The University at a Glance
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In its 20th annual "America's Best Colleges" issue (August 2007), U.S. News & World Report ranked the University of Virginia the nation's #2 public university and 23rd among all public and private national universities. Only three other public universities are in the top 25: the University of California-Berkeley, the University of Michigan, and the University of California-Los Angeles. In early 2008, Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine ranked the University of Virginia as #3 on its list of 100 Best Values in Public Colleges.
U.Va. has the highest graduation and retention rate of any public college or university and is tied for 9th overall. No other public university is ranked within the top fifteen places. In the magazine's listing of "great schools at great prices," U.Va. is the top-ranked public university and 11th overall.
For the 14th straight year, the University of Virginia's African-American students posted the highest graduation rate among those at all public universities in the nation, according to the annual compilation published by the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. The journal reports that U.Va.'s graduation rate of 87 percent makes it "the leader by far in successfully graduating black students" at flagship state universities.The next closest public universities are the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of California-Berkeley, both with 73 percent, and the University of Michigan, with 70 percent. The national average is 44 percent, compared to 63 percent for white students.
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More Facts about U.Va.:
- 13,353 Undergraduate
- 4,491 Graduate
- 1,669 First-professional (law and medicine)
- 554 On-Grounds Continuing Education
- 20,367 Total
- 63% White American
- 9% African American
- 14% Asian American
- 5% International non-resident foreign
- 5% Hispanic American
- 0.3% Native American
- 4% Other
- 69% Virginian, 31% Non-virginian
- 54% Women, 46% Men
- 60+ Majors in 6 undergraduate schools
- 97 % 1-Year retention rate (entering class of 2001 returning 2002)
- 92.5% 6-Year Graduation Rate for the overall student body (entering class of 1999)
- 86.3 % 6-Year African-American graduation rate (entering class of 1999)
- 94.8% 6-Year Asian American graduation rate (entering class of 1999)
- 88.3 % 6-Year Hispanic American graduation rate (entering class of 1999)
- 70% 6-Year Native American graduation rate (entering class of 1999)
- Over 2,100 faculty with 95% holding Ph.D.'s
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Tips on the College Application Process
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Advice on Writing the College Essay
Associate Dean of Admission Parke Muth provides helpful tips on how to approach writing your college essay.
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- Start with yourself, not the college. Examine your academic interests, career goals, financial resources, and likes and dislikes. What do you want in a college?
- Read and visit. Investigate colleges, search Web sites, plan campus visits.
- Apply. Use online application.
- Take a strong academic program. Take tough courses in English, math, foreign language, science, and social science. Make your schedule tougher each year. Do not slack off in your senior year.
- Take the SAT I or ACT. Take once in your junior year, and once in fall or winter of your senior year. Check with your college to see if the SAT II is required.
- Recommendations. Get to know your guidance counselor (and teachers) who will be very involved in your college application process.
- Get involved in activities. There is no right or wrong extracurricular activity; do what most interests you. Spend time exploring those interests.
- Write good essays. Write in your style and voice about what you know, not about what you think colleges want to hear. Distinguish your experiences. Pick a small topic. Proofread.
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