Military-Friendly College for Veterans

Honored to Serve Veterans and their Families

Peirce College is an accredited, private, nonprofit college based in Philadelphia that offers career-focused education and is Pennsylvania’s only college or university dedicated exclusively to serving adults. The College offers online, affordable undergraduate, graduate and noncredit programs that meet the unique needs of veterans and other adult learners.

Since its founding in 1865, innovation has been at the heart of Peirce College, which was established to serve veterans returning from the Civil War.

Founder Thomas May Peirce was convinced that Northern manufacturing would fuel prosperity, especially as Southern markets re-opened following the Civil War. He knew that this growth would create jobs - not just on the shop floor - but also in factory offices and the financial institutions that served them.

At the time, no American university offered a formal business program. Business skills, such as bookkeeping and accounting, were typically acquired outside of the classroom - through work experience. Peirce changed that – for men and women.

Today, this spirit of innovation continues to drive Peirce College - a pioneer in online learning, prior learning assessment and a leader in serving the needs of underserved students. Peirce is also a minority-serving institution.

Peirce College is an approved Service Members Opportunity Colleges (SOC) institution, a Yellow Ribbon School and is designated as a Military Friendly® school.

Meet the Veteran Team