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Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region

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2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region

108 Colleges
$79,068 Avg Salary
$26,724 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing 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. 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 Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 108 schools in the New England Region to see which 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 colleges and universities below are the most popular for nursing majors pursuing a .

Our 2023 rankings named Southern New Hampshire University the most popular school in the New England Region for nursing students. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Manchester, SNHU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at SNHU take out is $31,500.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend American Sentinel University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region list. Located in the midsize suburb of Aurora, American Sentinel University is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

On average, nursing graduates from American Sentinel University take out $24,075 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Nursing at American Sentinel University

#3

Regis College

Weston, MA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Regis College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region list. Located in the large suburb of Weston, Regis College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Regis College take out is $32,082. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $540, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#4

Simmons University

Boston, MA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Simmons University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region list. Located in the city of Boston, Simmons is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Simmons take out is $27,000.

Read full report on Nursing at Simmons University

#5

Sacred Heart University

Fairfield, CT

Out of the 108 schools in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Sacred Heart University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Sacred Heart is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Fairfield.

While working on their degree, nursing majors at Sacred Heart accumulate an average of around $30,214 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $805.

Full Nursing at Sacred Heart University Report

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for nursing students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Boston, MCPHS University is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

After completing their degree, nursing graduates from MCPHS University carry an average student debt load of $31,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $688, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Nursing at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Report

University of Massachusetts - Boston did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for nursing students. It came in at #7 on the list. UMass Boston is a large public school located in the city of Boston.

On average, nursing graduates from UMass Boston take out $31,138 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Nursing at University of Massachusetts - Boston Report

University of Rhode Island ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region list. URI is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Kingston.

Nursing majors at URI take out an average of $26,577 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $419, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Nursing at University of Rhode Island Report

#9

Laboure College

Milton, MA

With a ranking of #9, Laboure College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. Located in the large suburb of Milton, Laboure College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

On average, nursing graduates from Laboure College take out $33,121 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $257.

Full Nursing at Laboure College Report

#10

Quinnipiac University

Hamden, CT

Quinnipiac University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region ranking. Located in the large suburb of Hamden, Quinnipiac is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Quinnipiac take out is $26,900. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $774.

Read full report on Nursing at Quinnipiac University

University of Connecticut ranked #11 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region list. UCONN is a very large public school located in the suburb of Storrs.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at UCONN take out is $27,000. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $400, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Connecticut

#12

Rivier University

Nashua, NH

With a ranking of #12, Rivier University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. Located in the city of Nashua, Rivier is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Nursing majors at Rivier take out an average of $33,255 in student loans while working on their egree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $369.

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#13

Goodwin College

East Hartford, CT

Goodwin College landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. Goodwin is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of East Hartford.

On average, nursing graduates from Goodwin take out $51,086 in student loans while working on their degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $191.

Read full report on Nursing at Goodwin College

With a ranking of #14, MGH Institute of Health Professions did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. MGH Institute of Health Professions is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Boston.

Nursing majors at MGH Institute of Health Professions take out an average of $31,813 in student loans while working on their egree.

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Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in the New England Region list. Located in the large city of Boston, Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Nursing majors at Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network take out an average of $30,858 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $431.

Full Nursing at Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network Report

#16

Curry College

Milton, MA

Curry College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for nursing students. It came in at #16 on the list. Curry is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Milton.

Nursing majors at Curry take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $751, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Nursing at Curry College

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 Schools in the New England Region award.

Rank College Location
17 University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA
18 Fairfield University Fairfield, CT
19 University of Southern Maine Portland, ME
20 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
21 Community College of Rhode Island Warwick, RI

Best Nursing Colleges by State

Explore the best nursing schools for a specific state in the New England region.

State Degrees Awarded
Massachusetts 6,626
Connecticut 3,058
New Hampshire 2,129
Maine 1,262
Vermont 390
Rhode Island 1,091

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 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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