2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Nursing in the Plains States Region
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region” ranking.
In 2019-2020, 313,362 nursing students received their degree, making the major the 3rd most popular in the country. In 2017-2018, nursing graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $67,065 and had an average of $26,282 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Plains States region, there were 29,923 nursing graduates with average earnings and debt of $66,148 and $28,004 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 7,280 nursing graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,438 and $39,783 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region” ranking looked at 53 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in nursing. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality nursing programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the nursing program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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One Size Does Not Fit All
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 “Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region”.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region master’s degree nursing students.
Top 25 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Nursing in the Plains States Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Mount Marty University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region. Mount Marty University is a small school located in Yankton, South Dakota that handed out 18 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Mount Marty did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Mount Marty are $8,175.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Clarkson College. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Clarkson College is located in Omaha, Nebraska and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 113 masters’s nursing degrees to qualified students.
Clarkson College also took the #10 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Clarkson College are $11,808.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Maryville University of Saint Louis. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Maryville U is a fairly large school located in Saint Louis, Missouri that handed out 846 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Maryville U did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Maryville University of Saint Louis are $15,696, but some majors have different tuition rates.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Walden University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region. Located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this large private for-profit school handed out 4,106 diplomas to qualified masters’s nursing students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Walden University, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Walden University are $10,716, but some majors have different tuition rates.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Winona, Minnesota. It awarded 64 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at SMU MN, the school also landed the #13 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota are $10,260, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read more about Nursing at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Winona State University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Winona State University is a medium-sized school located in Winona, Minnesota that handed out 13 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Winona State also made our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #11. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Winona State University are $12,378.
Capella University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #6. Capella University is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 527 masters’s nursing degrees to qualified students.
Capella University also made our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #15. Average graduate tuition and fees at Capella University are $14,767, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Nebraska Wesleyan University landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. NWU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Lincoln, Nebraska. The school has a small population, and it awarded 30 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at NWU are $5,186, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
With a ranking of #9, Morningside College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Morningside is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Sioux City, Iowa. It awarded 42 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Morningside College are $5,400, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #10, Newman University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Newman University is a small school located in Wichita, Kansas that handed out 21 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Newman University are $8,484, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Minnesota State University - Mankato came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public school situated in Mankato, Minnesota. It awarded 14 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Minnesota State Mankato are $8,788, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
With a ranking of #12, University of North Dakota did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. UND is located in Grand Forks, North Dakota and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 90 masters’s nursing degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our plains states region master’s degree nursing students list, UND has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UND are $18,326, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Creighton University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Creighton is located in Omaha, Nebraska and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 6 masters’s nursing degrees to qualified students.
Creighton not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Creighton are $18,528, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
With a ranking of #14, University of Mary did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. University of Mary is a small school located in Bismarck, North Dakota that handed out 52 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our plains states region master’s degree nursing students list, UMary has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UMary are $17,861, but some majors have different tuition rates.
South Dakota State University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in Brookings, South Dakota, this fairly large public school handed out 45 degrees to qualified masters’s nursing students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at South Dakota State, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at South Dakota State are $16,743, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Missouri State University - Springfield ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Located in Springfield, Missouri, this large public school handed out 3 degrees to qualified masters’s nursing students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Missouri State are $12,042, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Saint Louis, Missouri is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s nursing degrees to 26 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Goldfarb School of Nursing, the school also landed the #24 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Goldfarb School of Nursing are $10,872, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read more about Nursing at Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College
With a ranking of #18, Bethel University Minnesota did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Bethel University Minnesota is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 29 masters’s nursing degrees to qualified students.
Bethel University Minnesota also took the #25 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Bethel University Minnesota are $11,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Allen College came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Allen College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Waterloo, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 44 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Allen College, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Allen College are $18,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #20. Located in Omaha, Nebraska, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 18 degrees to qualified masters’s nursing students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health are $12,438, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #21, Saint Louis University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Saint Louis University is a fairly large school located in Saint Louis, Missouri that handed out 92 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
SLU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Saint Louis University are $22,074, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Briar Cliff University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Located in Sioux City, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 21 degrees to qualified masters’s nursing students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Briar Cliff are $10,530, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Rockhurst University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in Kansas City, Missouri, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 81 diplomas to qualified masters’s nursing students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our plains states region master’s degree nursing students list, Rockhurst has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Rockhurst University are $16,780, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Graceland University - Lamoni ranked #24 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Graceland University - Lamoni is a small school located in Lamoni, Iowa that handed out 199 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Graceland Lamoni also took the #20 spot in our “Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Graceland Lamoni are $17,647, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Research College of Nursing came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Research College of Nursing is a small school located in Kansas City, Missouri that handed out 34 masters’s nursing degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Research College of Nursing are $10,520.
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Notes and References
References
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
Footnotes
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
Credits
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.
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