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Best Value Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region

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2023 Best Value Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

89 Colleges
$13,005 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$64,238 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in the United States with 39,944 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which nursing program is right for you. 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 Value Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 89 schools in the Southwest Region to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for nursing students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for nursing majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.

Top 15% Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools

#1

Aspen University

Denver, CO

Our 2023 rankings named Aspen University the best value school in the Southwest Region for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Aspen University is a moderately-sized private for-profit school located in the city of Denver.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Aspen University are $5,170 a year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from Aspen University carry an average student debtload of $33,836.

Aspen University also took the #1 spot in our Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region rankings.

Full Nursing at Aspen University Report

The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Collin County Community College District helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in the Southwest Region . Collin County Community College District is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of McKinney.

Collin County Community College District undergraduate students pay an average of $5,104 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Nursing at Collin County Community College District Report

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Oklahoma Panhandle State University is a great value for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the rural area of Goodwell, OPSU is a public college with a small student population.

OPSU undergraduate students pay an average of $8,234 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at OPSU accumulate an average of around $28,804 in student debt.

OPSU excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list.

Full Nursing at Oklahoma Panhandle State University Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. ENMU - Main Campus is a small public school located in the remote town of Portales.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ENMU - Main Campus are $8,568 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at ENMU - Main Campus take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $24,619.

Read full report on Nursing at Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus

Out of the 89 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Ottawa University - Phoenix landed the # 5 spot on the list. Ottawa University - Phoenix is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Phoenix.

Ottawa University - Phoenix undergraduate students pay an average of $13,281 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from Ottawa University - Phoenix carry an average student debtload of $29,652.

Ottawa University - Phoenix also took the #2 spot in our Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region rankings.

Full Nursing at Ottawa University - Phoenix Report

#6

Grayson College

Denison, TX

Grayson College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in the rural area of Denison, Grayson College is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Grayson College are $5,482 a year.

Full Nursing at Grayson College Report

#7

Laredo College

Laredo, TX

Laredo College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Laredo College is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Laredo.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Laredo College are $5,748 a year.

Read More…

University of Phoenix - Arizona did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large city of Tempe, UOPX - Arizona is a private for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UOPX - Arizona are $9,552 a year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from UOPX - Arizona carry an average student debtload of $30,625.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Phoenix - Arizona

Arizona State University - Skysong ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. ASU - Skysong is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Scottsdale.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ASU - Skysong are $13,092 per year. Nursing majors at ASU - Skysong take out an average of $28,439 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $264, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

ASU - Skysong also claimed a spot on our Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

Read full report on Nursing at Arizona State University - Skysong

West Coast University - Dallas landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree nursing programs. West Coast University - Dallas is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Dallas.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at West Coast University - Dallas are $17,173 per year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at West Coast University - Dallas accumulate an average of around $38,539 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $665.

Read More…

With a ranking of #11, Baptist Health System School of Health Professions did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of San Antonio, Baptist Health System School of Health Professions is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Baptist Health System School of Health Professions are $17,000 a year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at Baptist Health System School of Health Professions accumulate an average of around $34,639 in student debt.

Read More…

West Texas A&M University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. West Texas A&M University is a moderately-sized public school located in the fringe town of Canyon.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at West Texas A&M University are $11,208 per year. Nursing majors at West Texas A&M University take out an average of $25,155 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Full Nursing at West Texas A&M University Report

Texas A & M University - Central Texas came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Texas A & M University - Central Texas is a small public school located in the rural area of Killeen.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Texas A & M University - Central Texas are $17,155 per year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, nursing majors at Texas A & M University - Central Texas accumulate an average of around $26,597 in student debt.

Texas A & M University - Central Texas not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #4 on our Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list.

Read full report on Nursing at Texas A & M University - Central Texas

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region award.

Rank College Location
14 Chamberlain University - Arizona Phoenix, AZ
15 New Mexico Highlands University Las Vegas, NM
16 MSU Texas Wichita Falls, TX
17 South Texas College McAllen, TX

Best Nursing Colleges by State

Explore the best nursing colleges for a specific state in the Southwest region.

State Degrees Awarded
Arizona 12,966
Texas 21,862
New Mexico 1,390
Oklahoma 3,009

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

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.

  • 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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