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Best Colleges for Registered Nursing

50 Registered Nursing programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion — from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.

⚡Quick answer

For Registered Nursing, California State University-East Bay (California) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $150,921. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion — not reputation or cost — across 50 programs with published outcome data.

#	School	Credential	Median earnings	Median debt	Completers	Score
1	California State University-East Bay Hayward, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$150,921	$14,747	171	91.8
2	San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$150,102	$15,233	162	91
3	Evergreen Valley College San Jose, CA	Associate's Degree	$140,512	$11,218	68	90
4	Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$143,886	$12,500	63	89.4
5	California State University-Monterey Bay Seaside, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$134,489	$5,500	52	89.2
6	Samuel Merritt University Oakland, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$148,193	$20,000	508	88.7
7	California State University-Sacramento Sacramento, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$129,960	$13,750	196	88.1
8	College of Marin Kentfield, CA	Associate's Degree	$147,805	$14,000	41	87.2
9	College of San Mateo San Mateo, CA	Associate's Degree	$144,794	$14,715	45	86.7
10	San Jose State University San Jose, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$155,843	—	167	86.5
11	CUNY Hunter College New York, NY	Master's Degree	$142,731	$20,500	174	86.1
12	Unitek College Fremont, CA	Associate's Degree	$150,789	$18,594	—	85.4
13	Mercy University Dobbs Ferry, NY	Bachelor's Degree	$118,232	$10,500	330	85
14	Central Connecticut State University New Britain, CT	Doctoral Degree	$240,887	—	—	84.9
15	California State University-Fullerton Fullerton, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$119,353	$12,500	432	84.8
16	Midwestern University-Downers Grove Downers Grove, IL	Doctoral Degree	$230,075	—	—	84.8
17	CUNY Graduate School and University Center New York, NY	Bachelor's Degree	$116,969	$8,000	212	84.8
18	California State University-Dominguez Hills Carson, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$118,588	$10,000	181	84.7
19	Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA	Doctoral Degree	$193,012	—	—	84.1
20	University of South Alabama Mobile, AL	Graduate/Professional Certificate	$141,035	—	123	83.8
21	Pace University New York, NY	Doctoral Degree	$180,068	—	—	83.8
22	Western University of Health Sciences Pomona, CA	Doctoral Degree	$176,424	—	—	83.7
23	San Joaquin Delta College Stockton, CA	Associate's Degree	$140,130	—	122	83.6
24	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma	$169,879	—	—	83.6
25	University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI	Bachelor's Degree	$120,258	$12,500	120	83.4
26	National University San Diego, CA	Graduate/Professional Certificate	$157,271	—	58	83.3
27	University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$143,356	$25,286	247	83.3
28	Montefiore School of Nursing Mount Vernon, NY	Associate's Degree	$133,065	$17,500	64	83.1
29	Unitek College Fremont, CA	Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma	$157,427	—	—	83
30	University of Massachusetts Global Irvine, CA	Doctoral Degree	$156,172	—	—	82.9
31	CUNY Lehman College Bronx, NY	Bachelor's Degree	$119,115	$13,341	167	82.7
32	Hofstra University Hempstead, NY	Master's Degree	$151,333	—	55	82.7
33	California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA	Master's Degree	$138,776	—	93	82.5
34	CUNY New York City College of Technology Brooklyn, NY	Associate's Degree	$115,112	$8,062	125	82.4
35	CUNY Medgar Evers College Brooklyn, NY	Associate's Degree	$122,671	$11,100	42	82.3
36	American River College Sacramento, CA	Associate's Degree	$122,386	$12,750	56	82.2
37	Sacramento City College Sacramento, CA	Associate's Degree	$123,978	$14,000	62	82.2
38	San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA	Master's Degree	$152,207	—	47	82.1
39	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD	Graduate/Professional Certificate	$142,460	$20,500	49	82
40	Contra Costa College San Pablo, CA	Associate's Degree	$160,743	—	38	81.9
41	University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA	Doctoral Degree	$135,401	—	108	81.9
42	Northeastern University Boston, MA	First Professional Degree	$191,083	—	29	81.8
43	CUNY Hunter College New York, NY	Bachelor's Degree	$116,361	$12,500	172	81.8
44	San Diego State University San Diego, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$120,799	$17,375	212	81.7
45	California State University-Dominguez Hills Carson, CA	Master's Degree	$151,224	$23,500	50	81.6
46	University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg, MS	Post-baccalaureate Certificate	$143,434	—	—	81.6
47	University of Nevada-Reno Reno, NV	Doctoral Degree	$161,545	—	34	81.6
48	The University of Tennessee Health Science Center Memphis, TN	Doctoral Degree	$136,674	—	90	81.6
49	Concordia University-Wisconsin Mequon, WI	Doctoral Degree	$143,402	—	—	81.5
50	California State University-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	Bachelor's Degree	$116,182	$12,500	158	81.4

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How we ranked this

Programs are scored 0–100 within the Registered Nursing field (CIP 51.38) using three College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (weighted 70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, inverted so lower debt scores higher), and completer count (10%, log-scaled). Each input is percentile-ranked against the other Registered Nursing programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded — never given a fabricated number. This is the same engine that powers our interactive Major Rankings. Minimum 5 scorable programs required to publish.

Frequently asked questions

Which college has the best Registered Nursing program?+

By our outcome score, California State University-East Bay (California) ranks #1 for Registered Nursing, with median graduate earnings of $150,921.

How are these Registered Nursing programs ranked?+

Each program gets a 0–100 outcome score from three real College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, lower is better), and completer count (10%). Programs are compared within the major so the score reflects the best schools for this field specifically.

Where does the earnings and debt data come from?+

The U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field-of-Study file, which publishes median earnings and median debt by institution and major (4-digit CIP). Figures are post-graduation medians; programs without published earnings are not scored and are omitted from this ranking.

Can I filter Registered Nursing programs by state or degree level?+

Yes. This page shows the national top programs; use the interactive Major Rankings tool to filter the same data by state, and by credential level (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).

Keep exploring

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Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) · IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. CertiHomes Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.