Cedar Crest College

What Cedar Crest College does

Cedar Crest College is a private, primarily women's liberal arts college founded in 1867 and headquartered on a 91-acre arboretum campus in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The institution delivers undergraduate education to roughly 1,500-2,500 students across 40+ majors with a 9:1 student-to-faculty ratio, an average class size of 15, and a Four-Year Guarantee that commits the college to on-time graduation. Graduate and co-educational programs span 20+ offerings including nursing, nurse anesthesia, the Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD), MBA, dietetic internship, forensic science, art therapy, and a Pan-European MFA in Creative Writing with residencies in Dublin, Barcelona, and Vienna; the School of Adult and Graduate Education (SAGE) and 30+ online degrees extend reach to adult and remote learners.

The academic technology infrastructure includes a standard LMS stack supporting on-campus and online delivery, with specialized teaching assets such as the Anatomage Table in the OTD program. Multiple programmatic accreditations (Middle States, ACOTE, Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing, Pennsylvania Department of Education) underpin credentialing, and clinical partnerships with Lehigh Valley Health Network, Good Shepherd Rehabilitation, St. Luke's University Health Network, and Easterseals Eastern Pennsylvania supply required fieldwork. Documented outcomes include a 100% first-attempt NCLEX-RN pass rate, 96% NCE pass rate, 100% NBCOT pass rate, and 97-100% OTD graduation rates.

The business model is tuition-driven: undergraduate, SAGE, graduate, and doctoral tuition structures produce the bulk of revenue, supplemented by auxiliary income from summer camps, facility rentals (including the Rodale Aquatic Center), and conference services. Distribution runs through an admissions office, regional field counselors across multiple states, and self-serve online enrollment; marketing is multi-channel across website, social media (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Threads, YouTube), virtual tours, campus open houses, and program-specific virtual info sessions. The institution is governed by a Board of Trustees under President Elizabeth Meade, with senior leadership including a Provost, CFO, and VPs for Enrollment Management, Institutional Advancement, and Student Success & Engagement.

Name

Cedar Crest College

Legal name

Cedar Crest College

Website

https://cedarcrest.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1867

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Cedar Crest College is a private, primarily women's liberal arts college founded in 1867 in Allentown, PA, serving traditional undergraduate women, adult learners (SAGE), and graduate students across 40+ majors, 20+ graduate programs, and 30+ online degrees, with signature strengths in nursing, nurse anesthesia, and occupational therapy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education / Liberal Arts College

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

General Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Secular/Nonsectarian Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAG), Commuter/Non-Residential Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAI), University/College Continuing Education (Extension) Programs (EDAAAEAA)

Keywords

• Liberal arts education
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate degree programs
• Online degree programs
• Nursing education programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Allentown, PA

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Fees: Primary revenue from tuition charged to undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students. Multiple tuition structures for traditional, adult (SAGE), and graduate students. Financial aid, scholarships, and federal student loans are integral to the revenue model.
2. Summer Camps and Facility Rentals: Revenue from summer camps at Cedar Crest, conference services, and facility rentals including Rodale Aquatic Center

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Cedar Crest College is a private liberal arts institution delivering undergraduate, graduate, adult-learner, and online degree programs grounded in the liberal arts, with signature offerings in healthcare (Nursing, Nurse Anesthesia, Occupational Therapy Doctorate), the Pan-European MFA in Creative Writing, Dietetic Internship, MBA, and the Harmon Center for Leadership in Technology. The college primarily serves women at the undergraduate level and operates as co-educational for graduate and adult students, charging tuition plus ancillary fees and operating summer camps and facility rentals as supplementary revenue.

Product overview

Cedar Crest College is a primarily women's liberal arts college offering a comprehensive educational portfolio across four main program types: Women's Undergraduate Programs (40+ majors), Graduate Programs (Master's, Doctoral, and certificates), Adult Undergraduate Programs through SAGE, and Online Programs (30+ degrees/certificates). The college operates specialized schools including the School of Nursing, the Harmon Center for Leadership in Technology, and the Pan-European MFA in Creative Writing. Notable professional programs include the Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD), Dietetic Internship, and expert witness training. The institution also offers a distinctive Four-Year Guarantee as a student success initiative. All programs emphasize hands-on learning, clinical partnerships with regional healthcare providers (Good Shepherd, Lehigh Valley Health Network, Easterseals, St. Luke's), and personalized mentorship with a 9:1 student-to-faculty ratio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women's Undergraduate Programs
• Graduate Programs
• Adult Undergraduate Programs (SAGE)
• Online Programs
• Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD)
• School of Nursing Nursing programs including undergraduate nursing, RN to BSN, accelerated BSN, graduate nursing, nurse anesthesia, and nurse practitioner programs. Programs achieve a 100% first-attempt NCLEX-RN pass rate and 96% Nurse Anesthesia NCE first-attempt pass rate.
• Dietetic Internship Program ACEND-accredited dietetic internship pathway leading to the Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) credential.
• Pan-European MFA in Creative Writing Low-residency MFA writing program with students across seven time zones who convene for residencies in Dublin, Barcelona, and Vienna.
• Master of Business Administration (MBA) Graduate business degree program including Director of MBA Program and Master of Professional Studies options.
• Harmon Center for Leadership in Technology Academic center focused on leadership development in technology, which has presented the Tech & Talent Summit for Lehigh Valley industry and academic leaders.
• Joni Berner, Esq. '75 Expert Witness Training Center Training center for expert witness certification, housed in Curtis Hall with a crime scene laboratory, providing specialized certification training.

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Good Shepherd RehabilitationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare partnership for OTD fieldwork experiences including Pediatric Aquatic Program and Low Vision Program. Students collaborate with Good Shepherd therapists to provide one-on-one, occupation-based care at the Rodale Aquatics Center on campus.
• Lehigh Valley Health NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor healthcare system partnership providing clinical learning opportunities, fieldwork placements, and career networking for nursing, OTD, and other health programs.
• St. Luke's University Health NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare network partnership for clinical education and fieldwork experiences for health professions students.
• Easterseals Eastern PennsylvaniaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partnership through Club Curious program where students design and lead engaging, play-based activities for children with developmental disabilities.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Albright College: Private liberal arts college in Reading, PA, with similar size, enrollment strategy, and small-class ethos; VP Enrollment's prior institution.
• Bryn Athyn College: Small private liberal arts college in Bryn Athyn, PA; comparable in scale, private status, and liberal arts positioning; prior employer of Cedar Crest's VP Enrollment.
• Muhlenberg College: Private liberal arts college in Allentown, PA — immediate geographic and institutional peer with similar size, private status, and liberal arts orientation.
• Manor College: Small private college in Jenkintown, PA, with overlapping adult-learner and healthcare-adjacent programs; comparable to Cedar Crest's SAGE pathway.
• Moravian University: Private liberal arts university in Bethlehem, PA, also in the Lehigh Valley with comparable size, graduate offerings, and liberal arts focus.
• Agnes Scott College: Highly selective private women's liberal arts college in Decatur, GA — exemplar of the women's liberal arts model with strong outcomes, comparable to Cedar Crest's positioning strategy.
• Bay Path University: Women-focused private university in Longmeadow, MA, with comparable undergraduate women's college model plus extensive online and graduate health programs.
• DeSales University: Private Catholic university in Center Valley, PA, offering similar undergraduate, graduate, and healthcare programs (including nursing) at comparable scale.
• Notre Dame of Maryland University: Small private university in Baltimore with a historical women's college identity and similar graduate health-professions portfolio (including nursing and OT).

Broad incumbents

• Thomas Jefferson University (East Falls Campus): Larger Philadelphia-area university with extensive health-professions programming (nursing, OT, anesthesia) — represents scaled competitive pressure on Cedar Crest's flagship healthcare programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xthreads.net/@cedarcrestcollege
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/cedarcrestcollege
• Facebookfacebook.com/CedarCrestCollege
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/cedar-crest-college
• Instagraminstagram.com/cedarcrestcollege
• TikToktiktok.com/@cedarcrestcollege

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cedar Crest College