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2025 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Virginia

14 Colleges in Virginia
740 Master's Degrees
$104,014 Avg Early-Career Salary
Nursing is of the hottest master's degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #2 most popular major in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 14 schools in Virginia to determine which ones were the best for master's degree seekers in the field of nursing. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 740 master's degrees in nursing during the 2021-2022 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Nursing School for Your Master's Degree

Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Virginia Your choice of nursing for getting your master's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we consider a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a combination of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for nursing students working on their master's degree.

More Ways to Rank Nursing Schools

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When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Virginia list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Nursing in Virginia

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in nursing.

10 Top Virginia Schools for a Master's in Nursing

1

It is difficult to beat University of Virginia - Main Campus if you want to pursue a master's degree in nursing. University of Virginia is a very large public university located in the midsize suburb of Charlottesville.

Master's graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn about $89,572 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a master’s in nursing from University of Virginia - Main Campus

2

Every student who is interested in a master's degree in nursing needs to look into Virginia Commonwealth University. VCU is a fairly large public university located in the city of Richmond.

Those nursing students who get their master's degree from Virginia Commonwealth University make $7,327 more than the standard nursing grad.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Virginia Commonwealth University

3

It is difficult to beat Old Dominion University if you wish to pursue a master's degree in nursing. Old Dominion is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Norfolk.

After graduation, nursing master's recipients typically make about $104,712 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Old Dominion University

4
Marymount crest
Marymount University
Arlington, VA

Marymount University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a master's degree in nursing. Marymount is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Arlington.

Master's students who receive their degree from the nursing program make about $105,608 for their early career.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Marymount University

5
Shenandoah crest
Shenandoah University
Winchester, VA

Located in the city of Winchester, Shenandoah is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.

Master's recipients from the nursing degree program at Shenandoah University earn $20,667 above the typical college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Shenandoah University

6
ECPI University crest
ECPI University
Virginia Beach, VA

Located in the large city of Virginia Beach, ECPI University is a private for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Master's graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn an average of $102,419 in their early career salary.

More information about a master’s in nursing from ECPI University

7

Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

After graduation, nursing master's recipients typically earn an average of $105,346 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in nursing from George Mason University

8
JMU crest
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA

Located in the small city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

After graduation, nursing master's recipients usually make around $97,814 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in nursing from James Madison University

9
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, VA

Liberty University is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Lynchburg.

Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program report average early career income of $95,825.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Liberty University

10
Radford crest
Radford University
Radford, VA

Located in the town of Radford, Radford is a public university with a moderately-sized student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program report average early career earnings of $101,223.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Radford University

Best Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Florida 208 2,300
Georgia 190 1,353
North Carolina 178 931
Tennessee 166 1,147
Alabama 151 1,997
Kentucky 147 1,361
Louisiana 147 340
South Carolina 146 369
Mississippi 145 175
Arkansas 121 229
West Virginia 112 145

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 283
Nursing Administration 217
Nursing Practice 95
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 86
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 31
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 26
Clinical Nurse Leader 2

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Mental & Social Health Services 1,213
Public Health 533
Allied Health Professions 415
Health & Medical Administrative Services 347
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions 176
Communication Sciences 163
Alternative Medicine & Systems 95
Health/Medical Prep Programs 88
Medical Illustration & Informatics 37
Dental Support Services 35

Notes and References

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