2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You
Out of the majors we analyze each year, nursing was the most popular one in Illinois. In total, 21,938 people earned a degree or certificate in the field from a school in Illinois.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Our analysis looked at 38 schools in Illinois to see which associate degree programs offered the best value experiences for nursing students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Lincoln Land Community College the best value school in Illinois for nursing students working on their associate degree. LLCC is a small public school located in the midsize city of Springfield.
LLCC undergraduate students pay an average of $6,840 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at LLCC take out an average of $22,153 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, LLCC is ranked #3 for overall quality for nursing in Illinois.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Elgin Community College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the midsize city of Elgin, ECC is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ECC are $7,140 per year. Nursing majors at ECC take out an average of $15,362 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
ECC also made our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list, coming in at #5.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Rend Lake College is a great value for nursing students working on their associate degree. Rend Lake College is a small public school located in the rural area of Ina.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Rend Lake College are $6,000 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Rend Lake College carry an average student debtload of $12,957.
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The excellent associate degree programs at John A Logan College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in Illinois. John A Logan College is a small public school located in the suburb of Carterville.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at John A Logan College are $5,960 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from John A Logan College carry an average student debtload of $14,016.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Highland Community College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the distant town of Freeport, Highland Community College is a public school with a small student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Highland Community College are $6,846 per year. Nursing majors at Highland Community College take out an average of $19,818 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Southwestern Illinois College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Located in the suburb of Belleville, SWIC is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SWIC are $6,390 a year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at SWIC accumulate an average of around $16,832 in student debt.
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Lake Land 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 #7 on the list. Located in the distant town of Mattoon, Lake Land College is a public school with a small student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Lake Land College are $8,104 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Lake Land College carry an average student debtload of $13,552.
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With a ranking of #8, William Rainey Harper College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the suburb of Palatine, Harper College is a public school with a large student population.
Harper College undergraduate students pay an average of $9,870 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Harper College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $19,644.
Harper College did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list.
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With a ranking of #9, Oakton Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Oakton Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Des Plaines.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Oakton Community College are $10,446 per year. Nursing majors at Oakton Community College take out an average of $11,885 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Waubonsee Community College landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Waubonsee is a moderately-sized public school located in the rural area of Sugar Grove.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Waubonsee are $9,271 a year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Waubonsee carry an average student debtload of $17,386.
Waubonsee also claimed a spot on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.
Request InformationBest Value Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Value Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Michigan | 7,345 |
| Ohio | 13,973 |
| Indiana | 7,922 |
| Wisconsin | 5,410 |
More Nursing Rankings in Illinois
Majors Related to Nursing
Nursing is one of 30 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related 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 26 schools only.
- 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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