Strayer University, a for-profit school that targets working adults, is opening its first two campuses in Western Pennsylvania on April 3.
The campuses at Penn Center West in Robinson and the Regional Learning Alliance in Marshall began hiring faculty and recruiting students Tuesday.
"Within 18 months, we would expect to have 300 students," said Robert Silberman, president and chief executive officer of Strayer. The university's campuses are expected to have up to 1,000 students within six years.
The campuses will offer bachelor's and master's degrees in business administration, accounting and information technology and master's degrees in education, public administration and health services administration.
A master's degree would cost $18,000, and a bachelor's degree for a student with no previous credits, $44,000.
"Most of our students come in with at least half their classes earned at other institutions," Silberman said.
The 114-year-old university, based in Arlington, Va., runs 37 campuses in nine states and Washington, D.C. The parent company, Strayer Education Inc., had $183 million in revenue in 2004.
Silberman said the university helps working adults by conducting its classes at convenient locations and times. Classes run for 10 weeks at night during the week and during the day on weekends.
Strayer's arrival makes the higher education market even more competitive here with the conversion of Penn State's branches into four-year schools. For-profit University of Phoenix already has two campuses -- one also at Penn Center West and one in Monroeville.
"We believe in education, and it's hard for me to conceive of a situation where you can have too much of that," Silberman said.
