Nursing is one of the largest undergraduate majors in the United States, and the largest single field within the health professions, the category that trails only business among all bachelor’s degrees conferred each year. More than 100,000 students earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing annually. The BSN is both a professional credential and an academic degree. It prepares graduates for direct patient care as registered nurses while laying the scientific and clinical groundwork for advanced practice, healthcare administration, nursing research, and doctoral study. Demand for BSN-prepared nurses has grown for decades, pushed by an aging population, hospital quality standards that favor BSN nurses, and the profession’s steady shift from associate-degree to bachelor’s-degree entry.
The scale of nursing education also shapes how this ranking is built. IPEDS completions data list 892 institutions awarding nursing degrees, but the College Transitions panel, drawn from the Common Data Set filed by traditional residential colleges and universities, scores 480 of them. The programs it leaves out are mostly large online and for-profit providers: Western Governors University (22,174 nursing degrees over three years), Capella University (17,483), Grand Canyon University (12,054), Southern New Hampshire University, Walden University, and many more. Those schools serve mainly RN-to-BSN students, working registered nurses finishing a degree online, rather than pre-licensure students entering nursing from high school. The ranking covers the 480 scoreable programs: traditional and hybrid institutions whose students sit in a comparable panel dataset.
College Transitions has built a data-driven ranking of the top 100 undergraduate nursing programs, using the same five-component methodology applied across this ranking series.
How We Built the Ranking
The approach evaluates all 480 scoreable institutions across five components.
| Component | Weight | Data Source / Notes |
| Major Emphasis | 12% | IPEDS Degree Completions (CIP 51.38) |
| Program Scale | 13% | IPEDS Degree Completions (log) |
| Academic Rating | 30% | IPEDS / Common Data Set |
| Earnings & ROI (Tier 1) | 25% | Field earnings 55% + inst. 15% + ROI 20yr 15% + ROI 40yr 15% (87.7% field coverage) |
| Earnings & ROI (Tier 2†) | 25% | Inst. earnings 55% + ROI 20yr 22.5% + ROI 40yr 22.5%, for 38 programs without field earnings |
| PhD Productivity | 20% | NSF Survey of Earned Doctorates: “Nursing science” field |
California nursing earnings. The Earnings and ROI component produces a distinctive geographic pattern. California salaries sit far above the national norm, a product of strong nurse unionization, the highest cost of living in the country, and a legal nurse-to-patient staffing ratio that sustains demand and pricing power. The eight highest field earners in the entire dataset are all California institutions: CSU East Bay ($139,795), Samuel Merritt University ($135,557), Dominican University of California ($132,781), San Francisco State ($132,542), San Jose State ($130,227), University of San Francisco ($127,245), Holy Names University ($124,476), and Sonoma State ($124,083). National median nursing field earnings sit near $71,027, close to half the California figure. The result is a structural advantage for California programs in this component, one that reflects real labor-market conditions but can overstate quality differences against programs in lower-wage states. Anyone comparing programs across states should keep that earnings gradient in mind.
PhD productivity. NSF field “Nursing science.” This is the smallest doctoral pipeline of any field in the series, just 3,916 nursing doctoral recipients between 2015 and 2024 across all institutions. The figure tracks the well-documented nursing faculty shortage, where demand for PhD-prepared educators outstrips supply. Programs with strong pipelines, the University of Pennsylvania (54 PhDs), the University of Michigan (43), the University of Wisconsin-Madison (41), Boston College (36), and Villanova (34), are rare, and their per-capita rates point to research commitments that stand out in the field.
The Top 25
This is the most private-institution-dominated nursing ranking in the series. Every program in the top 25 is private. Twenty-three are universities, and two, Wagner College and Saint Anselm College, are liberal arts colleges; no public university appears until #32. Catholic and Jesuit institutions are especially well represented, a pattern that traces nursing’s roots in hospital-based and religiously affiliated education and the continued strength of nursing at schools where healthcare ministry is part of the mission.
| Rank | Institution | State | Type | C4 | Score |
| 1 | University of Pennsylvania | PA | Private | T1 | 86.6 |
| 2 | Adelphi University | NY | Private | T1 | 86.0 |
| 3 | Villanova University | PA | Private | T1 | 85.7 |
| 4 | University of San Francisco | CA | Private | T1 | 85.6 |
| 5 | University of Rochester | NY | Private | T1 | 85.3 |
| 6 | University of Portland | OR | Private | T1 | 84.0 |
| 7 | Seattle University | WA | Private | T1 | 83.0 |
| 8 | New York University | NY | Private | T1 | 82.8 |
| 9 | Fairfield University | CT | Private | T1 | 80.9 |
| 10 | George Washington University | DC | Private | T1 | 79.0 |
| 11 | University of Miami | FL | Private | T1 | 78.8 |
| 12 | Creighton University | NE | Private | T1 | 78.2 |
| 13 | Drexel University | PA | Private | T1 | 77.9 |
| 14 | Azusa Pacific University | CA | Private | T1 | 77.8 |
| 15 | Duke University | NC | Private | T1 | 77.8 |
| 16 | Boston College | MA | Private | T1 | 76.8 |
| 17 | Wagner College | NY | LAC | T1 | 76.3 |
| 18 | Saint Anselm College | NH | LAC | T1 | 75.6 |
| 19 | Regis University | CO | Private | T1 | 75.4 |
| 20 | Marquette University | WI | Private | T1 | 75.1 |
| 21 | Simmons University | MA | Private | T1 | 75.0 |
| 22 | Saint Louis University | MO | Private | T1 | 74.8 |
| 23 | Baylor University | TX | Private | T1 | 74.8 |
| 24 | Quinnipiac University | CT | Private | T1 | 74.3 |
| 25 | Pace University | NY | Private | T1 | 74.0 |
Table 1. Top 25 Undergraduate Nursing Programs, 2026 College Transitions Ranking. † = Tier 2 C4. LAC = Liberal Arts College.
University of Pennsylvania (#1, 86.6) leads the ranking with a near-perfect PhD Productivity score of 99.9, built on 54 nursing-science doctoral recipients at 5.4 per capita, the highest per-capita rate among programs with 20 or more total PhDs. Penn’s School of Nursing, ranked the country’s top nursing school by U.S. News, has been among the most research-productive in the world for decades. Its integration with Penn Medicine, including the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, and a wide clinical-training network, gives pre-licensure students unusual depth. Penn’s Academic Rating of 93.3, the second-highest in the dataset, reflects both its selectivity and the research culture running through the nursing curriculum.
Adelphi University (#2, 86.0) is the ranking’s most striking result. It scores 96.5 on Major Emphasis, since nursing makes up a larger share of total degrees than at any comparably ranked school, 96.7 on Program Scale (1,228 nursing degrees over three years, among the largest programs in the dataset), and 98.6 on PhD Productivity (26 nursing doctoral recipients at 5.1 per capita). Adelphi’s College of Nursing and Public Health has been the institution’s signature program for decades, and its Long Island location sits inside one of the densest healthcare labor markets in the country. For students who want a program where nursing is central to institutional identity, and where the doctoral pipeline rivals the most selective programs per capita, Adelphi is the most underrated program here.
Villanova University (#3, 85.7) combines 66.3 Major Emphasis, 77.3 Program Scale (590 degrees), 82.2 Academic Rating, 93.0 Earnings and ROI, and 99.1 PhD Productivity (34 nursing doctoral recipients at 4.8 per capita, among the highest rates in the dataset). Villanova’s M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing has led nationally since 1953, with strong traditions in nursing ethics, faith-based care, and community health. Its doctoral pipeline reflects deep faculty mentorship that prepares graduates for academic nursing careers at a rate close to Penn’s per capita.
University of San Francisco (#4, 85.6) posts the highest Earnings and ROI score in the dataset, 98.7, on nursing field earnings of $127,245 driven by the Bay Area wage premium. USF’s School of Nursing and Health Professions turns its location into more than starting salary: clinical training runs through UCSF Medical Center, Zuckerberg San Francisco General, Kaiser Permanente facilities, and a dense network of community health settings that cover the full range of urban practice. For students who plan to work in California, and the Bay Area in particular, USF pairs location, clinical placement, and a clear nursing identity in a way few programs match.
Duke University (#15, 77.8) shows the most distinctive profile in the top 25. Its Academic Rating of 96.6 is the highest in the full 480-program dataset, a function of Duke being the most selective institution running a traditional pre-licensure program. Major Emphasis (57.1) and Program Scale (76.0) are moderate, since nursing is one of several strong professional programs at a comprehensive research university. Duke’s School of Nursing, tied closely to Duke University Health System, offers clinical research exposure in oncology, cardiovascular care, and global health that few pre-licensure programs can. For a student admitted to both Duke and a lower-ranked school, Duke’s academic environment and research infrastructure can justify the higher cost.
What Separates the Best Programs?
Catholic and Jesuit Nursing: Creighton, Marquette, Saint Louis, Boston College
Four Catholic and Jesuit universities rank in the top 20: Creighton (#12), Boston College (#16), Marquette (#20), and Saint Louis (#22). The cluster is typical of nursing nationally. Catholic universities have run nursing schools since the early twentieth century, treating healthcare ministry as part of their educational mission, and these programs tend to carry strong traditions in nursing ethics, community health, and mission-oriented practice.
Boston College (#16, 76.8) stands out for its doctoral pipeline, a 98.6 PhD Productivity score on 36 nursing doctoral recipients at 3.8 per capita. BC’s William F. Connell School of Nursing is among the most research-intensive in New England, with strengths in gerontology, palliative care, and health-disparities research. For students aiming at doctoral-track nursing careers, BC pairs Jesuit educational values with real research mentorship at a level uncommon among schools of comparable selectivity.
The California Earnings Cluster
University of San Francisco (#4), Azusa Pacific University (#14), and several California State University campuses in the wider top 100 all gain from the state’s nursing wage premium. The eight highest-paying nursing programs in the dataset are all in California, with field earnings from about $119,000 to $140,000, close to double the national median. That is a real career advantage for nurses who plan to practice in California and a fair factor for students weighing California programs. Counselors should make clear that the high earnings scores reflect labor-market conditions, not program quality, and that graduates who go on to work in lower-wage states will not see the same premium.
Pacific Northwest Nursing: Seattle University and University of Portland
Seattle University (#7, 83.0) and University of Portland (#6, 84.0) are two Jesuit institutions that have built nationally recognized nursing programs in the Pacific Northwest. Portland scores 96.0 on Major Emphasis and 88.8 on Program Scale, the mark of a nursing school central to the university’s identity. Seattle University draws on its proximity to Swedish Medical Center, UW Medicine, and a dense network of area employers for clinical placement and hiring. Both pair Jesuit traditions with regional labor markets that, while short of California’s, run well above the national nursing average.
The First Significant Public Universities: Michigan, Wisconsin, and UNC
University of Michigan (#32), University of Wisconsin-Madison (#39), and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (#55) are the highest-ranking public universities in the nursing list. Michigan produced 43 nursing doctoral recipients (second-highest raw count), Wisconsin 41 (third-highest), and UNC Chapel Hill 32. All three are academic-medical-center programs tied to major university health systems. Their lower composite ranks come from lower Major Emphasis scores, since nursing is a smaller share of degrees at these large research universities, and generally lower Academic Ratings than the selective privates in the top 25. For cost-conscious students who plan to work in their home states, though, all three offer strong value at in-state tuition.
Patterns, Themes, and What They Mean for Your Students
BSN accreditation is a baseline, not a differentiator. ACEN (Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing) and CCNE (Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education) accreditation are prerequisites for NCLEX eligibility at most programs, not marks of distinction. Counselors should confirm accreditation for any program under consideration but should not read it as a quality signal on its own. Every program in this top 100 is CCNE- or ACEN-accredited; the real differentiators are faculty quality, clinical placement access, NCLEX first-time pass rates, and the depth of research and doctoral culture.
NCLEX first-time pass rates are the most useful quality signal this ranking does not capture. The methodology leaves them out because they are not collected in a nationally comparable, program-level dataset. For nursing specifically, though, the first-time NCLEX pass rate is the most direct measure of whether graduates are ready to practice safely. Counselors should pair this ranking with state board of nursing pass-rate data, which is public in most states. Programs consistently above 90 percent are doing well; programs below 85 percent deserve scrutiny regardless of composite rank.
The California nursing wage premium is real but geographically bounded. California nurses earn far more than nurses in most other states, a clear advantage for students who plan to work there. The premium traces to California Assembly Bill 394, which directed the state to set the most protective nurse-to-patient staffing ratios in the country, and to strong unionization through the California Nurses Association. Students who plan to practice elsewhere should not rank California programs above otherwise comparable programs in their intended state on the strength of these earnings figures alone.
Nursing has one of the strongest and steadiest job markets of any undergraduate major. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects registered nurse employment to grow about 5 percent from 2024 to 2034, faster than the average for all occupations, with roughly 189,000 openings a year, most of them to replace nurses who retire or move into other work. Nursing demand is also spread across the country in a way few professional fields match: nearly every community needs nurses, which gives graduates geographic flexibility that most bachelor’s-level careers cannot. For students who are academically ready for nursing and drawn to patient care, that security and mobility are a real advantage worth naming clearly.
Nursing sits where scientific rigor, clinical skill, and care for people meet, often at the hardest moments in a patient’s life. The programs at the top of this ranking have built the clinical infrastructure, research cultures, and faculty mentorship that let students grow into capable clinicians. Students who choose carefully, weighing clinical placement quality, faculty research, NCLEX preparation, and doctoral strength alongside institutional name, will enter a field with rare career security and a clear sense of purpose.
