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Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida

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2023 Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

83 Colleges
$2,871 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$66,973 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in Florida with 21,209 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

There are so many nursing programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. 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 Schools in Florida ranking. This report analyzed 83 schools in Florida to see which ones offered the best value 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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida

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

Top 15% Best Nursing Schools

#1

Tallahassee Community College

Tallahassee, FL
$2,026 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Tallahassee Community College to be the best value school for nursing students who want to pursue a degree in Florida. Tallahassee Community College is a large public school located in the medium-sized city of Tallahassee.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Tallahassee Community College are $2,026 a year. Nursing majors at Tallahassee Community College take out an average of $16,245 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Nursing at Tallahassee Community College Report

#2

Valencia College

Orlando, FL
$2,474 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Valencia College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Florida. Valencia College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Orlando.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Valencia College are $2,474 per year. After completing their degree, nursing graduates from Valencia College carry an average student debtload of $18,298.

Full Nursing at Valencia College Report

#3

Santa Fe College

Gainesville, FL
$2,563 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Santa Fe College is a great value for nursing students. Santa Fe College is a large public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Gainesville.

Santa Fe College undergraduate students pay an average of $2,563 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Santa Fe College take out is $19,447.

Read full report on Nursing at Santa Fe College

$2,506 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Hillsborough Community College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida list. HCC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Tampa.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at HCC are $2,506 per year. On average, nursing graduates from HCC take out $17,052 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read More…

#5

Pensacola State College

Pensacola, FL
$2,367 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Pensacola State College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Florida. Pensacola State is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Pensacola.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Pensacola State are $2,367 per year. On average, nursing graduates from Pensacola State take out $10,591 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read More…

#6

Miami Dade College

Miami, FL
$2,838 Average Tuition & Fees

Miami Dade College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for nursing students. It came in at #6 on the list. MDC is a very large public school located in the city of Miami.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at MDC are $2,838 per year. On average, nursing graduates from MDC take out $14,750 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Nursing at Miami Dade College

#7

Gulf Coast State College

Panama City, FL
$2,370 Average Tuition & Fees

Gulf Coast State College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value nursing programs. Located in the city of Panama City, GCSC is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at GCSC are $2,370 a year. Nursing majors at GCSC take out an average of $12,019 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read More…

$2,657 Average Tuition & Fees

Florida State College at Jacksonville came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida ranking. Located in the city of Jacksonville, FSCJ is a public college with a very large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at FSCJ are $2,657 per year. After completing their degree, nursing graduates from FSCJ carry an average student debtload of $17,750.

Read full report on Nursing at Florida State College at Jacksonville

#9

Broward College

Fort Lauderdale, FL
$2,830 Average Tuition & Fees

Broward College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for nursing students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Fort Lauderdale, BC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BC are $2,830 per year. On average, nursing graduates from BC take out $16,810 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read More…

#10

St Petersburg College

Clearwater, FL
$2,682 Average Tuition & Fees

St Petersburg College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida ranking. Located in the large city of Clearwater, SPC is a public college with a very large student population.

SPC undergraduate students pay an average of $2,682 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, nursing graduates from SPC take out $22,934 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Nursing at St Petersburg College

$3,074 Average Tuition & Fees

State College of Florida - Manatee - Sarasota ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida list. Located in the large suburb of Bradenton, State College of Florida - Manatee - Sarasota is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

State College of Florida - Manatee - Sarasota undergraduate students pay an average of $3,074 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, nursing graduates from State College of Florida - Manatee - Sarasota take out $20,058 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Nursing at State College of Florida - Manatee - Sarasota

#12

North Florida College

Madison, FL
$2,994 Average Tuition & Fees

North Florida College came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida ranking. Located in the rural area of Madison, NFC is a public school with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at NFC are $2,994 per year. After completing their degree, nursing graduates from NFC carry an average student debtload of $8,844.

Read More…

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great value schools for Nursing students in the state of Florida seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Nursing Schools in Florida award.

Rank College Location
13 Polk State College Winter Haven, FL
14 Indian River State College Fort Pierce, FL
15 College of Central Florida Ocala, FL
16 Florida Gateway College Lake City, FL

Best Value Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Louisiana 3,502
Mississippi 2,838
Alabama 7,364
Kentucky 6,395
Arkansas 2,882
Tennessee 6,004
North Carolina 7,425
West Virginia 1,771
South Carolina 3,296
Virginia 6,775
Georgia 7,112

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

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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