Guide to RN Nursing School Rankings and Careers

From your potential earnings to selecting the right nursing school, our RN Nursing School Guides give prospective students a much-needed compass for their first or next chapter in their nursing careers. We provide a wealth of information for aspiring nursing professions at all stages of their career. Our database includes campus, online and hybrid nursing schools that offer programs from the certificate level all the way through to earning a Ph.D.

Our editorial team of nurse educators, nurse practitioners, registered nurses and practical nurses explain how to choose the perfect program for you, and we provide the data and information we wish we had when searching for and applying to our nursing program(s). We write about the hard-won knowledge on how to succeed once you become a practicing nurse, specific details on the nursing school application process, scholarships and more.

Rn FacultyBecome an RN Nurse

RNs are qualified to assess patients health status, administer medications and initiate treatment plans, evaluate outcomes, make recommendations, provide patient education, and work as a part of a healthcare team to optimize patient well-being.

RNs play a key role in making decisions for patients that can have positive impacts on their healthcare. As one of the most trusted professions, RNs are often seen as patient advocates.

 

What DifferenceGo Beyond – NP, MSN, DNP

Being an RN is a rewarding career that many people love. But it is also not the end point. If you want to advance your RN Career, you can further your education by earning one of 100+ specialty RN certificates or degrees, earn your MSN or DNP degree in nursing.

With these degrees you can work as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN), a Nurse Practitioner (NP) go into research or teaching and play a pivotal role in advancing healthcare.

 

Online BSN Programs Liked by Registered Nurses

Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.

2021 RN Nursing School Rankings
6th Annual Best Nursing Schools in America

Best Nursing School Programs State

Let’s be real. Googling nursing programs can lead your down a rabbit hole of information that is tough to sort through. That’s why we have created our nursing school rankings to help you understand the various programs out there. Now you can make an educated decision about what program will best fit your lifestyle and background.

Using NCLEX first-time exam pass rates, program accreditation, number of students taking the exam, and other key data, we ranked every CCNE, ACEN, and state-approved nursing programs throughout the country. You now have a clear and transparent view into what matters to you most when it comes to deciding which nursing program(s) to apply to.

Sources for our rankings include the State Board of Nursing (BON) from each state, each nursing school’s website and the IPEDS. See our ranking methodology.

Grade
University
State Rank
US Rank
City
State
100.00 Muskingum University 1 1 New Concord OH
100.00 Trinity Christian College 1 1 Palos Heights IL
100.00 Berea College 1 1 Berea KY
100.00 College of the Ozarks 1 1 Point Lookout MO
66.67 Ohio Northern University 1 1 Ada OH
100.00 Bethany Lutheran College 1 1 Mankato MN
99.80 University of Mississippi 1 2 University MS
99.47 Mississippi University for Women 2 3 Columbus MS
99.39 University of South Carolina-Columbia 1 4 Columbia SC
99.29 California State University-Long Beach 1 5 Long Beach CA
99.21 University of Hawaii @ Manoa-MEPN 1 6 Honolulu HI
98.99 Saint Anselm College 1 7 Manchester NH
99.01 Fransciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University 1 8 Baton Rouge LA
99.12 Messiah University 1 9 Mechanicsburg PA
99.01 The Catholic University of America 1 10 Washington DC
99.01 University of New Hampshire (DEMN), Durham 2 11 Durham NH
Worcester State College (WSU) 1 12 Worcester MA
98.99 Colby-Sawyer College 3 13 New London NH
98.96 Georgetown University 2 14 Washington DC
98.87 University of the Incarnate Word 1 15 San Antonio TX
98.67 Lindsey Wilson College 2 16 Columbia KY
98.69 University of Southern Mississippi 3 17 Hattiesburg MS
98.68 California State University-Stanislaus 2 18 Turlock CA
98.33 Saint Anthony College of Nursing 2 19 Rockford IL
98.45 University of Holy Cross 2 20 New Orleans LA
98.28 The University of Texas Medical Branch School of Nursing 2 21 Galveston TX
98.33 Southern Connecticut State University 1 21 New Haven CT
98.40 Florida Gulf Coast University 1 22 Fort Myers FL
98.33 University of Kentucky 3 23 Lexington KY
98.26 Delta State University 4 24 Cleveland MS
98.23 Concordia College 1 25 Bronxville NY
98.15 Sonoma State University 3 26 Rohnert Park CA
98.07 California State University-Bakersfield 4 27 Bakersfield CA
98.00 Radford University (Roanoke) 1 27 Radford VA
98.00 Harding University - Searcy 1 28 Searcy AR
97.92 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor 1 29 Ann Arbor MI
98.15 West Liberty University 1 29 West Liberty WV
97.92 University of Dubuque 1 30 Dubuque IA
97.71 University of Louisiana at Lafayette 3 31 Lafayette LA
97.80 University of Southern Indiana 1 32 Evansville IN
97.91 Western Governors University 1 33 Salt Lake City UT
97.75 California State University-Sacramento 5 34 Sacramento CA
97.87 Concordia University Irvine 6 35 Irvine CA
97.84 California State University-Fullerton 7 36 Fullerton CA
University of Massachusetts-Lowell 2 37 Lowell MA
97.53 McNeese State University 4 38 Lake Charles LA
97.84 Mira Costa College 8 38 Oceanside CA
97.67 Sacred Heart University 2 39 Fairfield CT
97.53 Indiana University-Northwest 2 40 Gary IN
97.33 Northwestern College 2 41 Orange City IA
97.56 West Virginia University 2 42 Morgantown WV
97.59 The University of Texas at El Paso 3 43 El Paso TX
97.60 William Carey University 5 44 Hattiesburg MS
97.67 Central Connecticut State University 3 45 New Britain CT
97.53 Purdue University 3 46 West Lafayette IN
97.56 Concordia University-Texas 4 47 Austin TX
97.36 Allen College 3 48 Waterloo IA
97.32 Lander University 2 49 Greenwood SC
97.38 Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Science Center 5 50 New Orleans LA
Bryan Health College 1 51 Lincoln NE
97.62 Alcorn State University 6 52 Alcorn State MS
97.62 LeTourneau University 5 52 Longview TX
97.39 The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio 6 53 San Antonio TX
96.97 Wheeling University BA-BS To BSN Program 3 53 Wheeling WV
97.37 California State University-Chico 9 54 Chico CA
97.31 Southeastern Louisiana University 6 55 Hammond LA
33.33 Baldwin Wallace University 2 56 Berea OH
97.00 University of Saint Joseph 4 57 West Hartford CT
97.05 Sam Houston State University 7 58 Huntsville TX
97.20 University of Charleston 4 59 Charleston WV
97.13 Stephen F Austin State University 8 60 Nacogdoches TX
97.23 University of North Georgia 1 61 Dahlonega GA
Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health 2 61 Omaha NE
64.37 Augustana University 3 62 Sioux Falls MA
97.23 Longwood University 2 63 Farmville VA
97.00 Lee University 1 64 Cleveland TN
97.00 Southern Arkansas University Main Campus - Magnolia 2 65 Magnolia AR
97.09 Saint Francis University 2 66 Loretto PA
96.97 California State University-San Marcos 10 67 San Marcos CA
96.88 The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston 9 68 Houston TX
3,397.22 Oklahoma Wesleyan University 1 68 Bartlesville OK
97.00 Eastern Kentucky University 4 69 Richmond KY
96.73 Carlow University 3 70 Pittsburgh PA
96.75 Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center 10 71 Lubbock TX
96.56 University of San Diego/Hahn 11 72 San Diego CA
97.00 Freed-Hardeman University 2 73 Henderson TN
64.52 University of Sioux Falls 1 74 Sioux Falls SD
96.39 University of Mary 1 75 Bismarck ND
96.33 Cumberland University 3 76 Lebanon TN
96.50 Stanbridge University 12 77 Irvine CA
96.72 Waynesburg University 4 78 Waynesburg PA
96.67 Lincoln Memorial University 4 79 Harrogate TN
96.57 Pennsylvania College of Technology 5 80 Williamsport PA
96.37 University of North Dakota 2 81 Grand Forks ND
96.33 Lewis University 3 82 Romeoville IL
96.35 University of Louisiana Monroe 7 83 Monroe LA
96.67 East Texas Baptist University 11 84 Marshall TX
96.43 Kennesaw State University 2 85 Kennesaw GA
96.17 Metropolitan State University of Denver (TNO) 1 85 Denver CO
3,104.99 Union College 3 86 Lincoln NE

RN Nursing Schools Recommended by Us

 

Beyond an RN Nursing Career
Explore High Paying, In-Demand Nursing Degrees

Becoming a RN Nurse can offer you a lifetime of opportunities. You never have to worry about being stuck in a career specialty you don’t like because you will always have the flexibility to change it up — something not everyone can say about their profession. You can specialize, become a clinical nurse specialist, a nursing administrator, nurse educator, conduct research, become an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) and more. Check out some of our most popular guides to see the possibilities yourself:

MSN Programs Reommeded by Our Education Experts

Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.

RN Nursing School Scorecard

By aggregating information from 1,042 ADN and 937 BSN accredited nursing schools and combining the school data with 100,000 data points, prospective nursing students the data they need to make a sound decision about the best nursing school to attend. RNCareers.org empowers prospective nursing students with real-time information taken from the sources – the institutions themselves and the U.S. Department of Education. We pride ourselves on providing the most accurate up-to-date information about nursing programs.

RN Nursing School Comparison: ADN vs BSN

Compare ADN to BSN Programs Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) Bachelor Degree in Nursing  (BSN)
Number of Nursing Programs 1,042 937
Average NCLEX Passing Rate 85.48% 87.22%
NCLEX Passing Rate Range 22.50% to 186.10% 42.50% to 100.00%
Average Net Price $9,169.31 $17,218.69
Average Net Price Range $61.00 to $41,243.00 $1,846.00 to $39,975.00
Average Student Loan $8,833.57 $18,429.83
Average Student Loan Range $1,325.00 to $28,333.00 $3,125.00 to $42,625.00
Average Annual Salary $65,470 $71,730
See Additional Detail Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) Programs Bachelor Degree in Nursing (BSN)

 

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Popular Articles

Delve into some of our most popular articles and data about nursing schools.

 

NCLEX Practice Exams

Prepare for this important exam by taking our free, timed NCLEX exams with rationales.

 

Take the next step toward your RN Nursing future with online degree opportunities.

Discover schools with the programs and courses you’re interested in, and start learning today.


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Sources: 50 State Boards of Nursing, University Websites, U.S. Department of Education, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Ranking Methodology.