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Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region

2023 Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

98 Colleges
$12,633 Avg Tuition & Fees*

Finding the Best Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate School for You

With 149,352 degrees and certificates handed out in 2021-2022, personal & culinary services is the #2 most popular major in the United States.

There are so many trade school programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Trade College Search has developed this Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 98 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region to see which basic certificate programs offered the best value experiences for personal & culinary services students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

Top 25 Best Middle Atlantic Region Schools for Affordable Quality for an Award Taking Less Than 1 Year in Personal & Culinary Services

#1

Laurel Business Institute

Uniontown, PA

Our 2023 rankings named Laurel Business Institute the best value school in the Middle Atlantic Region for personal & culinary services students working on their basic certificate. Located in the suburb of Uniontown, LBI is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at LBI are $11,470 per year.

LBI also claimed a spot on our Best Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Trade Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

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Out of the 98 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Penn Commercial Business/Technical School landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the large suburb of Washington, Penn Commercial is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

Penn Commercial undergraduate students pay an average of $12,116 in tuition and fees each year.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Delaware Technical Community College - Terry. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Delaware Tech is a large public school located in the small city of Dover.

Delaware Tech undergraduate students pay an average of $11,808 in tuition and fees each year.

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#4

Laurel Technical Institute

MEADVILLE, PA

The excellent basic certificate programs at Laurel Technical Institute helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best value personal & culinary services schools in the Middle Atlantic Region . LTI - Meadville is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the rural area of MEADVILLE.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at LTI - Meadville are $11,470 a year.

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#5

Laurel Technical Institute

Hermitage, PA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Laurel Technical Institute. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. LTI Sharon is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the rural area of Hermitage.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at LTI Sharon are $11,470 a year.

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#6

Douglas Education Center

Monessen, PA

Douglas Education Center did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for personal & culinary services students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #6 on the list. Douglas Education Center is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the suburb of Monessen.

Douglas Education Center undergraduate students pay an average of $18,350 in tuition and fees each year.

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Kingsborough Community College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate personal & culinary services programs. KCC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Brooklyn.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at KCC are $8,132 per year.

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Pittsburgh Technical College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Pittsburgh Technical College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Oakdale.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Pittsburgh Technical College are $16,974 a year.

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Community College of Philadelphia landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate personal & culinary services programs. Community College of Philadelphia is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Philadelphia.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Community College of Philadelphia are $12,744 a year.

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Hudson County Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for personal & culinary services students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the large city of Jersey City, HCCC is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at HCCC are $11,798 per year.

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Continental School of Beauty Culture, West Seneca did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for personal & culinary services students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #11 on the list. Continental School of Beauty Culture, West Seneca is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the suburb of West Seneca.

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Aesthetic Science Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for personal & culinary services students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the suburb of Latham, Aesthetic Science Institute is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

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With a ranking of #11, Rizzieri Aveda School for Beauty and Wellness did quite well on this year’s best value schools for personal & culinary services students working on their basic certificate. Rizzieri Aveda School for Beauty and Wellness is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the suburb of Voorhees.

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#11

Shore Beauty School

Egg Harbor Township, NJ

Shore Beauty School landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate personal & culinary services programs. Located in the midsize suburb of Egg Harbor Township, Shore Beauty School is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

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Christine Valmy International School of Esthetics & Cosmetology ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Christine Valmy International School is a small private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Pine Brook.

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Empire Beauty School-Lancaster came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Empire Beauty School-Lancaster is a small private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Lancaster.

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#11

Butler Beauty Academy

Butler, PA

Butler Beauty Academy landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate personal & culinary services programs. Butler Beauty Academy is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the fringe town of Butler.

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Continental School of Beauty Culture, Rochester ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in the large suburb of Rochester, Continental School of Beauty Culture, Rochester is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

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#11

Artistic Academy of Hair Design

Morris Plains, NJ

Artistic Academy of Hair Design did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for personal & culinary services students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #11 on the list. Artistic Academy is a small private for-profit school located in the suburb of Morris Plains.

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With a ranking of #11, Empire Beauty School-Cherry Hill did quite well on this year’s best value schools for personal & culinary services students working on their basic certificate. Empire Beauty School-Cherry Hill is a small private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Cherry Hill.

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Empire Beauty School-Wyoming Valley ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Basic Certificate Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in the large suburb of Moosic, Empire Beauty School-Wyoming Valley is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

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#11

Cortiva Institute-Baltimore

Linthicum, MD

Cortiva Institute-Baltimore did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for personal & culinary services students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #11 on the list. Cortiva Institute-Baltimore is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Linthicum.

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New York Institute of Beauty landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate personal & culinary services programs. Located in the large suburb of Islandia, New York Institute of Beauty is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

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#11

Jean Madeline Aveda Institute

Philadelphia, PA

With a ranking of #11, Jean Madeline Aveda Institute did quite well on this year’s best value schools for personal & culinary services students working on their basic certificate. Jean Madeline Education Center of Cosmetology is a small private for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.

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#11

Cutting Edge Academy

Succasunna, NJ

Cutting Edge Academy landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate personal & culinary services programs. Cutting Edge Academy is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Succasunna.

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Best Personal & Culinary Services Colleges by State

Explore the best personal & culinary services schools for a specific state in the Middle Atlantic region.

State Degrees Awarded
New Jersey 2,643
Maryland 1,280
Delaware 373
Pennsylvania 3,899
New York 6,710
District of Columbia 166

Personal & Culinary Services Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Cosmetology 124,611
Culinary Arts 22,075
Funeral & Mortuary Science 2,186
Casino Operations and Services 385
Other Personal & Culinary Services 95

Related Major Annual Graduates
Mechanic & Repair Technologies 105,741
Precision Production 55,411
Construction Trades 40,802
Transportation & Materials Moving 33,306

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 98 schools only.

  • 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 the rest 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to U.S. Army Europe Images.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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