2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina
Finding the Best Nursing School for You
Nursing is the most popular major in North Carolina with 7,425 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.
With all the nursing programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 90 schools in North Carolina to see which programs were the most popular for nursing students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Nursing program at each school on the list.
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2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina
The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Nursing Colleges.
Top 15% Most Popular Nursing Schools
Our analysis found University of North Carolina at Wilmington to be the most popular school for nursing students who want to pursue a degree in North Carolina. Located in the midsize city of Wilmington, UNCW is a public college with a fairly large student population.
On average, nursing graduates from UNCW take out $21,500 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $212, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Read full report on Nursing at University of North Carolina at Wilmington
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Duke University is a great place for nursing students. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Durham.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Duke accumulate an average of around $25,184 in student debt.
The excellent programs at Gaston College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in North Carolina. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Dallas, Gaston College is a public college with a small student population.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Gaston College accumulate an average of around $10,750 in student debt.
A rank of #4 on this year’s list means East Carolina University is a great place for nursing students. Located in the city of Greenville, ECU is a public college with a very large student population.
After completing their degree, nursing graduates from ECU carry an average student debt load of $26,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $261.
A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of North Carolina at Greensboro is a great place for nursing students. UNC Greensboro is a large public school located in the large city of Greensboro.
Nursing majors at UNC Greensboro take out an average of $22,250 in student loans while working on their egree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $151.
Winston - Salem State University ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina list. Located in the medium-sized city of Winston-Salem, WSSU is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at WSSU take out is $24,946. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $135.
University of North Carolina at Charlotte ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina list. UNC Charlotte is a fairly large public school located in the city of Charlotte.
After completing their degree, nursing graduates from UNC Charlotte carry an average student debt load of $23,828. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $166, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Read full report on Nursing at University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Western Carolina University ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina list. WCU is a large public school located in the distant town of Cullowhee.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at WCU accumulate an average of around $23,614 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $215.
Fayetteville State University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina ranking. Fayetteville State University is a medium-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Fayetteville.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Fayetteville State University accumulate an average of around $22,125 in student debt.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. UNC Chapel Hill is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chapel Hill.
Nursing majors at UNC Chapel Hill take out an average of $25,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
Full Nursing at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Report
Queens University of Charlotte landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. Located in the large city of Charlotte, Queens is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Queens accumulate an average of around $32,750 in student debt.
With a ranking of #12, Gardner - Webb University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. Gardner - Webb is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Boiling Springs.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Gardner - Webb take out is $23,203. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $302.
Appalachian State University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. Located in the town of Boone, Appalachian State is a public school with a very large student population.
On average, nursing graduates from Appalachian State take out $18,902 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $180.
Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Carolinas College of Health Sciences | Charlotte, NC |
| 15 | Wake Technical Community College | Raleigh, NC |
| 16 | Forsyth Technical Community College | Winston-Salem, NC |
| 17 | Pitt Community College | Winterville, NC |
| 18 | Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College | Asheville, NC |
| 18 | Central Piedmont Community College | Charlotte, NC |
Best Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region
Explore all the Most Popular Nursing Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Mississippi | 2,838 |
| Alabama | 7,364 |
| Kentucky | 6,395 |
| Tennessee | 6,004 |
| Louisiana | 3,502 |
| Florida | 21,209 |
| Arkansas | 2,882 |
| Georgia | 7,112 |
| West Virginia | 1,771 |
| South Carolina | 3,296 |
| Virginia | 6,775 |
Nursing Related Majors
Nursing Concentrations
Most Popular Related Majors
| 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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