2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You
With 322,592 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, nursing is the #3 most popular major in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
The Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 89 schools in the Plains States Region to see which ones offered the best associate degree programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for nursing majors pursuing a associate degree.
Top 15% Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools
Our analysis found Rasmussen University - Minnesota to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a associate degree in the Plains States Region . Located in the city of St. Cloud, Rasmussen University - Minnesota is a private for-profit college with a small student population.
Nursing majors at Rasmussen University - Minnesota take out an average of $32,326 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $175, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Northwest Technical College is a great place for nursing students working on their associate degree. NTC is a fairly small public school located in the remote town of Bemidji.
Nursing majors at NTC take out an average of $32,265 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Rasmussen University - Kansas. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the rural area of Topeka, Rasmussen University - Kansas is a private for-profit school with a small student population.
Nursing majors at Rasmussen University - Kansas take out an average of $32,326 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $175, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Rasmussen University - North Dakota is a great place for nursing students working on their associate degree. Rasmussen University - North Dakota is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the midsize city of Fargo.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Rasmussen University - North Dakota take out while working on their Associate Degree is $32,326. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $175, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Texas County Technical College is a great place for nursing students working on their associate degree. Bolivar Technical College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Houston.
While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Bolivar Technical College accumulate an average of around $26,671 in student debt.
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Rochester Community and Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Rochester, Rochester Community and Technical College is a public school with a small student population.
While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Rochester Community and Technical College accumulate an average of around $27,212 in student debt.
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State Technical College of Missouri ranked #7 on this year’s Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. STC is a small public school located in the rural area of Linn.
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North Dakota State College of Science did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the distant town of Wahpeton, North Dakota State College of Science is a public college with a small student population.
While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at North Dakota State College of Science accumulate an average of around $29,618 in student debt.
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St Luke’s College ranked #9 on this year’s Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. St Luke's College is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Sioux City.
On average, nursing graduates from St Luke's College take out $23,684 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Northeast Iowa Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #10 on the list. NICC is a small public school located in the rural area of Calmar.
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Lake Area Technical Institute came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in the town of Watertown, LATI is a public college with a small student population.
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Inver Hills Community College landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree nursing programs. Located in the large suburb of Inver Grove Heights, IHCC is a public college with a small student population.
Nursing majors at IHCC take out an average of $27,410 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree nursing programs. Located in the small city of Cape Girardeau, Southeast Health is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Southeast Health accumulate an average of around $26,508 in student debt.
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Here are some additional great schools for Nursing students in the Plains States Region that almost earned our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Southeast Technical College | Sioux Falls, SD |
| 15 | Anoka-Ramsey Community College | Coon Rapids, MN |
| 16 | Columbia College | Columbia, MO |
| 17 | Minnesota West Community and Technical College | Granite Falls, MN |
Best Nursing Colleges by State
Explore the best nursing schools for a specific state in the Plains States region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Missouri | 6,840 |
| Minnesota | 14,890 |
| Kansas | 2,633 |
| Iowa | 2,966 |
| Nebraska | 1,908 |
| North Dakota | 976 |
| South Dakota | 1,022 |
More Nursing Rankings in the Plains States Region
Rankings in Majors Related to Nursing
One of 30 majors within the area of study, nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.
Majors Similar to Nursing
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Health & Medical Administrative Services | 89,359 |
| Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services | 84,492 |
| Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants | 84,274 |
| Allied Health Professions | 82,308 |
| Public Health | 40,596 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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