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.
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 2023 rankings named University of North Carolina at Wilmington the most popular school in North Carolina for nursing students. Located in the medium-sized city of Wilmington, UNCW is a public college with a 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.
Full Nursing at University of North Carolina at Wilmington Report
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Duke University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina list. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Duke accumulate an average of around $25,184 in student debt.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Gaston College is a great place for nursing students. Located in the suburb of Dallas, Gaston College is a public school 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.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend East Carolina University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina list. Located in the city of Greenville, ECU is a public college with a fairly 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.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of North Carolina at Greensboro. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina list. UNC Greensboro is a fairly large public school located in the 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.
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Winston - Salem State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina ranking. Located in the city of Winston-Salem, WSSU is a public college with a moderately-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.
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University of North Carolina at Charlotte did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for nursing students. It came in at #7 on the list. UNC Charlotte is a fairly large public school located in the large 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.
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Western Carolina University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. WCU is a large public school located in the 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.
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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 midsize city of Fayetteville.
While working on their degree, nursing majors at Fayetteville State University accumulate an average of around $22,125 in student debt.
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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 very large public school located in the small 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.
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With a ranking of #11, Queens University of Charlotte did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. 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.
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Gardner - Webb University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina ranking. Gardner - Webb is a small private not-for-profit school located in the 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.
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Appalachian State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in North Carolina ranking. 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.
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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 Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 7,364 |
| Kentucky | 6,395 |
| Tennessee | 6,004 |
| Louisiana | 3,502 |
| Mississippi | 2,838 |
| Florida | 21,209 |
| Arkansas | 2,882 |
| West Virginia | 1,771 |
| Georgia | 7,112 |
| 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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