Find Nursing Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

46 Colleges
$99,011 Avg Salary
$21,624 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing Graduate Certificate School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in the United States with 57,106 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for nursing students. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Nursing Degree Search has created its Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 46 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which graduate certificate 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 Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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

Top 10 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools

Our analysis found University of St Francis to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the suburb of Joliet, University of Saint Francis is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Nursing at University of St Francis Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Chamberlain University - Illinois. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the suburb of Addison, Chamberlain - Illinois is a private for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Nursing at Chamberlain University - Illinois

#3

Bradley University

Peoria, IL

Out of the 46 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Bradley University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Bradley is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Peoria.

Full Nursing at Bradley University Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Concordia University, Wisconsin. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Concordia University, Wisconsin is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Mequon.

Full Nursing at Concordia University, Wisconsin Report

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Herzing University - Madison is a great place for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the large city of Madison, Herzing University - Madison is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read More…

#6

Lewis University

Romeoville, IL

With a ranking of #6, Lewis University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the large suburb of Romeoville, Lewis is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Nursing at Lewis University Report

With a ranking of #7, University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. UW - Madison is a very large public school located in the city of Madison.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Wisconsin - Madison

#8

Marquette University

Milwaukee, WI

Marquette University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large city of Milwaukee, Marquette is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Read full report on Nursing at Marquette University

Case Western Reserve University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the large city of Cleveland, Case Western is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Nursing majors at Case Western take out an average of $20,683 in student loans while working on their Graduate Certificate.

Full Nursing at Case Western Reserve University Report

#10

Rush University

Chicago, IL

Rush University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate nursing programs. Located in the large city of Chicago, Rush University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read More…

Best Nursing Colleges by State

Explore the best nursing schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 7,345
Ohio 13,973
Illinois 21,938
Indiana 7,922
Wisconsin 5,410

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 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.

Featured Schools

Find Nursing Schools Near You

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