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Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region

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2023 Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region

145 Colleges
$35,915 Avg Salary
$11,241 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants School for You

In 2021-2022, 85,339 practical nursing & nursing assistants students received a degree or certificate, making the major the #2 most popular in the country.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for nursing students. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 145 schools in the Southwest Region to see which ones were the most popular programs for nursing students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants program at each school on the list.

Check out the practical nursing programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the Southwest Region .

Our analysis found Galen College of Nursing - San Antonio to be the most popular school for practical nursing & nursing assistants students who want to pursue a degree in the Southwest Region . Galen College of Nursing - San Antonio is a small private for-profit school located in the city of San Antonio.

On average, practical nursing graduates from Galen College of Nursing - San Antonio take out $15,800 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $131, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#2

RGV Careers

Pharr, TX

The excellent programs at RGV Careers helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best practical nursing & nursing assistants schools in the Southwest Region . Located in the suburb of Pharr, RGV Careers is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

Practical Nursing majors at RGV Careers take out an average of $13,087 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at RGV Careers

The excellent programs at GateWay Community College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best practical nursing & nursing assistants schools in the Southwest Region . GateWay Community College is a small public school located in the large city of Phoenix.

After completing their degree, practical nursing graduates from GateWay Community College carry an average student debt load of $4,500.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at GateWay Community College

#4

South Texas College

McAllen, TX

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend South Texas College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the city of McAllen, South Texas College is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at South Texas College

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Kiamichi Technology Center-McAlester is a great place for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. KTC McAlester is a small public school located in the remote town of McAlester.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Kiamichi Technology Center-McAlester

Tulsa Technology Center landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular practical nursing & nursing assistants programs. Tulsa Tech is a small public school located in the city of Tulsa.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Tulsa Technology Center Report

Concorde Career College - Grand Prairie did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. It came in at #7 on the list. Concorde Career College - Grand Prairie is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the suburb of Grand Prairie.

Practical Nursing majors at Concorde Career College - Grand Prairie take out an average of $17,261 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Concorde Career College - Grand Prairie Report

#8

Tyler Junior College

Tyler, TX

With a ranking of #8, Tyler Junior College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. Located in the midsize city of Tyler, Tyler Junior College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Practical Nursing majors at Tyler Junior College take out an average of $12,250 in student loans while working on their egree.

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

With a ranking of #9, Northeast Technology Center-System Office did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. Located in the distant town of Pryor, Northeast Technology Center-System Office is a public college with a small student population.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Northeast Technology Center-System Office Report

#10

Francis Tuttle Technology Center

Oklahoma City, OK

Francis Tuttle Technology Center landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular practical nursing & nursing assistants programs. Located in the large city of Oklahoma City, Francis Tuttle Technology Center is a public college with a small student population.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Francis Tuttle Technology Center Report

With a ranking of #11, Southwest Texas Junior College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. Located in the remote town of Uvalde, Southwest Texas Junior College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

After completing their degree, practical nursing graduates from Southwest Texas Junior College carry an average student debt load of $9,000.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Southwest Texas Junior College Report

#12

Arlington Career Institute

Grand Prairie, TX

Arlington Career Institute ranked #12 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the suburb of Grand Prairie, Arlington Career Institute is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

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#13

Coconino Community College

Flagstaff, AZ

Coconino Community College landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular practical nursing & nursing assistants programs. Coconino Community College is a small public school located in the rural area of Flagstaff.

After completing their degree, practical nursing graduates from Coconino Community College carry an average student debt load of $11,250.

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Central New Mexico Community College came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in the city of Albuquerque, CNM is a public college with a large student population.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Central New Mexico Community College Report

#15

Glendale Community College

Glendale, AZ

Glendale Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the suburb of Glendale, Glendale Community College is a public school with a large student population.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Glendale Community College

Indian Capital Technology Center, Muskogee ranked #16 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region list. Indian Capital Technology Center, Muskogee is a small public school located in the rural area of Muskogee.

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El Paso Community College landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular practical nursing & nursing assistants programs. Located in the large city of El Paso, El Paso Community College is a public college with a very large student population.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at El Paso Community College Report

#18

Yavapai College

Prescott, AZ

With a ranking of #18, Yavapai College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. Yavapai College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Prescott.

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With a ranking of #19, Canadian Valley Technology Center did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. Canadian Valley Technology Center is a small public school located in the rural area of El Reno.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Canadian Valley Technology Center Report

Mesa Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. It came in at #20 on the list. Located in the large city of Mesa, Mesa Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.

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Moore Norman Technology Center did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students. It came in at #21 on the list. Located in the rural area of Norman, MNTC is a public college with a small student population.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Moore Norman Technology Center Report

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Nursing & Nursing Assistants Schools in the Southwest Region award.

Rank College Location
22 North Central Texas College Gainesville, TX
23 Texas Health School Houston, TX
24 San Jacinto Community College Pasadena, TX
25 Del Mar College Corpus Christi, TX
26 Lamar State College - Orange Orange, TX
27 St Philip’s College San Antonio, TX
28 Pima Medical Institute - East Valley Mesa, AZ
29 Metro Technology Centers Oklahoma City, OK

Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Colleges by State

Explore the best practical nursing & nursing assistants colleges for a specific state in the Southwest region.

State Degrees Awarded
Arizona 57
Texas 97
New Mexico 0
Oklahoma 57

Practical Nursing Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training 45,031
Nursing Assistant/Aide and Patient Care Assistant/Aide 35,655
Other Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants 4,653

Related Major Annual Graduates
Nursing 319,502

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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