2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools
Finding the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate School for You
Nursing is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 2nd of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 66,964 degrees and certificates were awarded to students with this major.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 272 schools in the United States to see which graduate certificate programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best for nursing majors pursuing a graduate certificate.
Top 25 Top Schools for a Postbaccalaureate Certificates in Nursing
Our analysis found Mayo Clinic School of Medicine to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the United States. Mayo Clinic School of Medicine is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Rochester.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Samuel Merritt University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Samuel Merritt University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Oakland.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Frontier Nursing University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the rural area of Hyden, Frontier Nursing University is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The excellent graduate certificate programs at Thomas Jefferson University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in the United States. Thomas Jefferson University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the city of Brooklyn, SUNY Downstate is a public school with a small student population.
Full Nursing at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University Report
Georgetown University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate nursing programs. Georgetown is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.
Johns Hopkins University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Baltimore.
West Coast University - Orange County came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Anaheim, West Coast University - Orange County is a private for-profit school with a small student population.
Read full report on Nursing at West Coast University - Orange County
Duke University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Vanderbilt University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate nursing programs. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #11 on the list. Texas A&M College Station is a very large public school located in the city of College Station.
Read full report on Nursing at Texas A&M University - College Station
Maryville University of Saint Louis ranked #12 on this year’s Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, Maryville U is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
Western University of Health Sciences came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Western University of Health Sciences is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Pomona.
Full Nursing at Western University of Health Sciences Report
University of St Francis landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate nursing programs. University of Saint Francis is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Joliet.
With a ranking of #15, Mount Marty University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the town of Yankton, Mount Marty is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
With a ranking of #16, Clarkson College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of Omaha, Clarkson College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
With a ranking of #17, Texas Christian University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. TCU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Fort Worth.
While working on their Graduate Certificate, nursing majors at TCU accumulate an average of around $19,027 in student debt.
Chamberlain University - Illinois landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate nursing programs. Chamberlain - Illinois is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the suburb of Addison.
Read full report on Nursing at Chamberlain University - Illinois
West Coast University - Dallas did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the large city of Dallas, West Coast University - Dallas is a private for-profit college with a small student population.
Gannon University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #20 on the list. Gannon is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Erie.
With a ranking of #21, University of California - San Francisco did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. UCSF is a small public school located in the large city of San Francisco.
Full Nursing at University of California - San Francisco Report
Winona State University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the distant town of Winona, Winona State is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
Drexel University ranked #23 on this year’s Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools list. Drexel is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.
California State University - Dominguez Hills landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate nursing programs. Located in the small city of Carson, CSUDH is a public school with a large student population.
Read full report on Nursing at California State University - Dominguez Hills
University of Florida came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the city of Gainesville, UF is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Rest of the Top Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools
Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great schools for Nursing students that almost earned our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools award.
Rank | College | Location |
---|---|---|
41 | Wagner College | Staten Island, NY |
42 | Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center | Lubbock, TX |
43 | California State University - Long Beach | Long Beach, CA |
44 | Herzing University - Madison | Madison, WI |
45 | Grand Canyon University | Phoenix, AZ |
46 | Lewis University | Romeoville, IL |
47 | Emory University | Atlanta, GA |
48 | Yale University | New Haven, CT |
49 | Point Loma Nazarene University | San Diego, CA |
50 | Columbia University in the City of New York | New York, NY |
51 | Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions | Provo, UT |
52 | The University of Texas at Arlington | Arlington, TX |
53 | University of San Francisco | San Francisco, CA |
54 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
Nursing by Region
View the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools for a specific region near you.
Region |
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Southeast |
New England |
Rocky Mountains |
Plains States |
Middle Atlantic |
Far Western US |
Southwest |
Great Lakes |
More Nursing Rankings
Nursing Related Rankings by Major
Nursing is one of 29 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Related Majors
Related Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Medicine | 28,629 |
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions | 24,774 |
Public Health | 19,473 |
Health & Medical Administrative Services | 17,335 |
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences | 16,952 |
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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