“Private Franciscan Catholic university in Reading, Pennsylvania.”
Alvernia University is a private Franciscan Catholic university founded in 1958 by the Bernardine Franciscan Sisters, located on a 191-acre campus in Reading, Pennsylvania — in Berks County, about an hour's drive from Philadelphia and two hours from New York City. Named for Mount La Verna in Italy where St. Francis received the stigmata, Alvernia is one of about two dozen Franciscan universities in the U.S. and is widely recognized as a 'College of Distinction.' The university enrolls roughly 2,800 students (about 2,192 undergraduates) and offers 50+ undergraduate majors, 10 pre-professional programs, and graduate programs including a Master of Medical Science in Physician Associate Studies, a Doctor of Physical Therapy, and a Doctor of Occupational Therapy. Academically, Alvernia is best known for health sciences, nursing, business, criminal justice, education, and behavioral sciences. The university consistently produces large cohorts of registered nurses, physical therapists, and occupational therapists who fill the workforce across eastern Pennsylvania's healthcare system. The Holleran Center for Community Engagement gives students hands-on leadership and civic-service experience rooted in Franciscan values of compassion, peacemaking, and service — features that make Alvernia a strong fit for international students who want a service-oriented education. With moderate selectivity (~58% acceptance rate), the university offers automatic merit scholarships of $10,000-$22,000/year to admitted international freshmen and transfers, renewable for four years, which brings the $46,850 published tuition substantially within reach. Student life at Alvernia centers on a small, supportive campus community: the student-to-faculty ratio is approximately 13:1, most classes have fewer than 25 students, and 58% of undergraduates live in college-owned housing. The university fields 22 NCAA Division III athletic teams, 50+ clubs and organizations, and a full residential calendar anchored by Homecoming, Founders' Week, and Franciscan-heritage traditions like the annual Transitus Mass. Reading itself is a mid-size Pennsylvania city with a historic downtown, the Reading Pagoda atop Mount Penn, and easy access via Route 222/422 to Philadelphia, Allentown, and the Poconos — giving international students a slower-paced residential experience with metropolitan amenities within a day trip.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
National Universities
US News 2026
Test Optional — You can submit scores if they help your case, but they're not required.
Official SourceFall (International)
Test scores and complete application due by May 1 for Fall enrollment; rolling review after this date subject to visa timeline.
Spring (International)
Test scores and complete application due by October 1 for Spring enrollment.
Rolling Application Close (Fall 2025)
Final complete-by date to start Fall 2025 classes on August 21.
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$45,000
/yr
Beyond the sticker price — every named scholarship, the financial aid policy, need-aware notes, and a personalized net-cost estimate.
How life on campus actually feels — clubs, sports, traditions, housing realities, and how the school integrates with its city.
Alvernia's largest academic unit — houses the BSN Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy (DPT), and Physician Associate programs; strong clinical partnerships across Berks County hospitals.
Business, Accounting, Finance, Criminal Justice, and Substance-Abuse Counseling; includes the John R. Post School of Business.
Liberal-arts core with biology, chemistry, psychology, English, and theology; hosts strong pre-medical and pre-veterinary advising.
Pennsylvania-licensed elementary and secondary teacher preparation plus special education and educational leadership graduate tracks.
4 years
Traditional pre-licensure BSN with clinical rotations across eastern Pennsylvania hospital systems; Alvernia has been among Pennsylvania's larger producers of new RNs per capita.
2 years
Two-year professional master's program preparing graduates for the PANCE and PA certification; small cohort, extensive clinical rotation network.
3 years
Entry-level doctorate leading to OT licensure, with specialty rotations in pediatrics, mental health, and rehabilitation sciences.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $45,000
Net-cost estimate is US-resident-only — international applicants are typically excluded from need-based aid at most schools and should treat the sticker price as the planning baseline.
