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2025 Best Registered Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

8 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
180 Doctor's Degrees
If you pursue a doctor's degree in registered nursing, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #25 most popular program in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 8 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for registered nursing students pursuing a doctor's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 180 doctor's degrees in registered nursing during the 2022-2023 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Registered Nursing School for Your Doctor's Degree

Best Registered Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region The registered nursing doctor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. 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:

Quality Overall Is Important

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To take this into account we consider a school's overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

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 colleges for registered nursing students working on their doctor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Registered Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Best Schools for Doctorate Students to Study Registered Nursing in the Great Lakes Region

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in registered nursing.

Top Great Lakes Region Schools for a Doctorate in Registered Nursing

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
10 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a doctor's degree in registered nursing has to look into University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
24 Annual Graduates

Purdue University - Main Campus is one of the best schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in registered nursing. Located in the small city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from Purdue University - Main Campus

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
37 Annual Graduates

Every student who is interested in a doctor's degree in registered nursing has to look into Ohio State University - Main Campus. Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from Ohio State University - Main Campus

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
17 Annual Graduates

Kent State University at Kent is a wonderful decision for individuals interested in a doctor's degree in registered nursing. Located in the suburb of Kent, Kent State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from Kent State University at Kent

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
7 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Detroit, Detroit Mercy is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from University of Detroit Mercy

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
44 Annual Graduates

Located in the small city of Flint, UM Flint is a public university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from University of Michigan - Flint

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
27 Annual Graduates

GVSU is a fairly large public university located in the town of Allendale.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from Grand Valley State University

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
9 Annual Graduates

UWM is a fairly large public university located in the city of Milwaukee.More information about a doctorate in registered nursing from University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

Best Registered Nursing Colleges by State

Explore the best registered nursing schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Illinois 273 0
Michigan 257 77
Ohio 253 88
Indiana 202 7
Wisconsin 163 15

View All Rankings >

Registered Nursing is one of 23 different types of Nursing programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Nursing Practice 1,542
Nurse Anesthetist 209
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 64
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 49
Nursing Science 42
Nursing Administration 34
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 17
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 12
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 12
School Nursing 9

Notes and References

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