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Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in North Carolina

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2023 Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in North Carolina

11 Colleges
$115,233 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Doctor's Degree School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in North Carolina with 7,425 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

With all the nursing programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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.

The Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in North Carolina ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 11 schools in North Carolina to see which ones offered the best doctor's degree programs 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 Doctor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina

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

Top 10 Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools

#1

Wake Forest University

Winston-Salem, NC

Our analysis found Wake Forest University to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in North Carolina. Wake Forest University is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Winston-Salem.

Read full report on Nursing at Wake Forest University

#2

Duke University

Durham, NC

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Duke University is a great place for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham.

Read full report on Nursing at Duke University

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a great place for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. UNC Chapel Hill is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chapel Hill.

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Out of the 11 schools in North Carolina that were part of this year’s ranking, University of North Carolina at Wilmington landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the city of Wilmington, UNCW is a public college with a large student population.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Carolina at Charlotte. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina list. UNC Charlotte is a very large public school located in the large city of Charlotte.

Read full report on Nursing at University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Lenoir - Rhyne University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the small city of Hickory, Lenoir - Rhyne University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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University of North Carolina at Greensboro ranked #7 on this year’s Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina list. UNC Greensboro is a large public school located in the large city of Greensboro.

Full Nursing at University of North Carolina at Greensboro Report

With a ranking of #8, Western Carolina University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. WCU is a large public school located in the distant town of Cullowhee.

Full Nursing at Western Carolina University Report

#9

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC

With a ranking of #9, East Carolina University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Greenville, ECU is a public college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Nursing at East Carolina University

#10

Gardner - Webb University

Boiling Springs, NC

Gardner - Webb University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina list. Gardner - Webb is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Boiling Springs.

Full Nursing at Gardner - Webb University Report

Best Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Mississippi 2,838
Alabama 7,364
Kentucky 6,395
Tennessee 6,004
Louisiana 3,502
Florida 21,209
Arkansas 2,882
Georgia 7,112
West Virginia 1,771
South Carolina 3,296
Virginia 6,775

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

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

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 11 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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