Graduate Schools in Queens, New York: How to Compare Your Options

Queens is home to a small but distinct set of graduate schools, and the right one depends on your field, budget, and schedule. St. John's University is the largest private option in the borough, with graduate programs spanning computing, business, health sciences, law, and more, plus online and hybrid formats. CUNY's Queens College and York College serve as the main public alternatives. If you want a broad private university with professional programs, start with St. John's; if cost and public-university structure matter most, look at the CUNY campuses first.

What "graduate schools in Queens" actually covers

Queens does not have dozens of standalone graduate institutions. Most graduate degrees in the borough are offered by universities with a main campus in Queens, or by schools within larger New York systems that place a campus there. The practical list to compare:

St. John's also describes global campuses and a Vincentian service mission, which shapes its graduate culture around service and community engagement rather than a purely research-only identity.

Comparing the schools on the dimensions that matter

Subject coverage

St. John's is the widest net in the borough. Its site highlights graduate-level work in areas such as Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (M.S.), alongside undergraduate-to-graduate pathways in computing, business, nursing and health sciences, law, and management. That breadth matters if you want a professional master's rather than a research degree.

The CUNY campuses are narrower but deep in specific areas — Queens College is known for education and library science, York for health and applied fields. If your target program is niche, check the specific department rather than the university's overall reputation.

Public vs. private

This is the single biggest structural difference:

• Public (CUNY): Lower sticker price, larger classes, more standardized admission criteria, strong value for in-state students.
• Private (St. John's): Higher sticker price, typically smaller graduate cohorts in professional programs, more institutional financial aid and payment options.

St. John's lists payment options and an enrollment and housing deposit through its admission and financial aid pages, so if cost is your deciding factor, request the current graduate tuition sheet directly — published figures change and program-level rates differ.

Format and schedule

St. John's states that it offers online, hybrid, and in-person options, which is a real advantage if you are working while studying. Not every CUNY graduate program offers the same flexibility, so confirm the delivery mode for your specific program before applying.

Location and access to NYC

All three sit within the city's transit network, which means internships, clinical placements, and networking are reachable regardless of campus. St. John's frames this through student profiles that pair coursework with internships and community projects — for example, a finance student interning with Bloomberg, or a computing student working on an AI tutoring project. That pattern (classroom plus a New York–based placement) is the main practical argument for studying in Queens rather than a suburban campus.

How to narrow your list

1. Name your degree type first. A professional master's, a research master's, and a doctoral program have different admission logic. St. John's, for instance, presents both bachelor's and master's pathways in the same subject areas, so you can see the ladder.
2. Filter by delivery mode. If you need evenings or online, eliminate programs that are in-person only before you compare anything else.
3. Get the program-level tuition and aid picture. Ask each school for the graduate rate for your specific program, not the university-wide average.
4. Check admission requirements per program. Test scores, prerequisites, and deadlines vary by department even within one university.
5. Talk to the admission office. St. John's directs prospective students to connect with its Office of Admission, which is the fastest way to confirm current requirements and aid.

Common sticking points

• Assuming one tuition rate covers all programs. Graduate pricing is usually set per school or program, so a single number is misleading.
• Confusing undergraduate breadth with graduate strength. A university with 100+ undergraduate majors may still have a focused graduate portfolio.
• Overlooking format. A program that looks ideal on paper may not fit a working schedule.
• Skipping the deposit and aid timeline. St. John's links enrollment and housing deposits through its payment options page — know when money is due, not just when applications close.

If your goal is a broad private university with professional graduate programs and flexible formats in Queens, St. John's is the natural first stop. If you want a public option with lower cost and a specific academic focus, compare Queens College and York College against the same program-level criteria.