Founded as Alvernia College in 1958 by the Bernardine Sisters of St. Francis, the school gained university status in 2008.

[2] Alvernia received its charter from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1960 and was first accredited in 1967 by the Commission of Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.

Master's degrees are awarded in occupational therapy, business administration, nursing, community counseling, education, and liberal studies.

Library holdings include 100,000 print, audiovisual, and computer materials; approximately 900 periodicals; and 400 current subscriptions.

[5] Men's sports include football, since 2018, wrestling, since 2019, baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track & field and volleyball, while women's sports include basketball, cheerleading, cross country, dance, field hockey, ice hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball, and wrestling.