Best Colleges in Pennsylvania

Why Should I Consider Studying in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania is an excellent place to attend college as the commonwealth is full of nature and culture. The Poconos, the Allegheny National Forest, the Delaware Water Gap, and even the Appalachian Trail provide nature lovers seemingly endless places to explore. Similarly, with iconic pieces of history like the liberty bell and representations of Americana in both the Andy Warhol Museum and the ‘’Rocky Steps,’’ culture is an intrinsic part of Pennsylvania.

The commonwealth is also home to some of the best colleges in the world. Ivy League schools University of Pennsylvania and Carnegie Mellon University both reside within Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania public schools hold their own though with Penn State and Temple providing students with more affordable and more accessible opportunities for world class higher education.

Prospective interns and recent graduates from any of the excellent schools in Pennsylvania will have a great selection of Fortune 500 companies in the area as well. Hershey’s, Wawa, and Rite Aid all base their operations from within the ‘’Keystone State.’’

Pennsylvania Higher Education By The Numbers

Colleges in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania has the 5th most colleges in America with 292 colleges. For a little perspective, that is 282 more colleges than the state with the fewest. 24% of Pennsylvania's colleges are public, and 76% of its colleges are private. (71 public colleges & 221 private colleges). It has the 7th most public colleges and the 5th most private colleges coast-to-coast.

Our favorite public colleges in Pennsylvania are University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus, Temple University, and Lancaster County Career and Technology Center. Our favorite private colleges are University of Pennsylvania, Carnegie Mellon University, and Swarthmore College. University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus is the biggest top 25 college with 35,563 students.

Students in Pennsylvania

The least popular state has 38,825 college students. Pennsylvania has 726,666 more. There are 377,942 public college students and 387,549 private college students in Pennsylvania. It has fewer public college students than 16 states and more private college students than 47 states. Its 765,491 total students make it the 8th most popular location in the United States. 49% of students in Pennsylvania attend public institutions which is the 6th lowest percentage in the United States of America.