2023 Most Popular Online Doctor's Degree Schools
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools and bootcamps that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
The Most Popular Online Doctor's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 384 schools in the United States to see which ones had the most popular online doctor's degree programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from schools with online programs.
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Most Popular Online Doctor's Degree Schools in the United States
Learn more about these popular schools with online programs:
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Capella University is a great place for students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the large private for-profit school handed out 1,437 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 77% were women.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out Capella University. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools list. University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences is a medium-sized private for-profit school located in San Marcos, California that handed out 1,081 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 62% were women.
Since the graduate programs at USAHS are primarily online school, so it is a great choice for returning adults and students who work full time.
Read full report on University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences
A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Grand Canyon University is a great place for students working on their doctor’s degree. Grand Canyon University is located in Phoenix, Arizona and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 829 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
Around 76% of those degree recipients were women.
To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 96% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
You’ll be in good company if you attend Northcentral University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Northcentral University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in San Diego, California that handed out 780 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 68% were women.
Since the graduate programs at Northcentral University are online, the school is an excellent choice for graduate students who need more flexibility than what is offered at some other schools.
Chamberlain University - Illinois did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Addison, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out doctor’s degrees to 565 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 93% were women.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out Chamberlain - Illinois. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Liberty University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Liberty University is a large private not-for-profit school located in Lynchburg, Virginia that handed out 995 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 52% of those degree recipients were women.
During the 2019-2020 year, about 97% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
University of Florida came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Gainesville, Florida is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctor’s degrees to 1,778 students in 2020-2021.
Around 54% of those degree recipients were women.
To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 79% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Phoenix - Arizona did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. UOPX - Arizona is a large private for-profit school situated in Tempe, Arizona. It awarded 356 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 69% of those degree recipients were women.
During the 2019-2020 year, about 99% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Nova Southeastern University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 1,622 diplomas to qualifed doctor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 65% of those degree recipients were women.
Around 52% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #11, University of Lynchburg did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their doctor’s degree. Lynchburg is located in Lynchburg, Virginia and has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 340 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
Of those students who received their degree, 60% were women.
Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 78% took at least some of their classes online.
University of Southern California did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. This large private not-for-profit school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 1,914 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 57% of those degree recipients were women.
To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 82% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus ranked #13 on this year’s Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in Denver, Colorado, the large public school handed out 740 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 64% were women.
To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 75% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Full University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Report
A T Still University of Health Sciences came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. A T Still University of Health Sciences is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Kirksville, Missouri. It awarded 787 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 60% were women.
Since the graduate programs at A T Still University of Health Sciences are online, the school is an excellent choice for graduate students who need more flexibility than what is offered at some other schools.
American College of Education ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools list. American College of Education is a medium-sized private for-profit school located in Indianapolis, Indiana that handed out 181 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 64% of those degree recipients were women.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out American College of Education. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Frontier Nursing University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Frontier Nursing University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Hyden, Kentucky. The school has a small population, and it awarded 181 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 92% were women.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out Frontier Nursing University. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Brandman University ranked #17 on this year’s Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools list. This medium-sized private not-for-profit school is located in Irvine, California, and it awarded 167 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 81% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, Brandman is an excellent choice, since graduate classes are offered online.
With a ranking of #17, Colorado Technical University - Colorado Springs did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their doctor’s degree. Colorado Technical University - Colorado Springs is a large private for-profit school situated in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It awarded 167 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 23% of those degree recipients were women.
Around 100% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Trevecca Nazarene University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. TNU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Nashville, Tennessee. The school has a small population, and it awarded 164 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 78% of those degree recipients were women.
Around 66% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Auburn University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in Auburn, Alabama, the large public school handed out 532 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Around 62% of those degree recipients were women.
During the 2019-2020 year, about 35% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Old Dominion University landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree programs. Located in Norfolk, Virginia, the large public school awarded 233 diplomas to qualifed doctor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 63% were women.
Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 82% took at least some of their classes online.
Concordia University, Chicago did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #22 on the list. Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in River Forest, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 137 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 57% of those degree recipients were women.
During the 2019-2020 year, about 98% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree programs. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and it awarded 160 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 65% were women.
In 2019-2020 about 66% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #24, Wilkes University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their doctor’s degree. Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctor’s degrees to 134 students in 2020-2021.
Around 72% of those degree recipients were women.
To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 97% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of South Alabama ranked #24 on this year’s Most Popular Online Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Mobile, Alabama is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctor’s degrees to 291 students in 2020-2021.
Around 75% of those degree recipients were women.
Around 75% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Rest of the Top 50 Most Popular Online Doctor's Degree Schools in the United States
Not only did these schools make the top most popular online list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Narrow Schools by Region
Rest of the Top 15% Most Popular Online Doctor's Degree Schools in the United States
To learn more about the schools below, just click on their names:
| Rank | School | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary | New Orleans, LA |
| 51 | South University’s online programs | Savannah, GA |
| 53 | Creighton University | Omaha, NE |
| 53 | William Woods University | Fulton, MO |
| 55 | St. Thomas University | Miami Gardens, FL |
| 56 | The University of Arizona Global Campus | San Diego, CA |
| 56 | Winston - Salem State University | Winston-Salem, NC |
| 58 | Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health | Omaha, NE |
Honorable Mentions
These schools also performed well in our most popular online schools ranking:
| Rank | School | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 59 | California University of Pennsylvania | California, PA |
| 60 | University of Maryland Global Campus | Adelphi, MD |
| 60 | University of Massachusetts Amherst | Amherst, MA |
| 62 | Aspen University | Denver, CO |
| 63 | Taft University System | Denver, CO |
| 64 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, NC |
| 65 | Valdosta State University | Valdosta, GA |
| 66 | Lipscomb University | Nashville, TN |
| 67 | University of Central Florida | Orlando, FL |
| 67 | University of Iowa | Iowa City, IA |
| 67 | University of Missouri - Kansas City | Kansas City, MO |
| 67 | Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences | Boston, MA |
| 71 | Capitol Technology University | Laurel, MD |
| 71 | The University of Texas at Arlington | Arlington, TX |
| 71 | Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale | Fort Lauderdale, FL |
| 74 | Gwynedd Mercy University | Gwynedd Valley, PA |
| 75 | Bradley University | Peoria, IL |
| 75 | William Carey University | Hattiesburg, MS |
| 77 | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA |
| 77 | Columbia Southern University | Orange Beach, AL |
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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