3 campuses profiled, with admission requirements, published costs, test policies and deadlines. Reviewed 2026-09-20.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Admission is decided college by college, and the School of Computer Science and the drama conservatory are among the most selective in the country.
University Park, Pennsylvania
A 24-campus system where students can start at a branch campus and finish the degree at University Park.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Home of the Wharton School and of coordinated dual-degree programmes that combine business with engineering or the arts.
This page lists the 3 universities in Pennsylvania currently profiled in the directory: 1 public and 2 private nonprofit. Each profile carries the same fields — acceptance rate, published tuition for residents and non-residents, standardized test policy, deadlines and accreditation — so the campuses can be compared directly.
The lowest published in-state tuition in this group is at Pennsylvania State University, at about $20,000 per year before housing and fees.
The most selective is University of Pennsylvania, reporting an acceptance rate near 5.8%.
The largest undergraduate population belongs to Pennsylvania State University with roughly 41,000 undergraduates.
If you are a resident of Pennsylvania, the public campuses above are almost always the lowest-cost route to a bachelor's degree, and the state's community colleges add a cheaper first two years through transfer agreements. If you are applying from outside the state, compare the non-resident rate against private universities after aid before assuming the public option is cheaper — it frequently is not.
Related reading: in-state vs out-of-state tuition, financial aid and the FAFSA, and the community college transfer pathway.
3 institutions in Pennsylvania are profiled here: 1 public and 2 private nonprofit. The state has more institutions than this; the directory covers the campuses students most often compare.
Pennsylvania State University has the lowest published in-state tuition in this list at about $20,000 per year, before housing, food and fees. Aid can lower the net price further.
Usually not. Pennsylvania, like almost every state, excludes time spent in the state primarily for education from the residency clock, so students who move to study normally remain non-residents for the whole degree.
Among the campuses profiled here, University of Pennsylvania reports the lowest acceptance rate at about 5.8%. Selectivity also varies sharply by major within any single university.
Type a question in plain English. The assistant reads the on-page directory data in your browser — nothing you type is sent to a server.