Blacksburg, Virginia. 30,435 undergraduate students. 260 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
UNITID 233921 · OPEID 003754 · IPEDS HDVINTAGE · COLLEGE SCORECARD · 2025-05 · HISTORY 1996–2024
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
Earnings, completion, debt, and enrollment anomalies at Virginia Tech
Short-arc shifts (recent 3-year window), peer outliers, earnings trend breaks, completion drops, enrollment cliffs, and debt-to-earnings warnings — surfaced deterministically from the federal record. Multi-decade shifts are reported separately in the Long Arc section, since 25-year tuition drift isn't really an anomaly.
LONG-ARC SHIFT · TRENDING WORSE+13%
In-state tuition
In-state tuition at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University rose 13% between 2021 and 2024 ($14.2k → $15.9k).
LONG-ARC SHIFT · TRENDING BETTER-100%
3-year cohort default rate
3-year cohort default rate at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (0.5% → 0.0%).
LONG-ARC SHIFT · TRENDING WORSE+12%
Out-of-state tuition
Out-of-state tuition at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University rose 12% between 2021 and 2024 ($33.9k → $37.8k).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
Virginia Tech earnings, debt, and completion vs. the Virginia median
Each tile compares this institution to the Virginia median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
MEDIAN EARNINGS · 10Y
$81,698+21% · 6→10y
Virginia median $44,813
MEDIAN EARNINGS · 6Y
$67,377
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry
COMPLETION · 150%
86.3%+17% · '97→'24
Virginia median 50.7%
MEDIAN FEDERAL DEBT
$19,000+102% · '97→'20
At program completion
UNDERGRAD ENROLLMENT
30,435+51% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS
RETENTION
91.8%+7% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time
ADMISSION RATE
57.0%-21% · '01→'24
latest cohort
IN-STATE TUITION
$15,478+338% · '00→'24
out-of-state $36,694
SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How Virginia Tech earnings spread, 4 to 10 years after entry
Treasury tax-record earnings for federally aided students who first enrolled at this institution. Each point is a horizon from the most-recent vintage. Single median per horizon (no p25/p75 publishing).
ALL FEDERALLY AIDED STUDENTS · TAX-RECORD EARNINGSVINTAGE 2025-05
Earnings widen with time post-entry. Selection: federal-aid recipients only — not all graduates.Methodology →
SECTION 03 · DEBT-TO-EARNINGS
What loans cost relative to earnings at Virginia Tech
Annual debt service as a share of median earnings 10 years after entry, computed under federal Direct loan terms (10-year fixed at 6%). The 8% line is the gainful-employment threshold from federal regulation; above 12% has historically been considered “failing” under prior rule cycles.
Institution-wide
3.1%
0%8% · GE20%+
Median federal debt $19,000 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $81,698 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Virginia Tech enrollment, completion, and debt over time
Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.
UNDERGRAD · 1996–202430,923
Undergraduate enrollment.IPEDS EF
COMPLETION 150% · 1997–202486.2%
150%-time completion rate.IPEDS GR
MEDIAN DEBT · 1997–2020$21,500
Median federal student debt at exit.SCORECARD
COMPLETION · 100% · 1997→2024+92%
Virginia Tech · completion · 100% rose
36.0% → 69.1%
UNDERGRAD ENROLLMENT · 1996→2024+51%
Virginia Tech · undergrad enrollment rose
20,512 → 30,923
IN-STATE TUITION · 2000→2024+338%
Virginia Tech · in-state tuition rose
$3,640 → $15,948
OUT-OF-STATE TUITION · 2000→2024+211%
Virginia Tech · out-of-state tuition rose
$12,128 → $37,764
MEDIAN DEBT · 1997→2020+102%
Virginia Tech · median debt rose
$10,625 → $21,500
COHORT DEFAULT RATE · 2011→2024-90%
Virginia Tech · cohort default rate fell
1.8% → 0.0%
PELL SHARE · 2008→2024+31%
Virginia Tech · pell share rose
11.7% → 15.3%
EARNINGS_MEDIAN_10YR · 2007→2020+36%
Virginia Tech · earnings_median_10yr rose
$59,900 → $81,698
EARNINGS_MEDIAN_6YR · 2003→2020+46%
Virginia Tech · earnings_median_6yr rose
$46,200 → $67,377
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Virginia Tech programs ranked by 5-year earnings
Each row is one (CIP × credential) program reported by the institution in College Scorecard's Field-of-Study data. Cohort floor is 30 students; below this, federal data is suppressed.
Pick a program. Cost from Scorecard net price by family income; earnings from Treasury 5-year-post-completion median, projected forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve. The selection-bias toggle applies the Dale-Krueger shrinkage. Outcomes illustration, not a forecast — see methodology.
Shrinks the earnings premium toward the matched-applicant mean. STEM <15%, business ~40%, arts & education ~60%.
NET PRESENT VALUE
$1,272,291
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 6
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
Cost per year
$19,660
HS-only baseline · VA
$39,800
Years to complete
4
CIP family
52
Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Institutions similar to Virginia Tech in Virginia
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
“Virginia Tech graduates earn $X” — not “Virginia Tech makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Virginia Tech caused. Selection effects (who admits, who enrolls, who completes) are real. We publish federal data with strict descriptive phrasing — and link the methodology where you can read about the limitations directly.