Pennsylvania Colleges Are Trying to Grow Their Out-of-State Enrollments

New Yorker Jenell Virgilio poured hours of research into her college decision. She consulted acquaintances. She noted advertisements on her phone. Soon, it became clear which college was the right fit for her. She would enroll out of her home state at the University of Pittsburgh, 350 miles southwest of her home in Syracuse. This fall, she is one of thousands of freshmen on the Oakland campus. Ms. Virgilio is part of a growing number of Pennsylvania college students who aren’t from the Keystone State. Among college students who left their home state between 1988 and 2022, Pennsylvania was the second most popular destination, a September study by the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania found.