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2023 Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

76 Colleges
$2,537 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$40,752 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants School for You

In 2020-2021, practical nursing and nursing assistants students earned 1,055 degrees and certificates from a California school, making the subject the 2nd in the state.

There are so many nursing programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Nursing Degree Search has developed this Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 76 schools in California to see which ones offered the best value programs for practical nursing students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Colleges.

Top 15% Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools

#1

Merced College

Merced, CA
$1,180 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Merced College to be the best value school for practical nursing and nursing assistants students who want to pursue a degree in California. Merced Community College District is a moderately-sized public school located in the small city of Merced.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Merced Community College District are $1,180 per year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Merced Community College District also did well on our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read More…

#2

Butte College

Oroville, CA
$1,368 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Butte College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California list. Butte College is a moderately-sized public school located in the rural area of Oroville.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Butte College are $1,368 per year.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Butte College Report

#3

Cuesta College

San Luis Obispo, CA
$1,338 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Cuesta College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best practical nursing and nursing assistants schools in California. Cuesta College is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo.

Cuesta College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,338 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Cuesta College Report

#4

College of the Sequoias

Visalia, CA
$1,394 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend College of the Sequoias. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California list. College of the Sequoias is a fairly large public school located in the city of Visalia.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at College of the Sequoias are $1,394 per year.

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#5

Santa Rosa Junior College

Santa Rosa, CA
$1,328 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Santa Rosa Junior College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California list. SRJC is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Santa Rosa.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SRJC are $1,328 a year.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Santa Rosa Junior College

$1,150 Average Tuition & Fees

Napa Valley College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California ranking. Located in the small city of Napa, Napa Valley College is a public school with a small student population.

Napa Valley College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,150 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Napa Valley College

#7

Sacramento City College

Sacramento, CA

Sacramento City College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for practical nursing and nursing assistants students. It came in at #7 on the list. Sacramento City is a large public school located in the large city of Sacramento.

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#8

Santa Barbara City College

Santa Barbara, CA
$1,232 Average Tuition & Fees

Santa Barbara City College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California list. SBCC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Santa Barbara.

SBCC undergraduate students pay an average of $1,232 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

#9

Riverside City College

Riverside, CA
$1,420 Average Tuition & Fees

Riverside City College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for practical nursing and nursing assistants students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Riverside, Riverside City College is a public college with a large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Riverside City College are $1,420 per year. After completing their degree, practical nursing graduates from Riverside City College carry an average student debtload of $9,750.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Riverside City College

#10

Modesto Junior College

Modesto, CA
$1,274 Average Tuition & Fees

Modesto Junior College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California ranking. Located in the city of Modesto, MJC is a public college with a large student population.

MJC undergraduate students pay an average of $1,274 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, practical nursing majors at MJC accumulate an average of around $8,407 in student debt.

In addition to its great value ranking, MJC is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California list.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Modesto Junior College

#11

American River College

Sacramento, CA

American River College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California ranking. Located in the large suburb of Sacramento, American River is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at American River College Report

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in California award.

Rank College Location
12 College of the Redwoods Eureka, CA
13 Imperial Valley College Imperial, CA
14 College of the Desert Palm Desert, CA
15 Bakersfield College Bakersfield, CA

Best Value Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 113
Nevada 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

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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