If you plan on getting your associate degree in heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #59 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.
College Factual looked at 8 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration Associate Degree Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 291 associate degrees in heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration to qualified students.
Choosing a Great Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration School for Your Associate Degree
Your choice of heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration for getting your associate degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
A Great Overall School
The overall quality of a associate degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Early-Career Earnings
Average early-career salary of those graduating with their associate degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. That is, everyone wants their associate degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Major Focus - How much a school focuses on heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration students vs. other majors.
Major Demand - The number of heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration students who choose to seek a associate degree at the school.
Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
Student Debt - How much debt heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration students go into to obtain their associate degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration related body.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration students working on their associate degree.
More Ways to Rank Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration Schools
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration Associate Degree Schools in Pennsylvania list, to help you choose the best school for you.
Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration in Pennsylvania
Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration students seeking a an associate degree.
Top Pennsylvania Schools for an Associate in HVACR
Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a good decision for students pursuing an associate degree in heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration. Located in the city of Lancaster, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a public college with a small student population.
Students who graduate with their associate from the hvacr program state that they receive average early career wages of $41,954.
Pennsylvania College of Technology is a good choice for students interested in an associate degree in heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration. Penn College is a small public college located in the small city of Williamsport.
Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration associate degree recipients from Pennsylvania College of Technology receive an earnings boost of around $10,842 over the average earnings of heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration graduates.
It is difficult to beat Pittsburgh Technical College if you wish to pursue an associate degree in heating, air conditioning, ventilation & refrigeration. Located in the large suburb of Oakdale, Pittsburgh Technical College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
After graduation, hvacr associate recipients usually earn around $41,749 in their early careers.
Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration Related Rankings by Major
One of 7 majors within the Mechanic & Repair Technologies area of study, Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation & Refrigeration has other similar majors worth exploring.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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.