Find Nursing Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Missouri

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Missouri

22 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 Missouri with 6,840 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

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 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.

The Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Missouri ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 22 schools in Missouri to see which associate degree programs offered the best educational experiences for nursing students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Missouri

The following schools top our list of the Best Nursing Associate Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools

Our analysis found Texas County Technical College to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a associate degree in Missouri. Located in the remote area of Houston, Bolivar Technical College is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Bolivar Technical College accumulate an average of around $26,671 in student debt.

Read full report on Nursing at Texas County Technical College

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend State Technical College of Missouri. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Missouri list. Located in the rural area of Linn, STC is a public college with a small student population.

Read full report on Nursing at State Technical College of Missouri

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences is a great place for nursing students working on their associate degree. Southeast Health is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Cape Girardeau.

While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Southeast Health accumulate an average of around $26,508 in student debt.

Read full report on Nursing at Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences

#4

Columbia College

Columbia, MO

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Columbia College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Missouri list. Located in the medium-sized city of Columbia, Columbia College Missouri is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Columbia College Missouri accumulate an average of around $31,440 in student debt.

Read More…

#5

Cox College

Springfield, MO

Out of the 22 schools in Missouri that were part of this year’s ranking, Cox College landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the city of Springfield, Cox College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Cox College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $35,894.

Full Nursing at Cox College Report

#6

Saint Louis Community College

Saint Louis, MO

With a ranking of #6, Saint Louis Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Saint Louis Community College is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.

After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Saint Louis Community College carry an average student debtload of $19,692.

Read full report on Nursing at Saint Louis Community College

With a ranking of #7, Bolivar Technical College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Bolivar Technical College is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Bolivar.

After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Bolivar Technical College carry an average student debtload of $29,900.

Read More…

With a ranking of #8, Hannibal - LaGrange University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the remote town of Hannibal, HLGU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

Nursing majors at HLGU take out an average of $30,262 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read full report on Nursing at Hannibal - LaGrange University

Metropolitan Community College - Kansas City landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree nursing programs. Located in the large city of Kansas City, MCC is a public college with a large student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at MCC take out while working on their Associate Degree is $25,257.

Read More…

North Central Missouri College landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree nursing programs. NCMC is a small public school located in the town of Trenton.

After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from NCMC carry an average student debtload of $24,833.

Full Nursing at North Central Missouri College Report

Best Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 14,890
South Dakota 1,022
North Dakota 976
Nebraska 1,908
Kansas 2,633
Iowa 2,966

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 22 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.

Featured Schools

Find Nursing Schools Near You

Our free matching tool for schools matches students with nursing schools across the U.S.