Academics
Richmond’s Virginia Union University is a faith-based institution that strives to provide a top-of-the-line education while emphasizing moral values and ethics, fulfilling its promise of a “Limitless Future.” The school offers 25 undergraduate degrees, as well as specialized research and study centers for areas such as Lifelong Learning and Leadership, Small Business Development, and Gospel Music. VUU celebrates the African Diaspora, and the school’s Center for the Study of HBCUs is a national research center for studying, mobilizing, and advancing the scholarship of the HBCU community. Metrics and outcomes are highly valued here, and each department has set goals and values that it seeks for students to achieve through the curriculum.
Career
Campus ministries and worship (such as Faith Filled Fridays) are an important part of Unionite life, and pastors are always available to offer spiritual support; the School of Theology has numerous centers and institutes available to provide guidance to specific communities and ideals, such as Centering Women, and The Green Seminary Initiative. There are several registered student organizations that students can join (including nine national Greek sororities and fraternities), and the Student Center houses meeting spaces, multi-purpose rooms, and a snack bar where students can meet and socialize. Good News Monday is a school tradition that celebrates exciting or innovative news, and a weekly source of positivity. VUU is a NCAA Division II school, and the annual Homecoming parade, tailgating, and game are some of its most valued traditions.
Culture
The most popular fields of study at the university are Business, Management & Marketing, Biological & Biomedical Sciences, and Psychology; many who attend the theological school also go on to the ministry. There is an annual University Internship and Career Fair in which faculty and staff can advertise any internships or open positions they have or know of. Payscale.com says the average salary for VUU graduates is $61,000 per year. Notable alumni include Douglas Wilder (the first African American governor of Virginia), Spottswood William Robinson III (prominent civil rights attorney), and NBA player Ben Wallace.
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