Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools

586 Colleges
$98,140 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Master's 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.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 586 schools in the United States to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the United States

Check out the nursing master's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 25 Top Schools for a Master's in Nursing

Our 2023 rankings named Albany Medical College the best school in the United States for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Albany, AMC Albany is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Nursing at Albany Medical College Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Midwestern University - Glendale. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the suburb of Glendale, Midwestern University - Glendale is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Nursing at Midwestern University - Glendale Report

#3

Saint Vincent College

Latrobe, PA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Saint Vincent College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools list. Saint Vincent is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Latrobe.

Full Nursing at Saint Vincent College Report

#4

Wake Forest University

Winston-Salem, NC

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Wake Forest University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Winston-Salem, Wake Forest University is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.

Read More…

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Samuel Merritt University is a great place for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Samuel Merritt University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Oakland.

Read More…

University of Southern California ranked #6 on this year’s Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools list. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.

Full Nursing at University of Southern California Report

#7

Mount Marty University

Yankton, SD

Mount Marty University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. Located in the remote town of Yankton, Mount Marty is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read full report on Nursing at Mount Marty University

#8

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read More…

Touro University California did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Vallejo, TUC is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read More…

#10

Texas Wesleyan University

Fort Worth, TX

Texas Wesleyan University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. Texas Wesleyan is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Fort Worth.

Read More…

#11

Duke University

Durham, NC

With a ranking of #11, Duke University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Nursing at Duke University Report

University of California - San Francisco landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. UCSF is a small public school located in the city of San Francisco.

Read More…

#13

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania ranked #13 on this year’s Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read More…

Medical University of South Carolina did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. MUSC is a small public school located in the city of Charleston.

Read full report on Nursing at Medical University of South Carolina

SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the city of Brooklyn, SUNY Downstate is a public college with a small student population.

Full Nursing at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University Report

#16

AdventHealth University

Orlando, FL

With a ranking of #16, AdventHealth University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Orlando, AHU is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read More…

Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. SMU MN is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Winona.

Read full report on Nursing at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota

With a ranking of #18, Frontier Nursing University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the rural area of Hyden, Frontier Nursing University is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Nursing at Frontier Nursing University Report

With a ranking of #19, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of Houston, UTHealth is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on Nursing at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

#20

Newman University

Wichita, KS

Newman University landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. Newman University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Wichita.

Read full report on Nursing at Newman University

#21

Gonzaga University

Spokane, WA

Gonzaga University ranked #21 on this year’s Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools list. Gonzaga is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Spokane.

Full Nursing at Gonzaga University Report

With a ranking of #22, York College of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the suburb of York, YCP is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read full report on Nursing at York College of Pennsylvania

#23

Loma Linda University

Loma Linda, CA

Loma Linda University landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. Located in the suburb of Loma Linda, Loma Linda University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Nursing at Loma Linda University Report

#24

Thomas Jefferson University

Philadelphia, PA

Thomas Jefferson University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #24 on the list. Thomas Jefferson University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.

Read More…

With a ranking of #25, University of California - Davis did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Located in the suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public school with a very large student population.

Read More…

Rest of the Top 50 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools

#26

University of Providence

Great Falls, MT
#27

Villanova University

Villanova, PA
#28

Touro University Nevada

Henderson, NV
#30

Gannon University

Erie, PA
#33

Georgetown University

Washington, DC
#35

Webster University

Saint Louis, MO
#38

Yale University

New Haven, CT
#43

Emory University

Atlanta, GA
#44

University of Virginia - Main Campus

Charlottesville, VA
#47

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD
#48

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA
#49

New York University

New York, NY
#50

Clarkson College

Omaha, NE

Remaining Award Winners

This list shows the rest of the schools awarded a Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 586 different United States nursing schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 Florida Gulf Coast University Fort Myers, FL
52 University of Washington - Tacoma Campus Tacoma, WA
53 Vanguard University of Southern California Costa Mesa, CA
54 Wagner College Staten Island, NY
55 Saint Anthony College of Nursing Rockford, IL
56 Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA
57 University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
58 Upstate Medical University Syracuse, NY
59 Mount Saint Mary’s University Los Angeles, CA
60 Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY
61 American University of Health Sciences Signal Hill, CA
62 The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio San Antonio, TX
63 Augsburg University Minneapolis, MN
64 The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Chattanooga, TN
65 Wilkes University Wilkes-Barre, PA
66 Maryville University of Saint Louis Saint Louis, MO
67 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA
68 California State University - Chico Chico, CA
69 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA
70 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
71 Texas A&M University - College Station College Station, TX
72 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
73 California State University - Fullerton Fullerton, CA
74 Bethel University Minnesota Saint Paul, MN
74 Azusa Pacific University Azusa, CA
76 Ramapo College of New Jersey Mahwah, NJ
77 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX
78 San Jose State University San Jose, CA
79 Bushnell University Eugene, OR
80 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
81 University of Washington - Bothell Campus Bothell, WA
82 University of Scranton Scranton, PA
83 MGH Institute of Health Professions Boston, MA
84 University of Rochester Rochester, NY
85 United States University San Diego, CA
86 Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA
87 Fairfield University Fairfield, CT

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
88 Otterbein University Westerville, OH
89 University of Washington - Seattle Campus Seattle, WA
90 Belmont University Nashville, TN
91 College of Saint Elizabeth Morristown, NJ
92 University of Massachusetts Medical School Worcester Worcester, MA
93 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC
94 Allen College Waterloo, IA
95 Holy Names University Oakland, CA
96 Ottawa University - Kansas City Overland Park, KS
97 Fresno Pacific University Fresno, CA
98 University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Little Rock, AR
99 Duquesne University Pittsburgh, PA
100 Bellin College Green Bay, WI
101 DeSales University Center Valley, PA
102 Oregon Health & Science University Portland, OR
103 Teachers College at Columbia University New York, NY
104 University of Delaware Newark, DE
105 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA
106 University of North Dakota Grand Forks, ND
106 University of St Francis Joliet, IL
108 West Coast University - Dallas Dallas, TX
109 Saint Louis University Saint Louis, MO
110 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
111 Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT
112 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
113 Towson University Towson, MD
114 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
115 Texas A&M International University Laredo, TX
116 Michigan State University East Lansing, MI
117 University of Mary Bismarck, ND

Nursing by Region

View the Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Nursing is one of 30 different types of programs to choose from.

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.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.