2023 Best Nursing Schools in Illinois
Finding the Best Nursing School for You
Out of the majors we analyze each year, nursing was the most popular one in Illinois. In total, 21,938 people earned a degree or certificate in the field from a school in Illinois.
Today's nursing students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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 Schools in Illinois ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 79 schools in Illinois to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for nursing students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Nursing Schools in Illinois
The following schools top our list of the Best Nursing Colleges.
Top 15% Best Nursing Schools
Our analysis found Graham Hospital School of Nursing to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a degree in Illinois. Located in the town of Canton, Graham Hospital School of Nursing is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
Read full report on Nursing at Graham Hospital School of Nursing
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Nursing Schools in Illinois list. Located in the large suburb of North Chicago, RFUMS is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The excellent programs at Chamberlain University - Illinois helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Illinois. Chamberlain - Illinois is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Addison.
Nursing majors at Chamberlain - Illinois take out an average of $38,460 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $256.
Read full report on Nursing at Chamberlain University - Illinois
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Ambria College of Nursing. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Nursing Schools in Illinois list. Located in the small city of Hoffman Estates, Ambria College of Nursing is a private for-profit school with a small student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Ambria College of Nursing take out is $34,750.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Rasmussen University - Illinois. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Nursing Schools in Illinois list. Rasmussen University - Illinois is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Rockford.
Nursing majors at Rasmussen University - Illinois take out an average of $35,539 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $161, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Rush University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for nursing students. It came in at #6 on the list. Rush University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
Illinois Wesleyan University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best nursing programs. Illinois Wesleyan is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Bloomington.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Illinois Wesleyan accumulate an average of around $26,855 in student debt.
Saint Anthony College of Nursing did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for nursing students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Rockford, SACN is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
Nursing majors at SACN take out an average of $25,000 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $281, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Loyola University Chicago ranked #9 on this year’s Best Nursing Schools in Illinois list. Located in the large city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Loyola Chicago accumulate an average of around $26,000 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $767.
University of St Francis ranked #10 on this year’s Best Nursing Schools in Illinois list. University of Saint Francis is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Joliet.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at University of Saint Francis take out is $29,375. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $332.
Bradley University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best nursing programs. Located in the city of Peoria, Bradley is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.
On average, nursing graduates from Bradley take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $580.
Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great schools for Nursing students in the state of Illinois that almost earned our Best Nursing Schools in Illinois award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Oak Point University | Chicago, IL |
| 13 | Illinois State University | Normal, IL |
| 14 | Concordia University, Chicago | River Forest, IL |
| 15 | Oakton Community College | Des Plaines, IL |
Best Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Michigan | 7,345 |
| Ohio | 13,973 |
| Indiana | 7,922 |
| Wisconsin | 5,410 |
More Nursing Rankings in Illinois
Nursing Related Rankings by Major
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 |
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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