Which VCU bachelor's program has the lowest debt?

Anthropology graduates leave with a median of $13,996 in federal loans, the lowest among 46 VCU bachelor's programs that report debt.

How much does VCU cost?

In-state tuition and fees are $16,945 a year, and $40,109 for out-of-state students. After grants and scholarships, the average net price is $23,433 a year.

How many VCU programs report graduate pay?

47 bachelor's programs and 2 certificate programs at VCU report first-year pay, and 48 of them also report federal debt.

VCU Programs, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

Virginia Commonwealth University
Public university
Richmond, VA
20,753 undergraduates

College Scorecard June 2026 release

The short answer

47 VCU bachelor's programs report what graduates earn. Computer and Information Science pays the most in the first year ($84,338), and Dance the least ($20,397). The median program pays $36,709. VCU also has 2 certificate programs that report pay.

In-state tuition and fees$16,945Per year. Out-of-state $40,109

Average net price after aid$23,433Per year

Graduation rate63%Within 6 years

Admission rate93%Of applicants

All 47 bachelor's programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Virginia" compares first-year pay with the same field's bachelor's programs across Virginia. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Virginia
1	Computer and Information ScienceAbout 122 graduates a year	$84,338	$117,373	$19,050	3rd of 14
2	Computer EngineeringAbout 20 graduates a year	$82,964	Not reported	$23,813	4th of 5
3	Chemical EngineeringAbout 46 graduates a year	$79,721	$91,990	$27,000	3rd of 3
4	Electrical EngineeringAbout 28 graduates a year	$77,938	$99,480	$24,000	4th of 6
5	Mechanical EngineeringAbout 96 graduates a year	$73,355	$87,500	$22,235	4th of 7
6	Dental Hygiene and AssistingAbout 13 graduates a year	$72,808	$75,427	$25,924	1st of 2
7	NursingAbout 210 graduates a year	$71,847	$86,488	$26,250	15th of 20
8	Medical Laboratory ScienceAbout 44 graduates a year	$67,072	$71,425	$24,589	1st of 3
9	Diagnostic and Treatment ProfessionsAbout 45 graduates a year	$66,750	$70,688	$26,992	1st of 3
10	Information ScienceAbout 167 graduates a year	$62,116	$86,853	$24,364	2nd of 4
11	AccountingAbout 79 graduates a year	$56,876	$71,783	$24,350	6th of 14
12	Biomedical EngineeringAbout 40 graduates a year	$54,133	$76,242	$24,000	3rd of 3
13	BusinessAbout 218 graduates a year	$51,669	$70,969	$23,750	1st of 3
14	Other Interdisciplinary StudiesAbout 186 graduates a year	$49,111	$51,371	$25,125	3rd of 9
15	Real EstateAbout 14 graduates a year	$47,681	Not reported	Not reported	2nd of 2
16	Other Protective ServicesAbout 91 graduates a year	$45,696	$65,519	$21,500	1st of 1
17	Business EconomicsAbout 30 graduates a year	$45,370	$81,935	$21,500	2nd of 2
18	MathematicsAbout 23 graduates a year	$43,784	Not reported	$27,000	8th of 8
19	MarketingAbout 135 graduates a year	$41,767	$61,633	$21,500	5th of 7
20	PhysicsAbout 16 graduates a year	$39,804	Not reported	$25,250	3rd of 3
21	ChemistryAbout 95 graduates a year	$38,571	$63,326	$21,872	6th of 9
22	Criminal JusticeAbout 236 graduates a year	$38,495	$57,508	$23,250	9th of 15
23	Security Science and TechnologyAbout 50 graduates a year	$37,501	$58,080	$26,000	2nd of 2
24	Biological and Physical SciencesAbout 74 graduates a year	$36,709	$57,252	$26,975	1st of 1
25	CommunicationsAbout 191 graduates a year	$35,808	$56,586	$24,000	9th of 14
26	Area StudiesAbout 27 graduates a year	$35,557	$51,261	$23,500	2nd of 4
27	Subject-Area Teacher EducationAbout 342 graduates a year	$34,677	$52,617	$26,901	4th of 8
28	Social WorkAbout 98 graduates a year	$34,088	$52,309	$25,000	6th of 8
29	Political ScienceAbout 159 graduates a year	$34,080	$55,117	$21,376	14th of 16
30	Urban StudiesAbout 23 graduates a year	$33,626	$52,091	$26,416	1st of 1
31	SociologyAbout 46 graduates a year	$32,781	$46,863	$26,285	9th of 11
32	Environmental Science and ConservationAbout 62 graduates a year	$32,038	$53,220	$23,500	7th of 7
33	BiologyAbout 339 graduates a year	$31,149	$62,092	$21,712	15th of 25
34	Linguistics and Language StudiesAbout 5 graduates a year	$30,635	$49,017	$26,000	5th of 5
35	HistoryAbout 75 graduates a year	$29,794	$42,698	$23,750	11th of 16
36	Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender StudiesAbout 27 graduates a year	$29,607	$51,484	$26,000	2nd of 2
37	PsychologyAbout 490 graduates a year	$29,462	$54,210	$23,199	18th of 26
38	MusicAbout 43 graduates a year	$28,989	$42,111	$27,000	4th of 5
39	EnglishAbout 101 graduates a year	$27,005	$46,439	$22,750	12th of 16
40	PhilosophyAbout 16 graduates a year	$26,192	Not reported	$21,500	1st of 1
41	Design and Applied ArtsAbout 322 graduates a year	$25,872	$49,801	$25,937	6th of 6
42	Film and PhotographyAbout 91 graduates a year	$23,109	$43,942	$26,000	2nd of 3
43	AnthropologyAbout 17 graduates a year	$22,732	$41,449	$13,996	5th of 5
44	TheatreAbout 47 graduates a year	$22,447	$29,450	$21,875	4th of 6
45	Fine and Studio ArtsAbout 58 graduates a year	$21,916	$38,214	$23,374	8th of 8
46	Crafts and Folk ArtAbout 27 graduates a year	$21,237	$33,207	$19,500	1st of 1
47	DanceAbout 11 graduates a year	$20,397	Not reported	$27,000	2nd of 3

Program names link to the program's own page, and Virginia ranks link to the full ranking for the field. A program gets its own page when it reports both pay and debt and at least five Virginia programs in the field do too.

Some nursing bachelor's programs are for nurses who are already licensed and working (RN-to-BSN). College Scorecard counts them with programs for new students, and their graduates' pay reflects years of nursing experience, so high pay at a program here may not mean higher starting pay for a new nurse.

One more bachelor's program reports debt but not pay, so it isn't listed.

Both certificate programs

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Virginia" compares first-year pay with the same field's certificate programs across Virginia.

Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Virginia
Interdisciplinary StudiesAbout 26 graduates a year	$48,446	$74,599	$22,250	1st of 1
BusinessAbout 16 graduates a year	$28,747	Not reported	$23,250	1st of 1

Quick picks: bachelor's programs

Highest first-year pay

Lowest median debt

Anthropology$13,996
Computer and Information Science$19,050
Crafts and Folk Art$19,500
Political Science$21,376
Other Protective Services$21,500

Largest programs

PsychologyAbout 490 graduates a year
Subject-Area Teacher EducationAbout 342 graduates a year
BiologyAbout 339 graduates a year
Design and Applied ArtsAbout 322 graduates a year
Criminal JusticeAbout 236 graduates a year

Common questions

Computer and Information Science graduates earn a median of $84,338 in their first year, the most of 47 VCU bachelor's programs that report pay.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Tuition, net price, graduation rate, and admission rate are for the whole school, not one program.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Virginia rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
NCES, IPEDS tuition and fees, 2023-24, for in-district tuition labels