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Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

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2023 Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

40 Colleges
$115,233 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Doctor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 322,592 degrees and certificates were awarded to nursing students, making the major the most popular in the country.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for healthcare students. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

The Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking is one of many tools that Healthcare Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 40 schools in the Plains States Region to see which ones offered the best doctor's degree programs for healthcare 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 Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for nursing majors pursuing a doctor's degree.

Top 10 Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Mayo Clinic School of Medicine the best school in the Plains States Region for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Rochester, Mayo Clinic School of Medicine is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Nursing at Mayo Clinic School of Medicine Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bryan College of Health Sciences. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the city of Lincoln, Bryan College of Health Sciences is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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#3

Mount Marty University

Yankton, SD

The excellent doctor’s degree programs at Mount Marty University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in the Plains States Region . Mount Marty is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote town of Yankton.

Read full report on Nursing at Mount Marty University

#4

Webster University

Saint Louis, MO

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Webster University is a great place for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Webster is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Saint Louis.

Read full report on Nursing at Webster University

#5

University of Kansas

Lawrence, KS

Out of the 40 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Kansas landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Lawrence, KU is a public school with a very large student population.

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#6

University of North Dakota

Grand Forks, ND

University of North Dakota ranked #6 on this year’s Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. UND is a fairly large public school located in the city of Grand Forks.

Read full report on Nursing at University of North Dakota

University of Nebraska Medical Center ranked #7 on this year’s Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. UNMC is a small public school located in the large city of Omaha.

Full Nursing at University of Nebraska Medical Center Report

Maryville University of Saint Louis came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Maryville U is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Saint Louis.

Read full report on Nursing at Maryville University of Saint Louis

Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health ranked #9 on this year’s Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Nebraska Methodist College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Omaha.

Full Nursing at Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health Report

#10

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

University of Iowa landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best doctor’s degree nursing programs. Located in the small city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Iowa

Best Nursing Colleges by State

Explore the best nursing colleges for a specific state in the Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 14,890
Iowa 2,966
Nebraska 1,908
Missouri 6,840
Kansas 2,633
South Dakota 1,022
North Dakota 976

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

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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