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Quick Facts
The Institute At a Glance...
Founded in 1839, Virginia Military Institute is the nation’s first state-supported military college. U.S. News & World Report has ranked VMI among the nation’s top undergraduate public liberal arts colleges for years. The Honor Code and the traditions and rules of the Institute regulate the daily life of cadets, all supported by dedicated faculty and staff, as well as one of the most invested and dedicated alumni networks in the nation, over 17,000 strong.
Who Makes Up the Corps?
- ~1500 Cadets
- 30% NCAA Div I Athletes
- 25% Diverse Background
- 14% Women
- 64% Virginia | 34% Out of State | 2% International
Spotlight on Academics
- 10:1 Student to Faculty
- 14 Majors, including STEM and humanities options
- 3 accredited engineering programs
- 3 distinct tracks in computer and information science
- Cross-disciplinary curriculum that supports double majors
- 28 Minors, including national security, military history, and cybersecurity programs
- 51% of current cadets enrolled in STEM
- 93% of full-time teaching faculty members have a Ph.D. or terminal degree in their field
Postgraduate Success:
VMI’s historic mission to educate “citizen-soldiers” means that cadets are uniquely positioned to compete for prestigious national and international scholarships.
The Institute’s 11 Rhodes Scholars—and numerous others, including Gates Cambridge, Marshall, Goldwater, and Fulbright Scholars—exemplify the value of the VMI experience.
A Year in Lexington
- Fall Semester: Mid-August to Mid-December
- Spring Semester: Mid-January to Mid-May
- Summer Session I: Mid-May to Mid-June
- Summer Session II: Late-June to Late-July
Affording VMI
- $33,016 Average Cost
- 23% of cadets received ROTC Scholarships
- 84% of cadets received financial aid
- Over $17M in VMI-provided cadet scholarship assistance
- For those on ROTC scholarship who are also selected for Call to Duty scholarships, the cost of VMI drops to $3,600.
Scholarship Highlight:
Peay Merit Scholarships cover the full cost of tuition, room, board, and fees and are awarded to students who demonstrate: exceptional leadership, academic achievement, athletic commitment, and demonstrated interest in national service.
Return on Investment
- 97% of graduates are employed or attending graduate school within five months of graduation
- 50%+ graduates commission into the armed forces through VMI's ROTC program and Auxiliary University Program (AUP)
- $77,370 Typical Early Career Pay (Money magazine)
- $88K Avg. Base Salary of Graduates (Payscale.com)
- 20-year salary earnings potential as high as $2,016,000 (UniveristyHQ.com)