by our College Data Analytics TeamWith all of the options you have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take when you want to pursue a grad degree. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our Top Middle Atlantic Region Colleges for a Doctorate ranking - to help you make that decision.
What's on This Page: * Our Methodology
Our analysis looked at 129 grad schools in the Middle Atlantic Region to determine which ones have the best doctorate degree programs. Our ranking methodology focuses on different objective factors to make this determination of the best grad schools. In the next few paragraphs, we'll talk a little about what we use in our analysis and why.
One measure we use to determine the quality of a graduateschool is to look at the average salary of doctorate graduates during the early years of their career. While doctorate degree recipients from schools in the Middle Atlantic Region earn an average starting salary of $77,076, those from the top 19 school on this list made an average of $84,486.
Another factor that we look at to determine a school's ranking is the average debt load that graduate students take on while they are working on their doctorate degree. We consider this number in conjunction with average post-graduation earnings to gauge the difficulty doctorate recipients will have paying back their loans.
In addition to average post-graduation earnings and average student debt loads, we also look at a host of other factors to determining our Best Doctorate Degree Schools ranking. Several other factors - such as how much the school spends on educational resources, the demand of the school, the availability of online learning options, and the student body caliber - go into our rankings.
Find out more about our graduate school ranking methodology
Still not sure what graduate degree you wish to pursue? You may want to visit our Best Master's Degree Schools ranking.
Learn more about these excellent grad schools below:
Our analysis found University of Pennsylvania to be the best grad school for doctorate degrees in the Middle Atlantic Region in this year’s ranking. UPenn is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It awarded 1,254 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
The average salary of a graduate with a doctorate degree from UPenn is $97,555 during the early years of their career.
The excellent doctorate degree programs at Princeton University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools in the Middle Atlantic Region. Princeton, New Jersey is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate degrees to 293 students in 2020-2021.
A rank of #3 on our Best Doctorate Degrees in the Middle Atlantic Region list means Carnegie Mellon University is a great place for students working on their degree. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and it awarded 333 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Georgetown University. It ranked #4 on our 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in Washington, District of Columbia, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 1,014 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
During the early years of their career, doctorate degree graduates from Georgetown make an average of $105,462 a year.
A rank of #5 on our Best Doctorate Degrees in the Middle Atlantic Region list means Teachers College at Columbia University is a great place for students working on their degree. Teachers College at Columbia University is a small private not-for-profit school located in New York, New York that handed out 185 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Graduates with a doctorate degree from Teachers College make an average of $78,856 per year during the early years of their career.
Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #6 on this year’s Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Columbia is a large private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 1,502 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Upon graduation, doctorate degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $102,938 during the early years of their career.
Read full report on Columbia University in the City of New York
Cornell University landed the #7 spot on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Located in Ithaca, New York, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 777 diplomas to qualifed doctorate degree students in 2020-2021.
Those who receive a doctorate degree from Cornell go into careers with an average salary of $107,405 during the early years of their career.
New York University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in New York, New York, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 1,489 diplomas to qualifed doctorate degree students in 2020-2021.
During the early years of their career, doctorate degree graduates from NYU make an average of $103,254 a year.
Johns Hopkins University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Johns Hopkins is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Baltimore, Maryland. It awarded 726 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Those who receive a doctorate degree from Johns Hopkins go into careers with an average salary of $76,111 during the early years of their career.
University of Maryland - College Park came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. UMCP is a public institution located in College Park, Maryland. The school has a large population, and it awarded 581 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Graduates with a doctorate degree from UMCP make an average of $125,155 per year during the early years of their career.
Lehigh University did quite well in the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, coming in at #11. Lehigh is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 90 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Gallaudet University did quite well in the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, coming in at #12. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Washington, District of Columbia, and it awarded 30 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Those who receive a doctorate degree from Gallaudet go into careers with an average salary of $69,868 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #13, George Washington University did quite well on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. This large private not-for-profit school is located in Washington, District of Columbia, and it awarded 1,086 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
The average salary of a graduate with a doctorate degree from GWU is $101,469 during the early years of their career.
Temple University landed the #14 spot on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the large public school handed out 1,184 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
The average salary of a graduate with a doctorate degree from Temple is $75,136 during the early years of their career.
Drew University did quite well in the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, coming in at #15. Located in Madison, New Jersey, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 49 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Arcadia University landed the #16 spot on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 295 diplomas to qualifed doctorate degree students in 2020-2021.
Graduates with a doctorate degree from Arcadia make an average of $71,130 per year during the early years of their career.
Thomas Jefferson University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Thomas Jefferson University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It awarded 449 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Graduates with a doctorate degree from Thomas Jefferson University make an average of $73,922 per year during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #18, Stevens Institute of Technology did quite well on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Stevens is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Hoboken, New Jersey. It awarded 54 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Fordham University landed the #19 spot on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Located in Bronx, New York, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 526 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Upon graduation, doctorate degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $92,462 during the early years of their career.
University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Pitt is a public institution located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,075 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
The average salary of a graduate with a doctorate degree from Pitt is $63,253 during the early years of their career.
Rowan University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. This fairly large public school is located in Glassboro, New Jersey, and it awarded 297 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Those who receive a doctorate degree from Rowan go into careers with an average salary of $57,164 during the early years of their career.
University of Scranton came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. University of Scranton is a small private not-for-profit school located in Scranton, Pennsylvania that handed out 54 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
During the early years of their career, doctorate degree graduates from University of Scranton make an average of $73,808 a year.
University of Rochester ranked #23 on this year’s Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in Rochester, New York, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 374 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
Those who receive a doctorate degree from University of Rochester go into careers with an average salary of $58,879 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #24, The Graduate Center, CUNY did quite well on the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in New York, New York, the medium-sized public school handed out 359 doctorate degrees in 2020-2021.
During the early years of their career, doctorate degree graduates from The Graduate Center make an average of $71,416 a year.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute did quite well in the 2024 Best Doctorate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, coming in at #25. RPI is located in Troy, New York and has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 111 doctorate degrees to qualified graduate students.
View Best Doctorate Degree Schools Nationwide >
These schools also performed well in our Best Doctorate Degree Schools ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 26 | Rutgers University - New Brunswick | New Brunswick, NJ |
More about our data sources and methodologies.