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2024 Best Nursing Schools in Missouri

42 Colleges in Missouri
6,879 Nursing Degrees Awarded
$67,538 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #3 in popularity, nursing is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 42 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Nursing Schools in Missouri ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 6,879 degrees in nursing during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Nursing School

Best Nursing Schools in Missouri The nursing program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Nursing rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for nursing schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Nursing Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Nursing
Bachelor's Degrees in Nursing
Master's Degrees in Nursing
Doctor's Degrees in Nursing

The nursing school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Nursing Schools in Missouri. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Nursing in Missouri

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the nursing degree levels they offer.

10 Top Missouri Schools in Nursing

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,452 Nursing Degrees Awarded
4.7% Growth in Graduates

Maryville University of Saint Louis is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in nursing. Maryville U is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Saint Louis. A Best Colleges rank of #202 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Maryville U is a great university overall.

There were roughly 1452 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Maryville U in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the nursing program at Maryville University of Saint Louis earn $25,575 above the average graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in nursing from Maryville University of Saint Louis

2
SLU crest
Saint Louis University
Saint Louis, MO
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
324 Nursing Degrees Awarded
2.2% Growth in Graduates

Every student who is interested in nursing needs to take a look at Saint Louis University. Located in the city of Saint Louis, SLU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #244 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means SLU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 324 nursing students who graduated with this degree at SLU in the most recent year we have data available. Those nursing students who get their degree from Saint Louis University make $3,714 more than the typical nursing graduate.

More information about a degree in nursing from Saint Louis University

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
405 Nursing Degrees Awarded
$76,635 Median Starting Salary

Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in nursing. Goldfarb School of Nursing is a fairly small private not-for-profit college located in the large city of Saint Louis.

There were roughly 405 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Goldfarb School of Nursing in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the nursing major at Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College make $9,097 more than the average graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in nursing from Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
285 Nursing Degrees Awarded
3.5% Growth in Graduates

University of Missouri - Columbia is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in nursing. Located in the city of Columbia, Mizzou is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #124 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Mizzou is a great university overall.

There were roughly 285 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Mizzou in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the nursing major at University of Missouri - Columbia get $9,604 more than the typical college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in nursing from University of Missouri - Columbia

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
351 Nursing Degrees Awarded
29.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Kansas City, UMKC is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #480 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UMKC is a great university overall.

There were about 351 nursing students who graduated with this degree at UMKC in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the nursing major at University of Missouri - Kansas City earn $28,110 more than the average graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in nursing from University of Missouri - Kansas City

6
Webster crest
Webster University
Saint Louis, MO
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
172 Nursing Degrees Awarded
25.0% Growth in Graduates

Webster is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Saint Louis. A Best Colleges rank of #219 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Webster is a great university overall.

There were roughly 172 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Webster in the most recent data year. Nursing degree recipients from Webster University get an earnings boost of approximately $83,917 over the typical income of nursing graduates.

More information about a degree in nursing from Webster University

7
Rockhurst crest
Rockhurst University
Kansas City, MO
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
306 Nursing Degrees Awarded
$59,845 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Kansas City, Rockhurst is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #374 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Rockhurst is a great university overall.

There were roughly 306 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Rockhurst in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, nursing degree recipients generally make around $59,845 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in nursing from Rockhurst University

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
180 Nursing Degrees Awarded
17.8% Growth in Graduates

Missouri State is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Springfield. A Best Colleges rank of #427 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Missouri State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 180 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Missouri State in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the nursing program at Missouri State University - Springfield get $45,328 more than the standard college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in nursing from Missouri State University - Springfield

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
254 Nursing Degrees Awarded
2.4% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, UMSL is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #405 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UMSL is a great university overall.

There were about 254 nursing students who graduated with this degree at UMSL in the most recent data year. Nursing degree recipients from University of Missouri - St Louis earn a boost of around $4,344 over the average income of nursing graduates.

More information about a degree in nursing from University of Missouri - St Louis

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
203 Nursing Degrees Awarded
24.6% Growth in Graduates

Research College of Nursing is a fairly small private for-profit college located in the large city of Kansas City.

There were about 203 nursing students who graduated with this degree at Research College of Nursing in the most recent year we have data available. Those nursing students who get their degree from Research College of Nursing earn $11,425 more than the average nursing graduate.

More information about a degree in nursing from Research College of Nursing


 

Best Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Schools in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 284 14,831
Kansas 266 2,599
Iowa 264 2,901
Nebraska 238 1,885
North Dakota 210 975
South Dakota 204 1,013

View All Rankings >

One of 34 majors within the Health Professions area of study, Nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 4,455
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 626
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 597
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 374
Nursing Practice 266
Critical Care Nursing 156
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 140
Nurse Anesthetist 114
School Nursing 82
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 33

View All Nursing Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Allied Health Professions 1,414
Health & Medical Administrative Services 1,157
Medicine 1,143
Health Sciences & Services 1,096
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions 982
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 962
Public Health 900
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 872
Communication Sciences 598
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences 491

View All Nursing Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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