Virginia ranking · Clery-reported enrollment 2024

The Largest Universities in Virginia

The 50 largest of the 131 Virginia colleges and universities that report an enrolment to the U.S. Department of Education, ranked biggest first. Total enrolment counts online and distance students, so an institution with a large virtual programme can outrank a bigger physical campus.

104,327
Largest in Virginia
131
Institutions reporting
816
Median Virginia institution
#11
of 51 states by enrolment

Liberty University is the largest institution in Virginia with 104,327 students

According to U.S. Department of Education campus-safety enrollment filings for 2024, Liberty University leads Virginia at 104,327 students, and the five largest hold 46.4% of state enrollment. This list covers the 50 largest of 131 reporting institutions. Totals include online learners, so a large virtual programme can outrank a bigger physical campus.

Data source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey

Largest in Virginia
104,327
Institutions reporting
131
State students in top 5
46.4%
Median Virginia institution
816

Virginia in one line

Liberty University is the largest institution in Virginia with 104,327 students, about 128x the 816 of the median institution in the state. The five largest hold 46.4% of the state's students, a middling concentration: large institutions matter here without crowding out the rest.

104,327
students at Liberty University
46.4%
of state students, in the top 5
577,171
students enrolled across Virginia
1,717
the #50 cutoff

Enrollment is total students reported in the OPE campus-safety disclosure for 2024, including online and distance learners. IPEDS supplies institution location and sector. The incident column is reported on-campus Clery Act incidents per 1,000 enrolled students.

Size joined to safety

These 50 largest institutions enroll 93.9% of Virginia's students; the other 81 reporting institutions hold the remaining 6.1%. Among the 44 mid-to-large campuses on this list, 27 sit below the 1.58 national median incident rate, and 2 also appear in the national safest-50.

93.9%
of state students, in these 50
27
below 1.58 national median /1k
2
also in national safest-50
1.42
Liberty University rate /1k

Incident rates are on-campus Clery Criminal Offenses and VAWA reports per 1,000 enrolled students for campuses with enrollment ≥ 2,000 and a national safety rank. A lower rate is not a personal safety verdict, reporting culture and online enrollment dilute raw counts. See /rankings/safest-campuses for the size-fair national list.

Showing the top 50 of 131 Virginia institutions by enrollment (542,156 of 577,171 students, 93.9%). The remaining 81 reporting institutions enroll 6.1% of the state total and are omitted from this capped ranking, not from the underlying federal tables.

What this ranking shows about Virginia

Virginia ranks 11th by total enrolment among the states and DC, roughly mid-table nationally. The 131 institutions reporting enrolment here split 44 public to 86 private, so neither sector defines the top of this list on its own.

Ranking by total enrolment puts institutions with large online programmes above institutions with larger physical campuses, because a virtual student body is not limited by classrooms or housing. A list of the biggest campuses by students physically present would order differently, and neither list is more correct, because they answer different questions. Enrolment here is the total headcount an institution reported to the federal OPE reporting cohort, which counts undergraduate and graduate students together and makes no distinction between full-time and part-time study. A university with a very large part-time or continuing-education population can therefore outrank one with more students on campus on any given weekday.

The incident-rate column is here because institution size changes how a raw incident count should be read, not because a larger university is more or less safe. Two institutions with the same number of reported incidents are not comparable if one enrols five times as many students, so the column expresses incidents per thousand enrolled. A rate still reflects reporting practice as much as underlying risk: an institution that encourages reporting and investigates thoroughly can record more incidents than one that does neither, and that is the opposite of what a naive reading suggests. Institutions where most students study online show diluted rates, because the denominator counts students who never set foot on a campus. Read the column as context for the size ranking, never as a safety verdict, and see our methodology for how both figures are assembled. For the same institutions ranked by cost rather than size, see the cheapest colleges rankings, or browse every institution we hold a record for.

Comparing states? See the 50 largest universities in the US, or this state's campus safety profile.

The bar to make Virginia's top-50 list is 1,717 students. Here is where that cutoff sits among all 131 Virginia institutions reporting enrollment:

The bar to make Virginia's top-50 list

Clery-reported enrollment · 131 Virginia institutions · 2024

1,717 Top 38% higher than 62% of 131 Virginia institutions

Show national distribution 0–8,000: 116 Virginia institutions (89%). This entry sits in this band. 8,000–16,000: 6 Virginia institutions (5%). Above this entry. 16,000–24,000: 3 Virginia institutions (2%). Above this entry. 24,000–32,000: 2 Virginia institutions (2%). Above this entry. 32,000–40,000: 2 Virginia institutions (2%). Above this entry. 40,000–48,000: 0 Virginia institutions (0%). Above this entry. 48,000–56,000: 0 Virginia institutions (0%). Above this entry. 56,000–64,000: 1 Virginia institutions (1%). Above this entry. 64,000–72,000: 0 Virginia institutions (0%). Above this entry. 72,000–80,000: 1 Virginia institutions (1%). Above this entry. #50 cutoff 0 80,000 every Virginia institution, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more Virginia institutions. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey · 2024

The 50 largest of Virginia's 131 institutions

1
Liberty University Lynchburg, VA · Private nonprofit
Enrollment
104,327
Incidents /1k
1.42
10
ECPI University Virginia Beach, VA · Private for-profit
Enrollment
12,572
Incidents /1k
0.08
11
Regent University Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit
Enrollment
10,657
Incidents /1k
0.19
12
William & Mary Williamsburg, VA · Public
Enrollment
9,818
Incidents /1k
3.16
27
Hampton University Hampton, VA · Private nonprofit
Enrollment
4,244
Incidents /1k
2.83
31
University of Richmond University of Richmond, VA · Private nonprofit
Enrollment
3,722
Incidents /1k
1.61
48
Roanoke College Salem, VA · Private nonprofit
Enrollment
1,804
Incidents /1k
4.43
# Institution EnrollmentIncidents /1k
1 Liberty University Lynchburg, VA · Private nonprofit 104,327 100% of the leader · rank #1 1.42
2 Northern Virginia Community College Annandale, VA · Public 56,457 54% of the leader · rank #2 0.43
3 George Mason University Fairfax, VA · Public 39,766 38% of the leader · rank #3 3.12
4 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA · Public 38,857 37% of the leader · rank #4 1.16
5 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA · Public 28,464 27% of the leader · rank #5 6.99
6 University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA · Public 26,409 25% of the leader · rank #6 13.75
7 Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA · Public 23,743 23% of the leader · rank #7 3.92
8 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA · Public 22,740 22% of the leader · rank #8 0.97
9 Tidewater Community College Norfolk, VA · Public 16,884 16% of the leader · rank #9 0.00
10 ECPI University Virginia Beach, VA · Private for-profit 12,572 12% of the leader · rank #10 0.08
11 Regent University Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit 10,657 10% of the leader · rank #11 0.19
12 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA · Public 9,818 9% of the leader · rank #12 3.16
13 Brightpoint Community College Chester, VA · Public 9,380 9% of the leader · rank #13 0.00
14 J Sargeant Reynolds Community College Richmond, VA · Public 8,681 8% of the leader · rank #14 0.12
15 Germanna Community College Locust Grove, VA · Public 8,544 8% of the leader · rank #15 0.00
16 Radford University Radford, VA · Public 7,812 7% of the leader · rank #16 3.58
17 Virginia Peninsula Community College Hampton, VA · Public 6,410 6% of the leader · rank #17 0.00
18 Virginia Western Community College Roanoke, VA · Public 6,332 6% of the leader · rank #18 0.47
19 Norfolk State University Norfolk, VA · Public 6,053 6% of the leader · rank #19 5.95
20 Laurel Ridge Community College Middletown, VA · Public 5,902 6% of the leader · rank #20 0.00
21 Virginia State University Petersburg, VA · Public 5,605 5% of the leader · rank #21 9.63
22 Piedmont Virginia Community College Charlottesville, VA · Public 5,263 5% of the leader · rank #22 0.57
23 Longwood University Farmville, VA · Public 4,612 4% of the leader · rank #23 4.34
24 Christopher Newport University Newport News, VA · Public 4,454 4% of the leader · rank #24 9.65
25 Shenandoah University Winchester, VA · Private nonprofit 4,454 4% of the leader · rank #25 0.67
26 New River Community College Dublin, VA · Public 4,254 4% of the leader · rank #26 0.00
27 Hampton University Hampton, VA · Private nonprofit 4,244 4% of the leader · rank #27 2.83
28 Marymount University Arlington, VA · Private nonprofit 4,060 4% of the leader · rank #28 0.99
29 University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, VA · Public 3,826 4% of the leader · rank #29 3.40
30 Blue Ridge Community College Weyers Cave, VA · Public 3,790 4% of the leader · rank #30 0.00
31 University of Richmond University of Richmond, VA · Private nonprofit 3,722 4% of the leader · rank #31 1.61
32 Central Virginia Community College Lynchburg, VA · Public 3,481 4% of the leader · rank #32 0.29
33 Southside Virginia Community College Alberta, VA · Public 3,306 4% of the leader · rank #33 0.30
34 Rappahannock Community College Glenns, VA · Public 2,962 4% of the leader · rank #34 0.00
35 Richard Bland College South Prince George, VA · Public 2,788 4% of the leader · rank #35 1.79
36 Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine Blacksburg, VA · Private nonprofit 2,617 4% of the leader · rank #36 0.00
37 Danville Community College Danville, VA · Public 2,465 4% of the leader · rank #37 0.00
38 Southwest Virginia Community College Cedar Bluff, VA · Public 2,364 4% of the leader · rank #38 0.00
39 University of Lynchburg Lynchburg, VA · Private nonprofit 2,316 4% of the leader · rank #39 7.34
40 Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA · Private nonprofit 2,241 4% of the leader · rank #40 7.14
41 University of Virginia's College at Wise Wise, VA · Public 2,167 4% of the leader · rank #41 24.00
42 Mountain Empire Community College Big Stone Gap, VA · Public 2,116 4% of the leader · rank #42 0.00
43 Wytheville Community College Wytheville, VA · Public 2,107 4% of the leader · rank #43 0.00
44 Virginia Highlands Community College Abingdon, VA · Public 2,082 4% of the leader · rank #44 0.00
45 Strayer University-Virginia Arlington, VA · Private for-profit 1,998 4% of the leader · rank #45 0.00
46 Patrick & Henry Community College Martinsville, VA · Public 1,908 4% of the leader · rank #46 0.52
47 Virginia Wesleyan University Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit 1,853 4% of the leader · rank #47 2.16
48 Roanoke College Salem, VA · Private nonprofit 1,804 4% of the leader · rank #48 4.43
49 Mary Baldwin University Staunton, VA · Private nonprofit 1,772 4% of the leader · rank #49 3.95
50 Bryant & Stratton College-Virginia Beach Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit 1,717 4% of the leader · rank #50 0.00

What to do with this

Size is a starting filter for Virginia, not a verdict on any institution.

Institutions below the reporting floor, or without enrolment in the Campus Safety and Security Survey cohort for 2024, do not appear on this list. IPEDS supplies classification and location.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education Campus Safety and Security Survey (enrollment and Clery disclosures), joined to the IPEDS institutional directory (location and classification)

Every figure on PlainCampus is rendered directly from federal Clery Act source data, no number is typed in by an editor. Every figure on this page is computed at request time from the federal source tables; no ranking position or count is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-10-26.

PlainCampus is for informational purposes only and does not constitute safety, security, legal, or enrollment advice; the data describes reported on-campus activity, it is not a complete picture of safety at any campus and cannot predict any individual student's experience. See our appropriate use guidance.