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Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools

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2023 Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools

400 Colleges
$99,011 Avg Salary
$21,624 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate 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.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which healthcare program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Healthcare Degree Search has created its Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 400 schools in the United States to see which graduate certificate 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.

Check out the nursing graduate certificate programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the United States.

Our 2023 rankings named Maryville University of Saint Louis the most popular school in the United States for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Maryville U is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.

About 87% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 13% are male.

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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is a great place for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the large city of Cincinnati, UC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 88% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 12% are male.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at UC take out while working on their Graduate Certificate is $21,375.

Full Nursing at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus Report

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The in-demand graduate certificate programs at University of South Alabama helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular nursing schools in the United States. Located in the midsize city of Mobile, USA is a public school with a large student population.

About 94% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 6% are male.

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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Frontier Nursing University is a great place for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Frontier Nursing University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Hyden.

Women make up 96% of the nursing majors at the school.

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#5

Regis College

Weston, MA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Regis College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Weston, Regis College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Of the 120 students majoring in nursing at Regis College, 16% are male and 84% are female.

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#6

Purdue University Global

Indianapolis, IN

With a ranking of #6, Purdue University Global did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of Indianapolis, Purdue University Global is a public college with a very large student population.

Of the 115 students majoring in nursing at Purdue University Global, 12% are male and 88% are female.

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California State University - Long Beach ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. CSULB is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Long Beach.

Women make up 83% of the nursing majors at the school.

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With a ranking of #8, Columbia University in the City of New York did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 93% of the nursing majors at the school.

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The University of Texas at Arlington landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate nursing programs. UT Arlington is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Arlington.

About 89% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 11% are male.

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#10

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

Liberty University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the small city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 92 students majoring in nursing at Liberty University, 11% are male and 89% are female.

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#11

Grand Canyon University

Phoenix, AZ

Grand Canyon University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate nursing programs. Located in the city of Phoenix, Grand Canyon University is a private for-profit school with a very large student population.

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

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Illinois State University ranked #12 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public school with a very large student population.

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#13

Northern Kentucky University

Highland Heights, KY

Northern Kentucky University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate nursing programs. Located in the suburb of Highland Heights, NKU is a public college with a large student population.

Of the 71 students majoring in nursing at NKU, 10% are male and 90% are female.

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With a ranking of #14, Concordia University, Wisconsin did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Concordia University, Wisconsin is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Mequon.

Women make up 93% of the nursing majors at the school.

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Herzing University - Madison did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the large city of Madison, Herzing University - Madison is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

About 90% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 10% are male.

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The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #16 on the list. UT Rio Grande Valley is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Edinburg.

Women make up 80% of the nursing majors at the school.

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#17

Duke University

Durham, NC

Duke University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham.

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

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With a ranking of #18, Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. RMUoHP is a small private for-profit school located in the midsize city of Provo.

Of the 51 students majoring in nursing at RMUoHP, 14% are male and 86% are female.

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#19

Ursuline College

Pepper Pike, OH

Ursuline College ranked #19 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Ursuline College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Pepper Pike.

About 98% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 2% are male.

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University of Massachusetts - Boston came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. UMass Boston is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Boston.

Women make up 95% of the nursing majors at the school.

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University of New Hampshire - Main Campus ranked #21 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the suburb of Durham, UNH is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 81% of the nursing majors at the school.

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Washington State University landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate nursing programs. Wazzu is a very large public school located in the distant town of Pullman.

About 81% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 19% are male.

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#23

National University

La Jolla, CA

National University landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate nursing programs. Located in the city of La Jolla, National University is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Of the 39 students majoring in nursing at National University, 15% are male and 85% are female.

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Ohio State University - Main Campus ranked #24 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Ohio State is a very large public school located in the city of Columbus.

Women make up 84% of the nursing majors at the school.

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#24

Drexel University

Philadelphia, PA

With a ranking of #24, Drexel University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, Drexel is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

About 89% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 11% are male.

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#26

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD
#29

Washburn University

Topeka, KS
#31

Bradley University

Peoria, IL
#31

George Washington University

Washington, DC
#33

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN
#35

Molloy College

Rockville Centre, NY
#37

Brandman University

Irvine, CA
#37

Pace University - New York

New York, NY
#37

Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY
#41

Shenandoah University

Winchester, VA
#41

University of Miami

Coral Gables, FL
#45

East Tennessee State University

Johnson City, TN
#48

Thomas Jefferson University

Philadelphia, PA
#50

Florida Atlantic University

Boca Raton, FL

Additional Award Winners

This list represents the rest of the schools awarded a Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 400 different United States nursing schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
50 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
52 Arizona State University - Tempe Tempe, AZ
52 Mayo Clinic School of Medicine Rochester, MN
52 Rivier University Nashua, NH
52 West Coast University - Orange County Anaheim, CA
52 University of Southern Indiana Evansville, IN
57 University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg, MS
57 University of Toledo Toledo, OH
57 University of Mississippi University, MS
57 The University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, TX

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools award.

Rank College Location
61 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY
61 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH
61 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA
61 Georgia State University Atlanta, GA
61 University of Nevada - Reno Reno, NV
61 Texas Woman’s University Denton, TX
67 Hofstra University Hempstead, NY
67 Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Lubbock, TX
67 Lehman College Bronx, NY
67 Emory University Atlanta, GA
67 Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global Marion, IN
72 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
72 Alverno College Milwaukee, WI
72 University of Michigan - Flint Flint, MI
75 University of Maryland - Baltimore Baltimore, MD
75 California State University - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
75 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
75 Lewis University Romeoville, IL
75 Rush University Chicago, IL
75 Russell Sage College Troy, NY
75 Capella University Minneapolis, MN
75 Eastern Kentucky University Richmond, KY

Nursing by Region

View the Most Popular Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

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.

  • 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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