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Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region

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2023 Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

38 Colleges
$5,800 Avg Tuition & Fees*

Finding the Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate School for You

In 2020-2021, 84,274 practical nursing and nursing assistants students received a degree or certificate, making the major the #2 most popular in the country.

It's not easy to decide which nursing program to enroll in when you have so many options available. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Nursing Degree Search has created its Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 38 schools in the Plains States Region to see which basic certificate programs offered the best value experiences for practical nursing students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

Top 10 Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Neosho County Community College the best value school in the Plains States Region for practical nursing and nursing assistants students working on their basic certificate. Located in the remote town of Chanute, Neosho County Community College is a public college with a small student population.

Neosho County Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,000 in tuition and fees each year.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Hutchinson Community College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the town of Hutchinson, Hutchinson Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Hutchinson Community College are $4,470 per year.

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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Western Iowa Tech Community College is a great value for practical nursing and nursing assistants students working on their basic certificate. Located in the city of Sioux City, Western Iowa Tech Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Western Iowa Tech Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,826 in tuition and fees each year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Western Iowa Tech Community College also is in the top 20% of our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region ranking.

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#4

Garden City Community College

Garden City, KS

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Garden City Community College is a great value for practical nursing and nursing assistants students working on their basic certificate. Located in the town of Garden City, Garden City Community College is a public school with a small student population.

Garden City Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,020 in tuition and fees each year.

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#5

Century College

White Bear Lake, MN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Century College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the suburb of White Bear Lake, Century College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Century College are $5,907 a year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Century College is ranked #2 for overall quality for practical nursing in the Plains States Region .

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#6

Johnson County Community College

Overland Park, KS

With a ranking of #6, Johnson County Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for practical nursing and nursing assistants students working on their basic certificate. JCCC is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Overland Park.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at JCCC are $5,352 per year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, JCCC also did well on our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

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Lake Area Technical Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for practical nursing and nursing assistants students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. LATI is a small public school located in the remote town of Watertown.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at LATI are $6,718 a year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, LATI is ranked #1 for overall quality for practical nursing in the Plains States Region .

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Dodge City Community College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value basic certificate practical nursing and nursing assistants programs. Located in the town of Dodge City, Dodge City Community College is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Dodge City Community College are $4,830 a year.

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Anoka Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for practical nursing and nursing assistants students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Anoka, Anoka Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Anoka Technical College are $6,075 per year.

Anoka Technical College not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #4 on our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list.

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Seward County Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for practical nursing and nursing assistants students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #10 on the list. SCCC is a small public school located in the town of Liberal.

SCCC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,832 in tuition and fees each year.

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Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Colleges by State

Explore the best practical nursing and nursing assistants colleges for a specific state in the Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 22
South Dakota 0
North Dakota 70
Nebraska 0

Practical Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training 44,900
Nursing Assistant/Aide and Patient Care Assistant/Aide 34,557
Other Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants 4,817

Majors Similar to Practical Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Nursing 322,592

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • 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 the rest 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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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