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Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois

38 Colleges
$64,238 Avg Salary
$28,730 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in Illinois with 21,938 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which healthcare program is right for you. 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, Healthcare Degree Search has created its Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. This report analyzed 38 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best bachelor's degree programs for healthcare 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 Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois

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

Top 10 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Chamberlain University - Illinois the best school in Illinois for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the large suburb of Addison, Chamberlain - Illinois is a private for-profit school with a very large student population.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at Chamberlain - Illinois accumulate an average of around $37,103 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $256.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Loyola University Chicago. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Loyola Chicago take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $28,313. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $767, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#3

Illinois Wesleyan University

Bloomington, IL

The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Illinois Wesleyan University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Illinois. Located in the city of Bloomington, Illinois Wesleyan is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from Illinois Wesleyan carry an average student debtload of $23,536.

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The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Saint Anthony College of Nursing helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Illinois. SACN is a small private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Rockford.

Nursing majors at SACN take out an average of $27,286 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $281, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#5

Oak Point University

Chicago, IL

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Oak Point University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Oak Point is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Chicago.

Nursing majors at Oak Point take out an average of $30,893 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $342, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#6

McKendree University

Lebanon, IL

McKendree University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree nursing programs. Located in the suburb of Lebanon, McKendree is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at McKendree accumulate an average of around $26,127 in student debt.

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Illinois State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the midsize suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at Illinois State accumulate an average of around $21,394 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $375.

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#8

Concordia University, Chicago

River Forest, IL

Concordia University, Chicago did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the suburb of River Forest, Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

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University of St Francis came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Located in the suburb of Joliet, University of Saint Francis is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at University of Saint Francis take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $30,617. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $332.

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#10

Bradley University

Peoria, IL

Bradley University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree nursing programs. Bradley is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Peoria.

On average, nursing graduates from Bradley take out $26,036 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $580.

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Best Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Ohio 13,973
Michigan 7,345
Indiana 7,922
Wisconsin 5,410

One of 30 majors within the healthcare area of study, nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Nursing Practice 7,992
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

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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