Southern Virginia University

Location and Contact Information

One University Hill Drive
Buena Vista, VA 24416
USA
Main Tel: (540) 261-8400
Web Site

The campus is in a town not particularly near any major cities.

Overview

The Southern Virginia University was founded in 1867 as the Home School for Girls by Alice Scott Chandler. After a series of changes in name and location, the college came to be known as Southern Virginia College and became co-educational in 1994. The college got its present name in 2000. Commonly abbreviated as SVU, it is a private liberal arts college associated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and has a 155-acre campus. SVU offers the students with undergraduate study programs in both arts and science. The college also offers other programs including pre-law and health pre-professional courses.

The SVU has an active Greek life consisting of honor societies such as Alpha Psi Omega, Sigma Tau Delta, Chi Epsilon Omega and Phi Alpha Theta. The college also has a large number of special interest groups such as art club, chess club, equestrian club and philosophy club.

Highlights (vs. Other Schools)

  • Many students concentrating in art studies, music, liberal arts, drama and performing arts, and family and social work.
  • High percentage of students are from out-of-state.
  • Number of dorm rooms for students.
  • Large number of programs of study offered.

School characteristics:

  • The school is private, not-for-profit.
  • Academic calender: Semester.

Features of note:

  • There are one or more libraries on-campus.
  • Campus housing is available.
  • Students may study abroad.
  • Weekend study is an option.
  • Part-time classes are available.
  • ROTC.
  • Athlete financial aid is awarded.

Tuition and Financial Aid (2009-2010)

ItemCost
State Tuition and fees$ 17,000
Room$ 3,150
Board$ 2,900
Books and supplies$ 900
Other$ 2,300

Financial Aid

Southern Virginia University participates in US Title IV financial assistance programs.

In 2009-2010, 99% of students received financial aid of some sort.

Grants% of
Students		Average
Amount
Any Grant99%$8,134
Institutional Grant98%$6,681
Federal Grant30%$3,942
Pell Grant30%$3,180
Other Federal Grant22%$1,044
State or Local Grant11%$2,775

Loans% of
Students		Average
Amount
Student Loan57%$8,541
Federal Loan57%$7,897
Other Loan6%$6,537

(Please refer to BrainTrack's financial aid articles section for background information.)

Similar Schools

Based on proprietary BrainTrack computer comparisons against all other US colleges, these schools appear to be most similar to Southern Virginia University:

Click a column header to sort.

 SchoolLocationEnrollment
1University of New Mexico-Los Alamos CampusLos Alamos, NM636
2Citrus CollegeGlendora, CA13,392
3SUNY Westchester Community CollegeValhalla, NY12,613
4Chandler/Gilbert Community CollegeChandler, AZ10,409
5SUNY Empire State CollegeSaratoga Springs, NY13,614
6Paradise Valley Community CollegePhoenix, AZ9,105
7Mesa Community CollegeMesa, AZ23,825
8Estrella Mountain Community CollegeAvondale, AZ6,358
9Victor Valley CollegeVictorville, CA11,697
10Glendale Community CollegeGlendale, AZ18,228

Degrees Awarded (in 2009-2010)

DegreeTotal
Earned		Different
Programs
Bachelor10214

Faculty

Tenure (2009-2010):

Full-Time Faculty  Total
Without tenure; tenure not available  36

Students

Student enrollment was 686 in 2009-2010 (658 full-time equivalent).

About 48% of the freshmen class in 2009-2010 was male and women were 52% of the class.

Undergrads are 100% of enrolled students.

Students under 25 years old represent 89% of the student body. About 1% of the school is at least 40 years of age.

Among freshmen students, 100% are full-time and 0% are part-time.

Admissions Summary (2009-2010)

ApplicantsAdmitted
Men97%
Women100%
All99%

SAT Test Scores:

SATMiddle 50%
Verbal450-580
Math450-570
Writing450-570

Room and Board

Southern Virginia University provides on-campus housing for 575 of its 658 (full-time) students (as of 2009-2010). The school requires freshmen to live on campus.

Athletics

School sports include football, basketball, baseball, and track. The school is in the Independent Mid-South Region for major sports.

The school offers financial aid for athletes. Of students receiving athletic financial aid, 9 male students received the aid (men were 50% of those receiving aid) and 9 women were awarded financial aid based on athletics (representing 50% of students receiving such aid) .

Graduate School Focus

The highest degree offered is the Bachelor.

Programs of Study

(Number of degrees in 2009-2010 in parentheses)

ART STUDIES (11 awarded)

  • Visual and Performing Arts

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT (26 awarded)

  • Business/Commerce

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (2 awarded)

  • Computer and Information Sciences

DRAMA AND PERFORMING ARTS (2 awarded)

  • Dramatic/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft

FAMILY AND SOCIAL WORK (7 awarded)

  • Human Development and Family Studies

LIBERAL ARTS (36 awarded)

  • English Language and Literature
  • History
  • Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies
  • Political Science and Government
  • Spanish Language and Literature

MUSIC (3 awarded)

  • Music

NUTRITION AND EXERCISE THERAPY (6 awarded)

  • Parks, Recreation, Leisure, and Fitness Studies

RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY (7 awarded)

  • Philosophy

SCIENCE (2 awarded)

  • Biology/Biological Sciences