2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You
Nursing is the most popular major in the United States with 26,717 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.
With all the healthcare programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Healthcare Degree Search has created the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 118 schools in the Far Western US Region to see which ones offered the best value associate degree programs for nursing students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
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. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Top 15% Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Los Angeles County College of Nursing and Allied Health the best value school in the Far Western US Region for nursing students working on their associate degree. L.A. County School of Nursing is a fairly small public school located in the city of Los Angeles.
While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at L.A. County School of Nursing accumulate an average of around $21,695 in student debt.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Seattle Central College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Seattle Central is a small public school located in the large city of Seattle.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Seattle Central are $4,670 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Seattle Central carry an average student debtload of $23,418.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Highline College is a great value for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the suburb of Des Moines, Highline is a public school with a small student population.
Highline undergraduate students pay an average of $4,813 in tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at Highline take out an average of $17,371 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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The excellent associate degree programs at Centralia College helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in the Far Western US Region . Centralia College is a small public school located in the distant town of Centralia.
Centralia College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,239 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Centralia College carry an average student debtload of $12,250.
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Out of the 118 schools in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Wenatchee Valley College landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Wenatchee, WVC is a public school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at WVC are $4,734 a year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from WVC carry an average student debtload of $20,904.
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Merced College ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the small city of Merced, Merced Community College District is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Merced Community College District are $7,444 a year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Merced Community College District accumulate an average of around $12,152 in student debt.
Merced Community College District also took the #1 spot in our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region rankings.
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Umpqua 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 #7 on the list. Located in the rural area of Roseburg, Umpqua Community College is a public college with a small student population.
Umpqua Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,945 in tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at Umpqua Community College take out an average of $21,230 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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With a ranking of #8, Yakima Valley College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the city of Yakima, YVC is a public college with a small student population.
YVC undergraduate students pay an average of $5,352 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at YVC take out while working on their Associate Degree is $21,518.
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Lower Columbia College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. LCC is a small public school located in the city of Longview.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at LCC are $5,403 a year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from LCC carry an average student debtload of $21,451.
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Spokane Community College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Spokane Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the midsize city of Spokane.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Spokane Community College are $5,135 a year. On average, nursing graduates from Spokane Community College take out $23,946 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Butte College ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the rural area of Oroville, Butte College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Butte College are $7,848 per year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Butte College accumulate an average of around $19,826 in student debt.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Butte College also is in the top 15% of our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking.
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Yuba College landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Yuba College is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Marysville.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Yuba College are $7,488 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Yuba College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $11,836.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Yuba College also is in the top 15% of our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking.
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Ventura 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 #13 on the list. Ventura College is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Ventura.
Ventura College undergraduate students pay an average of $7,398 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Ventura College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $18,169.
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With a ranking of #14, Modesto Junior College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. MJC is a large public school located in the medium-sized city of Modesto.
MJC undergraduate students pay an average of $8,550 in tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at MJC take out an average of $16,015 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
In addition to its great value ranking, MJC is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list.
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Big Bend 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 #15 on the list. Big Bend Community College is a small public school located in the remote town of Moses Lake.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Big Bend Community College are $5,098 a year.
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Southwestern Oregon Community College came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. SWOCC is a small public school located in the town of Coos Bay.
SWOCC undergraduate students pay an average of $6,483 in tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at SWOCC take out an average of $21,611 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Antelope Valley 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 #17 on the list. Antelope Valley College is a large public school located in the large suburb of Lancaster.
Antelope Valley College undergraduate students pay an average of $6,980 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Antelope Valley College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $15,472.
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Here are some additional great value schools for Nursing students in the Far Western US Region seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Cabrillo College | Aptos, CA |
| 19 | Rogue Community College | Grants Pass, OR |
| 20 | Glendale Community College | Glendale, CA |
| 21 | Moorpark College | Moorpark, CA |
| 21 | Cuesta College | San Luis Obispo, CA |
| 23 | Columbia Gorge Community College | The Dalles, OR |
Best Nursing Colleges by State
Explore the best nursing colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Oregon | 1,502 |
| California | 18,329 |
| Washington | 3,851 |
| Nevada | 2,015 |
| Hawaii | 535 |
| Alaska | 177 |
More Nursing Rankings in the Far Western US Region
Nursing Related Majors for Nursing
One of 30 majors within the healthcare area of study, nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.
Nursing Concentrations
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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