University of Virginia-Main Campus

Admission to the University of Virginia-Main Campus is highly competitive. In the 2027 US News rankings, the institution ranked 26th nationally. For the entering class of 2025, the university admitted just 16.8% of applicants, an admit rate that is higher than only 17% of peer schools in a comparison group of similarly ranked public research universities. This low acceptance rate underscores the selective nature of the admissions process, as tens of thousands of applicants are turned away each year. Furthermore, the school demonstrates substantial drawing power among those it chooses to admit. In 2025, its yield rate reached 40%, which is higher than 77% of peer schools in that same comparison group. Because four in ten accepted students choose to enroll, applicants must recognize that competition remains intense at every stage, requiring thoroughly prepared academic credentials to secure a spot in Charlottesville.

Prospective undergraduates applying to the University of Virginia-Main Campus encounter competitive academic benchmarks. In 2025, the median SAT score for enrolled students reached 1480, which is higher than 91% of peer schools in a comparison group of similarly ranked public research universities. Enrolled students generally present composite ACT scores and section-level SAT results concentrated near the top percentiles. For international candidates, applicant records collected by Forward Pathway—which are unofficial figures rather than official university statistics—offer useful perspective. Among these unofficial cases, applicants who received admission offers held a median unweighted high school GPA of 3.9 and a median SAT score of 1420, while rejected applicants posted lower academic metrics. These patterns indicate that successful applicants typically combine top secondary school grades with standardized test marks that place them among high-achieving test takers nationwide.

Undergraduate degree conferrals at the University of Virginia-Main Campus show noticeable concentration, with one-third—specifically 33.3%—of all bachelor's degrees in 2025 awarded across just three programs. The single largest undergraduate program was Computer and Information Sciences, General, which graduated 591 students that year. These large technical and analytical majors align directly with strong financial outcomes. According to 2023 earnings data, graduates in Computer and Information Sciences, General posted median earnings of $106,400 one year after completing their bachelor's degrees, the highest among all undergraduate disciplines at the university. While high-earning quantitative fields dominate undergraduate conferrals, the university's highest-ranked academic programs are primarily professional graduate disciplines. In the 2026 US News rankings, the School of Law ranked 4th and the School of Education ranked 6th nationally. At the undergraduate level, the business administration program held a top-tier position, ranking 9th in 2027. International enrollment remains modest across undergraduate majors, but expands considerably in master's business programs.

The student body at the University of Virginia-Main Campus is predominantly undergraduate but features a sizable graduate division. In 2025, total enrollment stood at 26,409 students across all academic levels. White students represent the largest single ethnic cohort across undergraduate and graduate programs, followed by a substantial Asian student presence. Among the incoming undergraduate first-year class, Asian students accounted for 20.2% of enrollment, while international students represented a smaller single-digit segment. Continuing undergraduates follow a similar demographic distribution. In contrast, the graduate division exhibits significantly greater global representation: international students comprised 19.4% of all graduate students, totaling 1,657 scholars. Women constitute the majority of students across both undergraduate and graduate ranks. Together, these figures show an institution where domestic diversity is prominent throughout the undergraduate years, while international representation expands substantially at the advanced degree level.

The undergraduate population at the University of Virginia-Main Campus is concentrated almost entirely within traditional college ages. In 2025, students aged 20 to 21 represented 44.6% of all undergraduates, while those aged 18 to 19 made up 44.1%. Students aged 22 and older constitute only a small fraction of the college cohort. This sharp age grouping reflects a residential, four-year undergraduate rhythm where students progress directly from secondary school. In contrast, the graduate population exhibits a wider chronological span typical of early professional careers: students aged 25 to 29 formed the largest graduate bracket at 37.3%, followed by those aged 22 to 24. This separation creates a distinct campus dynamic, pairing an undergraduate environment centered around late-adolescent collegiate activities with a graduate community pursuing advanced research and professional practice.

International enrollment at the University of Virginia-Main Campus shows distinct patterns across degree tiers. At the undergraduate level, international students represented 5% of enrollment in 2025, a proportion that has remained virtually unchanged from the decade prior and is higher than 33% of peer schools in a comparison group of similarly ranked public research universities. At the graduate level, however, international presence has expanded meaningfully, rising to 19.4% of graduate students in 2025. Degree completion data reflects this division: international scholars accounted for a small fraction of bachelor's degrees, but earned nearly a fifth of all master's degrees conferred. Among master's programs, international graduates concentrate heavily in professional management and quantitative disciplines. For example, in 2025, international students earned 30.3% of master's degrees in Business Administration and Management, General. At the doctoral level, international recipients also represent significant shares in fields like economics and chemistry, demonstrating that global talent at the university is primarily focused in advanced pre-professional and scientific studies.

Applicants exploring colleges near Charlottesville, Virginia, have several distinctive national universities and liberal arts colleges to consider within driving distance. Located 34.1 kilometers away, James Madison University is a public institution ranked 137th among national universities in the 2027 US News rankings. For families interested in high-ranking liberal arts colleges, Washington and Lee University sits 54 kilometers from campus and holds the 12th spot on the national liberal arts list, while the University of Richmond, located 61.4 kilometers away, ranks 21st among liberal arts colleges. Expanding the search toward the greater Washington, D.C. area, Georgetown University is situated 98.1 kilometers away and ranks 23rd among national universities, providing another selective option within the mid-Atlantic region.

Campus safety reporting at the University of Virginia-Main Campus reveals that policy enforcement and property offenses make up the bulk of documented incidents. In 2025, the university's crime rate per 1,000 students stood at 16.7, reflecting an upward trend compared to earlier years in the decade. Over the three-year period spanning 2023 to 2025, institutional disciplinary referrals for alcohol violations formed the single largest category of recorded events, totaling 619 incidents. Outside of administrative substance referrals, property-related offenses constituted the most common criminal activity, led by 318 motor vehicle thefts across those same years. Other reported offenses between 2023 and 2025 included smaller totals of stalking, sexual harassment, drug disciplinary referrals, and assault. When evaluating safety on and around the Charlottesville grounds, families should note that non-violent behavioral interventions and vehicle property theft represent the predominant share of campus security activity.