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Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri

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2023 Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

45 Colleges
$7,946 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$67,538 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in Missouri with 6,840 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. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

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 Missouri ranking. Our analysis looked at 45 schools in Missouri to see which 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.

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.

Top 10 Best Nursing Schools

#1

Lutheran School of Nursing

Saint Louis, MO
$10,620 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Lutheran School of Nursing the best value school in Missouri for nursing students. Lutheran School of Nursing is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large city of Saint Louis.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Lutheran School of Nursing are $10,620 per year. After completing their degree, nursing graduates from Lutheran School of Nursing carry an average student debtload of $18,110.

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$6,720 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Central Methodist University - College of Graduate & Extended Studies. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri list. Located in the town of Fayette, CMU CGES is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CMU CGES are $6,720 a year. On average, nursing graduates from CMU CGES take out $27,562 in student loans while working on their degree.

CMU CGES not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Nursing Schools in Missouri list.

Full Nursing at Central Methodist University - College of Graduate & Extended Studies Report

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#3

Saint Louis Community College

Saint Louis, MO
$5,295 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Saint Louis Community College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri list. Saint Louis Community College is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Saint Louis Community College are $5,295 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Saint Louis Community College take out is $16,800.

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#4

East Central College

Union, MO
$4,392 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at East Central College helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Missouri. Located in the rural area of Union, East Central College is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at East Central College are $4,392 a year. After completing their degree, nursing graduates from East Central College carry an average student debtload of $18,330.

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#5

Crowder College

Neosho, MO
$5,088 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Crowder College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri list. Crowder College is a small public school located in the distant town of Neosho.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Crowder College are $5,088 a year. Nursing majors at Crowder College take out an average of $14,930 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Nursing at Crowder College Report

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#6

St Charles Community College

Cottleville, MO
$5,190 Average Tuition & Fees

St Charles Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value nursing programs. Located in the suburb of Cottleville, SCC is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SCC are $5,190 per year. Nursing majors at SCC take out an average of $20,284 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Nursing at St Charles Community College Report

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$7,095 Average Tuition & Fees

State Technical College of Missouri ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri list. Located in the rural area of Linn, STC is a public school with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at STC are $7,095 per year.

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$4,680 Average Tuition & Fees

State Fair Community College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri ranking. State Fair Community College is a small public school located in the town of Sedalia.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at State Fair Community College are $4,680 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at State Fair Community College take out is $23,167.

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$5,910 Average Tuition & Fees

North Central Missouri College ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Schools in Missouri list. NCMC is a small public school located in the town of Trenton.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at NCMC are $5,910 a year. While working on their degree, nursing majors at NCMC accumulate an average of around $24,633 in student debt.

Full Nursing at North Central Missouri College Report

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$4,800 Average Tuition & Fees

Missouri State University - West Plains landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value nursing programs. Located in the town of West Plains, Missouri State West Plains is a public school with a small student population.

Missouri State West Plains undergraduate students pay an average of $4,800 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Missouri State West Plains take out is $16,216.

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Best Value Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 14,890
South Dakota 1,022
North Dakota 976
Nebraska 1,908
Kansas 2,633
Iowa 2,966

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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