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2025 Best Philosophy Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region

20 Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region
2,083 Philosophy Degrees Awarded
$33,575 Avg Early-Career Salary
Philosophy is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #83 most popular degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 20 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Philosophy Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 2,083 degrees in philosophy to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Philosophy School

Best Philosophy Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region The philosophy program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Philosophy rankings. For our Best Overall Philosophy School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Philosophy Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Philosophy
Master's Degrees in Philosophy
Doctor's Degrees in Philosophy

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Philosophy Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Philosophy in the Middle Atlantic Region

The schools below may not offer all types of philosophy degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Middle Atlantic Region Schools in Philosophy

1
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
209 Philosophy Degrees Awarded
1.4% Growth in Graduates

It is difficult to beat University of Pennsylvania if you want to pursue a degree in philosophy. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UPenn is a great university overall.

There were approximately 209 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UPenn in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the philosophy major at University of Pennsylvania get $39,478 above the typical college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in philosophy from University of Pennsylvania

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In NY
33 Philosophy Degrees Awarded

It is hard to beat Cornell University if you wish to pursue a degree in philosophy. Cornell is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Ithaca. A Best Colleges rank of #9 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Cornell is a great university overall.

There were roughly 33 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Cornell in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in philosophy from Cornell University

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
78 Philosophy Degrees Awarded
$52,668 Median Starting Salary

It is hard to beat Columbia University in the City of New York if you want to pursue a degree in philosophy. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #15 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Columbia is a great university overall.

There were approximately 78 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent year we have data available. Philosophy degree recipients from Columbia University in the City of New York get an earnings boost of approximately $19,093 above the typical income of philosophy majors.

More information about a degree in philosophy from Columbia University in the City of New York

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
68 Philosophy Degrees Awarded
41.2% Growth in Graduates

University of Maryland - College Park is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in philosophy. UMCP is a very large public university located in the large suburb of College Park. A Best Colleges rank of #37 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UMCP is a great university overall.

There were about 68 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UMCP in the most recent data year. Philosophy degree recipients from University of Maryland - College Park earn a boost of approximately $2,033 over the average income of philosophy graduates.

More information about a degree in philosophy from University of Maryland - College Park

5
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
83 Philosophy Degrees Awarded
$40,359 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #16 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means NYU is a great university overall.

There were about 83 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at NYU in the most recent data year. Those philosophy students who get their degree from New York University earn $6,784 more than the average philosophy grad.

More information about a degree in philosophy from New York University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In NY
67 Philosophy Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Bronx, Fordham U is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #67 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Fordham U is a great university overall.

There were about 67 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Fordham U in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in philosophy from Fordham University

7
Syracuse crest
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$35,602 Median Starting Salary

Syracuse is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Syracuse. A Best Colleges rank of #62 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Syracuse is a great university overall.

There were about 30 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Syracuse in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the philosophy program at Syracuse University make $2,027 above the standard college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in philosophy from Syracuse University

8
Temple crest
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
31 Philosophy Degrees Awarded
$28,648 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Philadelphia, Temple is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #97 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Temple is a great university overall.

There were roughly 31 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Temple in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the philosophy program make around $28,648 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in philosophy from Temple University

9
Gettysburg crest
Gettysburg College
Gettysburg, PA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In PA

Gettysburg is a small private not-for-profit college located in the fringe town of Gettysburg. This college ranks 16th out of 103 colleges for overall quality in the state of Pennsylvania.

There were roughly 12 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Gettysburg in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in philosophy from Gettysburg College

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In DC
5.0% Growth in Graduates

GWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Washington. A Best Colleges rank of #25 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means GWU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 20 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at GWU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in philosophy from George Washington University

Best Philosophy Colleges by State

Explore the best philosophy schools for a specific state in the Middle Atlantic Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Pennsylvania 334 689
New York 333 867
Maryland 279 154
New Jersey 273 155
District of Columbia 188 142
Delaware 175 16

View All Rankings >

One of 3 majors within the Philosophy & Religious Studies area of study, Philosophy has other similar majors worth exploring.

Philosophy Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Philosophy 1,755
Other Philosophy 200
Applied & Professional Ethics 69
Ethics 47
Logic 12

View All Philosophy Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Philosophy

Related Major Annual Graduates
Religious Studies 4,934
General Philosophy & Religious Studies 19
Other Philosophy & Religious Studies 15

View All Philosophy Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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