your child.
And there is a technical figure worth translating correctly: the official ratio is 13 students per full-time-equivalent faculty member. It is a low ratio compared with similar schools—it is in the bottom quartile, meaning it is lower than the ratio at three out of every four comparable schools. But this does not tell you the actual size of a classroom. It is an institutional average, not a promise about your child’s first-year class.
Structured academic opportunities
The institution reports specific academic pathways: study abroad, preparation for teacher certification below the postsecondary level, preparation in certain teaching specialization areas completed at this institution, and state approval of the program for initial teacher certification. If any of these connects with what your child wants to do, it is worth asking the school directly for more details.
How the admissions process works
Here is one of the most important facts for any family building a college list: Virginia State University does not have open admissions. It reviews specific items before saying yes. Of nine possible considerations, it marks four as required: the high school record, high school GPA, letters of recommendation, and an English proficiency exam when applicable. Class rank and the college-preparatory course plan also count, although they are not required. The published undergraduate application fee is $0.
One practical, concrete piece of advice: letters of recommendation are required. Request them a month in advance, and give the teacher a sheet describing what your child has done over the years—no one remembers everything without help.
Now for the figure that probably interests you most: in the 2023 cycle, Virginia State University received 10,577 first-time applications and offered admission to 9,424. That is 89 out of every 100. It is a university that accepts most applicants—its accessibility is slightly above the midpoint among its peers. Even so, 1,153 applicants did not receive an offer. A likely chance of admission does not make what comes next easy: that percentage does not tell you how much it will cost, how many finish, or whether the specific major your child wants has an additional screening process of its own. Those three questions must be asked separately.
Here is something that often surprises families: out of every 100 admitted applicants, only 15 ultimately enrolled. The other 85 received a yes and did not come here that fall. Compared with similar schools, this rate is on the low side. But do not read it as a mark against the school—the federal record does not explain why each family made its decision, and what others chose does not predict what you will be offered. What does matter: wait for your net-price letter, because that figure—not the behavior of other families—is what determines whether this school stays on your list.
Regarding standardized tests: the SAT and ACT are not required. If your child submits them, they are considered; if not, the application proceeds in the same way. Among those who did submit the SAT—only 14 out of every 100 enrolled students—the middle half scored between 420 and 540 in reading and writing, and between 380 and 510 in math. Those ranges apply to students who enrolled and submitted scores—not to all applicants, and they do not serve as a minimum or a guarantee.
Regarding transfers: in the fall of 2023, 208 undergraduates arrived for the first time after studying at another institution. This is a count of people arriving, not those leaving—the school does not report the transfer-out rate, and that does not mean that no one transfers away from here. How many credits are accepted from an incoming transfer student is a question to ask the university directly.
Money: what it costs on paper
At Virginia State University, within the population of first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid, paid the in-state or in-district rate, and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the group size was 390 and the average net price was $12,432. For the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, the group size was 83 and the average was $17,511; for those with EFC family income above $110,000, the group size was 44 and the average was $22,390. For dependent students, the band combines their parents’ income with their own.
The difference between the average for the lowest-income band, whose group size was 390, and the average for the highest-income band, whose group size was 44, is $9,958. Among first-year students who received any grant or scholarship aid, the average was $16,184.
$12,432 was the average net price for the lowest-income families in academic year 2022-23. That does not mean it is what your family will pay. It helps you determine whether it is worth requesting the financial aid letter.
The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at this public institution, they use the in-state or in-district rate. The overall average for students receiving grant or scholarship aid, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional grants or scholarships; it also uses that rate. If your family lives outside the state or district, the calculation is different. Ask about it before applying.
Financial aid and the burden of debt
Among degree-seeking students, 91 out of every 100 received some grant or scholarship aid that does not have to be repaid. Receiving some aid here is the norm. Among recipients, the average was $16,545. Pell—the federal aid for low-income families—reached 71 out of every 100 students. That is a high figure compared with similar schools, but it is not a promise: it is what happened with other students last year, not your probability or your amount.
Now for the hard truth, stated plainly: financing an education here with loans is common. Among undergraduates, 76 out of every 100 received a federal student loan in 2022-23. Those who borrowed took on an average of $9,322 in that year alone. Compared with similar schools, Virginia State is among those with the highest shares of students borrowing. If your child borrowed a similar amount in each of four years, the total would be around $37,288—not including interest, and not including loans that parents might take out separately or credit-card or bank debt. That figure is decided before the first signature, not at the end.
The fact that borrowing is common here does not determine whether your child will need to borrow. That depends on the actual financial aid letter and the difference between the net price and what your family can pay. If a loan appears in that letter, request an estimate of the monthly payment before accepting anything.
The university also reports an installment tuition payment plan as an available option—it is worth asking about if cash flow, rather than the total amount, is your family’s challenge.
Campus life, learning format, and support
Virginia State University has institution-owned housing, with a reported student capacity of 4,015 on or off campus, and meal plans whose largest version provides a fixed number of meals per week. Not all first-time, full-time students are required to live there—but that does not tell you whether a specific program requires it. The existence of housing does not guarantee that a bed will be available for your child: request the year’s rate, the application deadline, and whether space is guaranteed or there is a waiting list, all in writing.
Regarding ROTC: the only branch confirmed in writing is Army. Navy and Air Force are not marked, which does not mean they are unavailable—it means you need to ask directly. It is also unclear whether the program is based on this campus itself.
In sports, the university competes in the NCAA, with confirmed membership in football, basketball, baseball, and cross-country or track and field. That membership belongs to the school; it is not a promise to your child. If your child is interested in competing, write directly to the coach for that sport and ask about roster space, division, and athletic scholarships, in writing.
Regarding distance education: it is offered at the undergraduate and graduate levels, although in the fall count, among undergraduates, only 1 out of every 100 took all classes remotely—the other 99 took at least one class in person. The school also reports having at least one program that can be completed entirely through distance education, without specifying whether it is undergraduate or graduate. Confirm the exact level and major if this interests your child.
The library operates with paid staff and has annual spending above the government-recorded threshold of $100,000; it has physical and digital materials and participates in interlibrary lending. That threshold is only a floor—it does not guarantee specific databases for your child’s major. Ask about those by program name.
And the university reports combined academic and career counseling services, employment services for current students, placement services for graduates, and a published web address for disability services. Their being reported does not measure their quality or effectiveness—it means only that they exist as declared services.
Who stays and who graduates
This is an area where we need to be honest without being dramatic.
Of the cohort of full-time, bachelor’s-degree-seeking students who entered in 2022, 71 out of every 100 were still enrolled a year later or had already graduated. Compared with similar schools, this is on the low end: seven out of ten comparable schools retain a higher share. This figure does not distinguish those still enrolled here from those who have already finished, nor does it explain what happened to those who did not return—and not returning is not the same as dropping out; someone may have transferred and continued studying elsewhere.
Regarding graduation: among students who entered in 2017 seeking a bachelor’s degree, 41 out of every 100 graduated from here within six years. At the four-year mark, the figure falls to 27 out of every 100. Compared with similar schools, this falls in the bottom quartile. Put plainly: at six years, it is almost an even split between those who finished here and those who did not. The report counts outcomes, not the reasons behind each individual story. It is worth asking directly what specific support services exist and how long the particular degree that interests your child usually takes to complete.
There is a broader, eight-year measure that includes both full-time and part-time students: among the cohort that entered between July 2015 and June 2016, 47 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from this school by August 2023. Among Pell Grant recipients, the figure was 45 out of every 100—just 7 points below the figure for those who did not receive it. Enrollment status is listed as unknown for 25 out of every 100, which does not mean they dropped out—it means only that the report could not determine their status. These figures do not add up to 100 because they measure different things and overlap.
None of these figures predicts what your child will do. They are averages for entire cohorts, whose individual stories the federal record does not tell.
Putting the pieces together
You now have an in-depth understanding of one of the three pieces you need in order to decide: what Virginia State University actually is, what it costs in its different forms, how it admits, how it retains students, and how it graduates them. This piece does not change depending on how you look at it—the numbers are the numbers.
The other two pieces are not in this article because they do not belong to this university: what your child wants to study and what your child has already built to get this far, and what your family can and is willing to pay. You and your child must define those together.
If something in this article left you with more questions than answers, that is exactly the right signal. Take those questions directly to the school’s admissions and financial aid offices, with a name and a date. A real plan comes from that combination—what the university is, what your child wants, and what the family can sustain. Not a hunch.
Source note: the information in this article comes from official data reported by the institution to the US Department of Education’s IPEDS system, primarily from the 2022-23 and 2023-24 cycles. Best College Aid does not represent Virginia State University or any government agency; this article is not a substitute for verifying information directly with the institution before making decisions.