Bachelor's · Blacksburg, Virginia
Is English Language and Literature, General at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University worth it?
Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.
The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans
Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 6.1 years.
- Earnings 1 year after graduating
- $41,747
- Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
- Earnings 4 years after graduating
- $68,985
- Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
- Typical federal debt at graduation
- $18,500
- NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
- Net cost to graduate, all families
- $109k (likely $109k – $134k)
- AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
- Earnings bump, year 4
- $30k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in VA
- 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
- Payback
- 6.1 years (likely 5.2–7.6)
- Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
- 10-year net return
- −$28k (likely −$105k – $39k)
- Today's dollars
- 20-year net return
- $332k (likely $181k – $502k)
- Today's dollars
- Odds of finishing (school-wide)
- 86%
- Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
- Borrowers making progress / in default, 2 years in
- not reported / ≤ 20%
- NSLDS AY2016-17, AY2017-18 pooled cohorts measured in 2018-19, 2019-20
Change income, residency or loans Compare English Language and Literature, General at other schools
🎬 Getting ready in high school
Students heading toward media & storytelling majors like this one often take these classes. Every school offers a different mix, so check with your counselor.
AP classes
- AP English Language and Composition
- AP English Literature and Composition
- AP Seminar
IB Higher Level
- Language A: Literature HL or Language and Literature HL
- Film HL
Build my roadmap 🗺️ Middle school to career, plus high schools near you that offer these classes.
Other majors at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
- Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's)$154,688
- Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other (Master's)$148,000
- Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's)$144,103
- Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering (Master's)$130,029
- Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical Sciences (Doctoral)$123,078
- Computer Engineering (Bachelor's)$122,026
- Mechanical Engineering (Master's)$119,843
- Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's)$117,990
- Industrial Engineering (Master's)$117,338
- Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's)$116,641
- Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering (Master's)$115,736
- Veterinary Medicine (Doctoral)$111,973
English Language and Literature, General at other schools in Virginia
- University of Richmond$58,014
- William & Mary$57,616
- James Madison University$57,487
- George Mason University$56,071
- University of Virginia-Main Campus$55,412
- Christopher Newport University$55,379
- Longwood University$51,485
- Old Dominion University$49,024
- Randolph-Macon College$47,804
- Virginia Commonwealth University$45,844