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Most Popular Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois

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2023 Most Popular Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois

19 Colleges
$115,233 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Doctor'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 Most Popular Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Our analysis looked at 19 schools in Illinois to see which doctor's degree programs were the most popular for healthcare students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Nursing program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Nursing Doctor's Degree Colleges.

Our analysis found Chamberlain University - Illinois to be the most popular school for nursing students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in Illinois. Located in the large suburb of Addison, Chamberlain - Illinois is a private for-profit school with a very large student population.

About 93% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 7% are male.

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#2

Rush University

Chicago, IL

Out of the 19 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Rush University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Chicago, Rush University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Women make up 88% of the nursing majors at the school.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Chicago. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the large city of Chicago, UIC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 90% of the nursing majors at the school.

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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a great place for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the large suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 69 students majoring in nursing at SIUE, 26% are male and 74% are female.

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#5

Bradley University

Peoria, IL

The in-demand doctor’s degree programs at Bradley University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular nursing schools in Illinois. Bradley is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Peoria.

Women make up 89% of the nursing majors at the school.

Full Nursing at Bradley University Report

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Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. RFUMS is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of North Chicago.

About 64% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 36% are male.

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#7

DePaul University

Chicago, IL

DePaul University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. DePaul is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

About 67% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 33% are male.

Full Nursing at DePaul University Report

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Loyola University Chicago came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Loyola Chicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

About 95% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 5% are male.

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#9

Millikin University

Decatur, IL

Millikin University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Millikin is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Decatur.

Women make up 71% of the nursing majors at the school.

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#10

McKendree University

Lebanon, IL

McKendree University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree nursing programs. Located in the suburb of Lebanon, McKendree is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Women make up 91% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at McKendree University

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Best Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Most Popular 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 19 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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