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Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania

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2023 Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania

29 Colleges
$99,011 Avg Salary
$21,624 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in Pennsylvania with 11,477 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for healthcare students. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Healthcare Degree Search has developed this Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. This report analyzed 29 schools in Pennsylvania to see which ones were the most popular graduate certificate programs for healthcare students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Nursing program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Colleges.

#1

Drexel University

Philadelphia, PA

Our 2023 rankings named Drexel University the most popular school in Pennsylvania for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of Philadelphia, Drexel is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 37 students majoring in nursing at Drexel, 11% are male and 89% are female.

Read full report on Nursing at Drexel University

#2

Thomas Jefferson University

Philadelphia, PA

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at Thomas Jefferson University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular nursing schools in Pennsylvania. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson University is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

Of the 21 students majoring in nursing at Thomas Jefferson University, 5% are male and 95% are female.

Read More…

#3

Waynesburg University

Waynesburg, PA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Waynesburg University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania list. Waynesburg is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Waynesburg.

About 92% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 8% are male.

Full Nursing at Waynesburg University Report

#4

Gannon University

Erie, PA

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Gannon University is a great place for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the small city of Erie, Gannon is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Nursing at Gannon University

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular nursing schools in Pennsylvania. Pitt is a fairly large public school located in the city of Pittsburgh.

Women make up 90% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus

#5

DeSales University

Center Valley, PA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend DeSales University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the rural area of Center Valley, DeSales is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read More…

#7

Cedar Crest College

Allentown, PA

Cedar Crest College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Cedar Crest is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Allentown.

Read More…

#8

Robert Morris University

Moon Township, PA

Robert Morris University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate nursing programs. RMU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Moon Township.

Read More…

#9

Duquesne University

Pittsburgh, PA

Duquesne University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Located in the large city of Pittsburgh, Duquesne is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.

Read full report on Nursing at Duquesne University

#9

La Salle University

Philadelphia, PA

La Salle University ranked #9 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, La Salle is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Nursing at La Salle University

Best Nursing Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Most Popular Nursing Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
New York 17,708
Maryland 4,104
New Jersey 5,648
District of Columbia 990
Delaware 1,267

One of 30 majors within the healthcare area of study, nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Nursing Practice 7,992
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Health & Medical Administrative Services 89,359
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 84,492
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274
Allied Health Professions 82,308
Public Health 40,596

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 29 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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