2023 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Illinois
Finding the Best Nursing Master's Degree 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.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Illinois to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 25 schools in Illinois to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for nursing students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois
The colleges and universities below are the best for nursing majors pursuing a master's degree.
Top 10 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Chamberlain University - Illinois the best school in Illinois for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Chamberlain - Illinois is a very large private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Addison.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Chamberlain - Illinois take out while working on their Master's Degree is $43,233.
Read full report on Nursing at Chamberlain University - Illinois
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Saint Anthony College of Nursing. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the medium-sized city of Rockford, SACN is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly small student population.
Out of the 25 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of St Francis landed the # 3 spot on the list. University of Saint Francis is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Joliet.
While working on their Master's Degree, nursing majors at University of Saint Francis accumulate an average of around $46,005 in student debt.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bradley University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the medium-sized city of Peoria, Bradley is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Bradley take out while working on their Master's Degree is $64,093.
Out of the 25 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Lewis University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Lewis is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Romeoville.
After completing their Master's Degree, nursing graduates from Lewis carry an average student debtload of $47,165.
With a ranking of #6, Rush University did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their master’s degree. Rush University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
After completing their Master's Degree, nursing graduates from Rush University carry an average student debtload of $86,271.
Illinois State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Normal.
Nursing majors at Illinois State take out an average of $30,494 in student loans while working on their Master's Degree.
Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Peoria, St. Francis Medical Center College of Nursing is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at St. Francis Medical Center College of Nursing take out while working on their Master's Degree is $55,065.
Read full report on Nursing at Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing
Loyola University Chicago landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree nursing programs. Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Loyola Chicago take out while working on their Master's Degree is $61,594.
Olivet Nazarene University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Located in the suburb of Bourbonnais, Olivet Nazarene is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
While working on their Master's Degree, nursing majors at Olivet Nazarene accumulate an average of around $40,681 in student debt.
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 |
Nursing Related Rankings by Major
Nursing Focus Areas
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Registered Nursing | 262,974 |
| Family Practice Nurse/Nursing | 16,647 |
| Nursing Practice | 8,862 |
| Nursing Administration | 8,663 |
| Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | 4,717 |
| Nursing Science | 4,701 |
| Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing | 2,895 |
| Adult Health Nurse/Nursing | 2,075 |
| Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing | 2,011 |
| Nurse Anesthetist | 1,768 |
| Critical Care Nursing | 747 |
| Geriatric Nurse/Nursing | 622 |
| Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery | 567 |
| School Nursing | 539 |
| Clinical Nurse Leader | 502 |
| Clinical Nurse Specialist | 340 |
| Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing | 269 |
| Women’s Health Nurse/Nursing | 262 |
| Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing | 192 |
| Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing | 87 |
| Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing | 26 |
| Forensic Nursing | 23 |
| Palliative Care Nursing | 13 |
Majors Similar to Nursing
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants | 85,339 |
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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