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Best Value Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Kentucky

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2023 Best Value Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Kentucky

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

9 Colleges
$12,489 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$115,233 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Doctor's 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Nursing Degree Search has developed this Best Value Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. This report analyzed 9 schools in Kentucky to see which ones offered the best value doctor's 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 Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Nursing Doctor's Degree Colleges.

Best Kentucky Schools for Affordable Quality for a Doctorate in Nursing

#1

Northern Kentucky University

Highland Heights, KY

Our 2023 rankings named Northern Kentucky University the best value school in Kentucky for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the suburb of Highland Heights, NKU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

NKU graduate students pay an average of $10,284 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

NKU did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list.

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#2

Kentucky State University

Frankfort, KY

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Kentucky State University is a great value for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the distant town of Frankfort, KY State is a public college with a small student population.

KY State graduate students pay an average of $8,880 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Nursing at Kentucky State University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Frontier Nursing University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list. Frontier Nursing University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Hyden.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at Frontier Nursing University are $20,780 per year.

Read full report on Nursing at Frontier Nursing University

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Eastern Kentucky University is a great value for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Eastern is a fairly large public school located in the distant town of Richmond.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at Eastern are $10,200 a year.

Eastern not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #4 on our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list.

Read full report on Nursing at Eastern Kentucky University

#5

University of Kentucky

Lexington, KY

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Kentucky. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list. Located in the city of Lexington, UK is a public school with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UK are $13,674 a year.

UK also made our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list, coming in at #1.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Kentucky

Murray State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. Located in the remote town of Murray, Murray State is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at Murray State are $9,882 a year.

Full Nursing at Murray State University Report

#7

Bellarmine University

Louisville, KY

Bellarmine University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. Bellarmine U is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Louisville.

Bellarmine U graduate students pay an average of $13,652 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Bellarmine U did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list.

Read full report on Nursing at Bellarmine University

#8

University of Louisville

Louisville, KY

University of Louisville came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky ranking. Located in the large city of Louisville, UofL is a public college with a fairly large student population.

UofL graduate students pay an average of $13,725 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

UofL not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #5 on our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Kentucky list.

Full Nursing at University of Louisville Report

#9

Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY

Western Kentucky University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the small city of Bowling Green, WKU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at WKU are $12,140 per year.

Read More…

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 9 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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