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Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky

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2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

28 Colleges
$7,475 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$57,601 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, nursing was the most popular one in Kentucky. In total, 6,395 people earned a degree or certificate in the field from a school in Kentucky.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for nursing students. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Nursing Degree Search has created its Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. This report analyzed 28 schools in Kentucky to see which ones offered the best value associate degree programs for nursing students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky

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

Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Gateway Community and Technical College the best value school in Kentucky for nursing students working on their associate degree. Gateway is a small public school located in the suburb of Florence.

Gateway undergraduate students pay an average of $4,568 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, nursing graduates from Gateway take out $25,591 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Gateway also did well on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read full report on Nursing at Gateway Community and Technical College

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bluegrass Community and Technical College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky list. Bluegrass Community and Technical College is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Lexington.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Bluegrass Community and Technical College are $4,568 a year. On average, nursing graduates from Bluegrass Community and Technical College take out $24,519 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read More…

Out of the 28 schools in Kentucky that were part of this year’s ranking, Jefferson Community and Technical College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Jefferson Community and Technical College is a large public school located in the city of Louisville.

Jefferson Community and Technical College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,568 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Jefferson Community and Technical College accumulate an average of around $26,771 in student debt.

Full Nursing at Jefferson Community and Technical College Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Henderson Community College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky list. Henderson Community College is a small public school located in the rural area of Henderson.

Henderson Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,488 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Henderson Community College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $24,540.

Read More…

#5

Hopkinsville Community College

Hopkinsville, KY

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Hopkinsville Community College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky list. Located in the distant town of Hopkinsville, Hopkinsville Community College is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Hopkinsville Community College are $4,488 a year. Nursing majors at Hopkinsville Community College take out an average of $22,408 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Full Nursing at Hopkinsville Community College Report

Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. Located in the small city of Bowling Green, SKYCTC is a public college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SKYCTC are $4,488 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at SKYCTC take out while working on their Associate Degree is $23,844.

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Owensboro Community and Technical College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Owensboro Community and Technical College is a small public school located in the rural area of Owensboro.

Owensboro Community and Technical College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,488 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at Owensboro Community and Technical College take out an average of $17,879 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read More…

#8

Madisonville Community College

Madisonville, KY

Madisonville Community College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. Located in the rural area of Madisonville, Madisonville Community College is a public school with a small student population.

Madisonville Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,488 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, nursing graduates from Madisonville Community College take out $19,740 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read full report on Nursing at Madisonville Community College

Big Sandy Community and Technical College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Located in the remote town of Prestonsburg, Big Sandy Community and Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Big Sandy Community and Technical College are $4,488 per year. On average, nursing graduates from Big Sandy Community and Technical College take out $16,761 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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With a ranking of #10, West Kentucky Community and Technical College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. West Kentucky Community and Technical College is a small public school located in the town of Paducah.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at West Kentucky Community and Technical College are $4,488 per year. On average, nursing graduates from West Kentucky Community and Technical College take out $18,885 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Full Nursing at West Kentucky Community and Technical College Report

Best Value Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Mississippi 2,838
Alabama 7,364
Tennessee 6,004
Louisiana 3,502
Florida 21,209
Arkansas 2,882
West Virginia 1,771
Georgia 7,112
North Carolina 7,425
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 25 schools only.

  • 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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