Excelsior University is a private, not-for-profit university in Albany, New York, offering online career-focused degrees since 1971.
Excelsior University is a private, not-for-profit university with a main campus in Albany, New York, and an educational site in St. Petersburg, Florida. It was founded in 1971 by the New York State Board of Regents and is governed by an independent board of trustees composed of business and educational leaders from across the United States. Its mission is to provide educational opportunities to adult learners, with an emphasis on those historically underrepresented in higher education.
The institution was originally known as the Regents External Degree Program (REX). On January 1, 2001, Regents College changed its name to Excelsior College, referencing New York state's motto, a Latin phrase translating to "ever upward." In April 1998, the Board of Regents granted Excelsior a charter to operate as a private, nonprofit, independent institution. The institution became Excelsior University on August 1, 2022.
Excelsior offers more than 40 career-focused degree programs at the associate, bachelor's, and master's levels. Its programs span six areas of study: business, health care, liberal arts, nursing, and technology. Courses begin every eight weeks. In April 2026, Excelsior received approval from the New York State Education Department to offer its first-ever doctoral program.
Excelsior is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), first granted in 1977 and reaffirmed in 2022. Its nursing programs hold continuing accreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) and are recognized by the New York State Board of Regents. The Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering Technology is accredited by the Engineering Technology Accreditation Commission of ABET, and the Bachelor of Science in Information Technology is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET. The School of Business received specialized accreditation for its business programs from the International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE).
Campus and student resources include a library, bookstore, Excelsior Store, Lt. Col. Bryant A. Murray Veterans Center, Online Writing Lab (OWL), online classroom through a learning management system, and tech support. The St. Petersburg, Florida site includes in-person simulation labs. Prospective nursing students must meet a TEAS requirement, in addition to the general application open to all students.