How We Ranked the Best Graduate Nursing Schools in Your State for the Year 2023?

The presence of several Graduate Nursing Schools makes it a daunting task for students and their families to choose the right school or program. As such, there is no sure shot formula to tell us which school is the best. So then, how did we come up with our ranking list? Well, to start with we have evaluated all Graduate Nursing Schools within a given state that are approved by their State Board of Nursing. We then ranked these schools based on indicators we believe are important in defining a student's preparedness for success in personal and professional life. We have considered only state board-approved Graduate Nursing Schools for our rankings as these schools adhere to strict guidelines and meet high education standards. Below you can learn about our detailed ranking methodology and the various factors we have considered to come up with our list of the best schools in your state.

Ranking Factors and Weightage

Our ranking factors look-into every dimension of a Graduate Nursing School. Mainly, we have captured four broad areas, such as academic quality, the overall reputation of a Graduate Nursing School, affordability, and range of Graduate Nursing specializations and sub-specializations. Among the four areas, academic quality, the overall reputation of a Graduate Nursing School and the affordability have been given the maximum weightage as these three factors will be crucial in helping you achieve your specific career goals. The table below lists all the seven factors that form the base of our ranking methodology.

Why Were Our Rankings Based on the Above-Mentioned Factors?

Below, we have explained why each factor was considered for our rankings.

1. Academic Quality

To measure a Graduate Nursing School's academic quality, we have taken-into-account the acceptance rate, graduation rate, retention rate, and student to faculty ratio. Academic quality is one of the important factors to measure a programs' success. The very reason a student enrolls in a school is to achieve a successful academic outcome, and seemingly so, this area constitutes 35% of our total ranking score. To gauge the academic quality, we have factored four indicators.

Acceptance Rate: Acceptance rate is the number of students a school accepts in proportion to the applications it receives. A school stringent about maintaining quality standards looks out for high performing candidates, is selective in its admission policy, and has a low acceptance rate.

Graduation Rate: The graduation rate tells us about the number of students who complete the program within the stipulated time frame. A higher graduation rate indicates a supportive learning environment. You are more likely to end up with a degree if you enroll in a college with a high graduation rate.

Retention Rate: The retention rate is the number of students who continue with the college to complete the program. High-retention rate reflects fewer dropouts or transfers, indicating students being happy with the quality of education and the support they are receiving from the faculty and the college-as-a-whole.

Student to Faculty Ratio: The student to faculty ratio means the number of students per instructor. A lower ratio is better as students are more likely to benefit from individualized attention and achieve a positive academic outcome.

2. The Graduate Nursing School's Reputation

35% of our total ranking score is based on a Graduate Nursing School's reputation. When we say reputation, we mean several pointers, inside and outside a school that helps us assess its overall goodwill. A school's internal factors, such as faculty credentials, research activity, total research funding granted from NIH and non-NIH sources help us gauge a school's commitment towards research and advanced nursing education. Additionally, an outside viewpoint of a school has been obtained by taking into consideration college rankings & ratings and student reviews from respected online publications such as US News, Niche, Grad Reports, and Rate My Professors. With this well-rounded perspective, we were able to make our rankings more meaningful and complete.

3. Affordability

Constituting 20% out of our total ranking score, affordability is an important factor you must consider while selecting a school's. To account for the affordability of a Graduate Nursing program, we have looked-into its average net price. A school with a low net price can take a great deal of financial burden off you and help graduate with considerably lower debt.

4. Range of Graduate Nursing Programs

The range of Graduate Nursing programs offered by a school constitutes 10% of our ranking score. A Graduate Nursing Schools with a wide range of specializations and sub-specializations not only help you graduate with specialized skills in an area of your interest but also indicate the college’s commitment towards Graduate Nursing education. Moreover, with a wide range of programs, the college will be more resourceful in terms of learning opportunities and clinical training.

Where was the Data Sourced from?

• The list of Graduate Nursing School in each state was collected from the state board of nursing websites, and accrediting body websites - ACEN & CCNE.
• Acceptance Rates, Graduation Rates, Student to Faculty Ratios, and Retention Rates were gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics.
• College rankings & ratings and student reviews were sourced from U.S. News, Niche, Grad Reports, and Rate My Professors.
• Additional information/data about each Graduate Nursing School which was required for our rankings was gathered from their official websites.

Disclaimer

At nursingprocess.org, we understand that our rankings can influence a student's decision in making a choice for the right school. We do not promote the schools that have made it to our list; neither do we disregard schools that haven't made it to our list. Although we have tried our best in bringing you a list of the best Graduate Nursing Schools that can simplify your search, there is no one perfect ranking tool or formula to devise a list of the best schools. Our rankings are fair and unbiased, and we are in no way associated with any educational institution and thus have nothing to gain out of the ranking order. To maintain transparency, we have clearly mentioned the factors considered for our rankings for everyone to see, the data for which was collected from reliable sources.

How to Interpret Our Rankings

Students: As a student, you are advised to take the rankings as a starting point in your search and make a final decision about your education only after extensive research.

Graduate Nursing Schools: We understand that the higher education domain is a complex one, and the reputation of a school cannot be reduced to a ranking. We believe that the academic outcome of any program depends on a student's talent and hard work as much as it depends on the college, and rankings of any nature must not be construed as a barometer of a college or program's success. Also, at times unranked schools may have not made it to our list simply because we could not source accurate data to derive a conclusive ranking score.

Any Further Questions

If you have questions, comments, or corrections about our Best Graduate Nursing School Rankings or need further clarification regarding our ranking methodology, please feel free to get in touch with our editorial staff through the Contact Form.