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Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Washington

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2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Washington

25 Colleges
$57,601 Avg Salary
$21,889 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in Washington with 3,851 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which nursing program is right for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Washington to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 25 schools in Washington to see which ones offered the best associate degree programs for nursing students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Washington

The colleges and universities below are the best for nursing majors pursuing a associate degree.

Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools

#1

Highline College

Des Moines, WA

Our analysis found Highline College to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a associate degree in Washington. Located in the suburb of Des Moines, Highline is a public school with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Highline take out while working on their Associate Degree is $17,371.

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#2

Seattle Central College

Seattle, WA

Out of the 25 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Seattle Central College landed the # 2 spot on the list. Seattle Central is a small public school located in the large city of Seattle.

Nursing majors at Seattle Central take out an average of $23,418 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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#3

Bellevue College

Bellevue, WA

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Bellevue College is a great place for nursing students working on their associate degree. BC is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Bellevue.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at BC take out while working on their Associate Degree is $18,995.

Full Nursing at Bellevue College Report

#4

Centralia College

Centralia, WA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Centralia College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Washington list. Centralia College is a small public school located in the distant town of Centralia.

Nursing majors at Centralia College take out an average of $12,250 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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Out of the 25 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Columbia Basin College landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Pasco, CBC is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

On average, nursing graduates from CBC take out $21,346 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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Shoreline Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree nursing programs. Shoreline Community College is a small public school located in the large suburb of Shoreline.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Shoreline Community College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $19,705.

Read full report on Nursing at Shoreline Community College

With a ranking of #7, Everett Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the midsize city of Everett, Everett Community College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Everett Community College carry an average student debtload of $18,827.

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#8

Wenatchee Valley College

Wenatchee, WA

Wenatchee Valley College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Washington ranking. Located in the small city of Wenatchee, WVC is a public college with a small student population.

Nursing majors at WVC take out an average of $20,904 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read full report on Nursing at Wenatchee Valley College

With a ranking of #9, Lake Washington Institute of Technology did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. LWTech is a small public school located in the suburb of Kirkland.

After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from LWTech carry an average student debtload of $20,400.

Read More…

#10

Charter College

Vancouver, WA

Charter College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Charter College is a small private for-profit school located in the midsize city of Vancouver.

While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Charter College accumulate an average of around $33,067 in student debt.

Full Nursing at Charter College Report

Best Nursing Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
California 18,329
Nevada 2,015
Alaska 177
Hawaii 535
Oregon 1,502

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Nursing Practice 7,992
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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