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2024 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in North Carolina

27 Colleges in North Carolina
3,488 Bachelor's Degrees
$61,393 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #2 in popularity, nursing is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual looked at 27 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in North Carolina ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 3,488 bachelor's degrees in nursing to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Nursing School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in North Carolina Your choice of nursing for getting your bachelor'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 bachelor'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 ranking which itself looks at a host 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 bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor'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 complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for nursing students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Nursing Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Nursing Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in North Carolina ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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.


 

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Nursing in North Carolina

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for nursing students seeking a a bachelor's degree.

10 Top North Carolina Schools for a Bachelor's in Nursing

1
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC
147 Annual Graduates
$65,409 Median Starting Salary
$29,000 Median Student Debt

Duke University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in nursing. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Durham.

Nursing bachelor's degree recipients from Duke University earn a boost of approximately $4,016 over the typical earnings of nursing majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from Duke University

2
106 Annual Graduates
$60,514 Median Starting Salary
$23,026 Median Student Debt

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in nursing has to check out University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Located in the city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the nursing program state that they receive average early career earnings of $60,514.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

3
343 Annual Graduates
$61,076 Median Starting Salary
$25,264 Median Student Debt

East Carolina University is a good option for students interested in a bachelor's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Greenville, ECU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the nursing program make around $61,076 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from East Carolina University

4
782 Annual Graduates
$63,331 Median Starting Salary
$22,000 Median Student Debt

University of North Carolina at Wilmington is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in nursing. UNCW is a fairly large public university located in the city of Wilmington.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the nursing program make an average of $63,331 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from University of North Carolina at Wilmington

5
197 Annual Graduates
$59,850 Median Starting Salary
$25,044 Median Student Debt

UNC Charlotte is a fairly large public university located in the city of Charlotte.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the nursing program state that they receive average early career wages of $59,850.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from University of North Carolina at Charlotte

6
Gardner - Webb crest
Gardner - Webb University
Boiling Springs, NC
101 Annual Graduates
$60,377 Median Starting Salary
$24,922 Median Student Debt

Gardner - Webb is a small private not-for-profit university located in the distant town of Boiling Springs.

After graduating, nursing bachelor's recipients usually earn an average of $60,377 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from Gardner - Webb University

7
19 Annual Graduates
$65,605 Median Starting Salary
$26,186 Median Student Debt

Located in the medium-sized city of Concord, Cabarrus College of Health Sciences is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Those nursing students who get their bachelor's degree from Cabarrus College of Health Sciences earn $4,212 more than the typical nursing graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from Cabarrus College of Health Sciences

8
167 Annual Graduates
$58,362 Median Starting Salary
$23,163 Median Student Debt

Located in the town of Cullowhee, WCU is a public university with a large student population.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the nursing program earn around $58,362 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from Western Carolina University

9
143 Annual Graduates
$59,623 Median Starting Salary
$20,000 Median Student Debt

Appalachian State is a fairly large public university located in the distant town of Boone.

After graduating, nursing bachelor's recipients typically make an average of $59,623 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from Appalachian State University

10
47 Annual Graduates
$70,883 Median Starting Salary
$39,146 Median Student Debt

Chamberlain - North Carolina is a small private for-profit university located in the large city of Charlotte.

Bachelor's recipients from the nursing degree program at Chamberlain University - North Carolina earn $9,490 above the average graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in nursing from Chamberlain University - North Carolina


 

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 225 9,015
Georgia 224 3,954
Tennessee 220 3,180
Virginia 213 3,096
South Carolina 195 1,605
Kentucky 187 2,530
Alabama 184 2,607
Louisiana 171 1,963
Mississippi 169 1,307
Arkansas 167 1,371
West Virginia 147 774

View All Rankings >

Nursing is one of 34 different types of Health Professions programs to choose from.

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 3,474
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 14

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Health 913
Health & Medical Administrative Services 826
Communication Sciences 231
Allied Health Professions 229
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions 214
Dietetics & Clinical Nutrition Services 138
Health Sciences & Services 134
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science 90
Other Health Professions 71
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences 44

Notes and References

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