by our College Data Analytics TeamCollege Factual looked at 82 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 6,328 master's degrees in nursing to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
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. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we include a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their master's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their master's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our complete 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.
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 the Middle Atlantic Region list to help you make the college decision.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in nursing. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
University of Pennsylvania is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a master's degree in nursing. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Philadelphia.
Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program report average early career income of $115,382.
More information about a master’s in nursing from University of Pennsylvania
It is difficult to beat New York University if you want to pursue a master's degree in nursing. NYU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York.
Master's recipients from the nursing program at New York University make $20,548 more than the standard college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
More information about a master’s in nursing from New York University
It's difficult to beat George Washington University if you want to pursue a master's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.
Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program report average early career income of $102,660.
More information about a master’s in nursing from George Washington University
Johns Hopkins University is a wonderful option for individuals interested in a master's degree in nursing. Located in the large city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.
Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program state that they receive average early career income of $84,697.
More information about a master’s in nursing from Johns Hopkins University
Georgetown is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Washington.
Master's graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn an average of $112,845 for their early career.
More information about a master’s in nursing from Georgetown University
UMB is a moderately-sized public university located in the city of Baltimore.
Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program state that they receive average early career income of $85,488.
More information about a master’s in nursing from University of Maryland - BaltimoreSUNY Stony Brook is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Stony Brook. Nursing master's degree recipients from Stony Brook University receive an earnings boost of about $5,987 above the average income of nursing graduates. Located in the large city of Brooklyn, SUNY Downstate is a public university with a small student population. Those nursing students who get their master's degree from SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University receive $11,674 more than the typical nursing grad. Located in the suburb of Rockville Centre, Molloy is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. Those nursing students who get their master's degree from Molloy College earn $13,147 more than the standard nursing graduate. Drexel is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia. Master's graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program make about $117,291 for their early career.7
169
Annual Graduates$126,792
Median Starting Salary8
130
Annual Graduates$132,479
Median Starting Salary9
96
Annual Graduates$133,952
Median Starting Salary10
296
Annual Graduates$117,291
Median Starting Salary
Villanova is a large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Villanova.
Nursing master's degree recipients from Villanova University receive an earnings boost of around $4,612 over the average earnings of nursing graduates.
More information about a master’s in nursing from Villanova UniversityUniversity of Rochester is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Rochester. Master's students who receive their degree from the nursing program make an average of $104,483 in the first couple years of their career. Thomas Jefferson University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia. Soon after graduating, nursing master's recipients usually make an average of $117,607 in their early careers. Located in the suburb of Brookville, LIU Post is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population. Nursing master's degree recipients from LIU Post get an earnings boost of around $10,153 over the typical income of nursing majors. Located in the city of Syracuse, SUNY Upstate Medical University is a public university with a small student population. Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program state that they receive average early career income of $109,921.12
84
Annual Graduates$104,483
Median Starting Salary13
224
Annual Graduates$117,607
Median Starting Salary14
186
Annual Graduates$130,958
Median Starting Salary15
90
Annual Graduates$109,921
Median Starting Salary
Pace University is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York.
Master's recipients from the nursing major at Pace University - New York get $15,216 more than the typical graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
More information about a master’s in nursing from Pace University - New YorkHere are some additional great schools for Nursing students in the Middle Atlantic Region that almost earned our Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region award.Rank College Location 17 Adelphi University Garden City, NY 18 Hofstra University Hempstead, NY 19 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA 20 La Salle University Philadelphia, PA 21 Binghamton University Vestal, NY 22 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ 23 Hunter College New York, NY 24 Duquesne University Pittsburgh, PA 25 Lehman College Bronx, NY 26 Gannon University Erie, PA 27 Wagner College Staten Island, NY
Explore the best nursing colleges for a specific state in the Middle Atlantic Region .State Colleges Degrees Awarded New York 261 2,540 Pennsylvania 248 2,051 Maryland 193 624 New Jersey 188 445 District of Columbia 154 448 Delaware 109 129
One of 34 majors within the Health Professions area of study, Nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.
