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Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey

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2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey

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

Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, nursing was the most popular one in New Jersey. In total, 5,648 people earned a degree or certificate in the field from a school in New Jersey.

It's not easy to decide which nursing program to enroll in when you have so many options available. 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.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Nursing Degree Search has created its Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey ranking. Our analysis looked at 20 schools in New Jersey to see which associate degree programs offered the best educational experiences for nursing students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey

Check out the nursing associate degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools

#1

Best Care College

East Orange, NJ

Our analysis found Best Care College to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a associate degree in New Jersey. Best Care College is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the suburb of East Orange.

Full Nursing at Best Care College Report

#2

Jersey College

Teterboro, NJ

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Jersey College is a great place for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the suburb of Teterboro, Jersey College is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

Nursing majors at Jersey College take out an average of $35,837 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $89.

Full Nursing at Jersey College Report

#3

Union County College

Cranford, NJ

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Union County College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey list. Located in the large suburb of Cranford, Union County College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

On average, nursing graduates from Union County College take out $28,481 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Full Nursing at Union County College Report

#4

County College of Morris

Randolph, NJ

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend County College of Morris. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey list. Located in the suburb of Randolph, County College of Morris is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Full Nursing at County College of Morris Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern International College - Belleville. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey list. Located in the suburb of Belleville, Eastern International College - Belleville is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Eastern International College - Belleville take out while working on their Associate Degree is $33,530.

Read More…

#6

Ocean County College

Toms River, NJ

Ocean County College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey ranking. OCC is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Toms River.

Nursing majors at OCC take out an average of $26,659 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Full Nursing at Ocean County College Report

With a ranking of #7, Raritan Valley Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. RVCC is a medium-sized public school located in the rural area of Branchburg.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at RVCC take out while working on their Associate Degree is $20,263.

Full Nursing at Raritan Valley Community College Report

Eastern International College - Jersey City landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree nursing programs. Eastern International College - Jersey City is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large city of Jersey City.

While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Eastern International College - Jersey City accumulate an average of around $33,530 in student debt.

Read More…

Brookdale Community College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey ranking. Located in the rural area of Lincroft, Brookdale Community College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Brookdale Community College carry an average student debtload of $20,311.

Read full report on Nursing at Brookdale Community College

Hudson County Community College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in New Jersey list. HCCC is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Jersey City.

While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at HCCC accumulate an average of around $21,231 in student debt.

Read More…

Best Nursing Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Schools in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Pennsylvania 11,477
New York 17,708
Maryland 4,104
Delaware 1,267
District of Columbia 990

Nursing Focus Areas

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

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

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 20 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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