Find Nursing Colleges

What Do You Want to Study?

Registered Nursing Doctor's Degree

Find Schools Near


Registered Nursing Doctor’s Degrees

A doctor’s degree in Registered Nursing is offered at 2,035 colleges in the United States, where you can earn adoctor’s degree in Registered Nursing. Among those who recently graduated from the schools offering this degree, the majority were women, and45% were students from underrepresented racial-ethnic groups. Also, 7.2% of Registered Nursing graduates were international students.

Education Levels of Registered Nursing Majors

In the most recent year for which data is available, 256,965 degrees were awarded toRegistered Nursing majors across all award levels. The following table shows the number of diplomas awarded in Registered Nursing at each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Certificate 2,426
Associate’s Degree 83,968
Bachelor’s Degree 147,392
Master’s Degree 22,322
Doctor’s Degree (this page) 852

Earnings of Registered Nursing Majors With Doctor’s Degrees (All Award Levels)

The median salary for graduates holding adoctor’s degree in Registered Nursing of $80,149 four years after graduation. These figures are reported program-wide, across all award levels.

A lot of factors can contribute to this number, such as the location of your workplace and the availability of other perks and bonuses.

Years After Graduation Median Earnings
1 year $83,453
4 years $80,149
5 years $90,156

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker (program-wide, all award levels).

Student Debt (All Award Levels)

We do not have the data to calculate the median and range of debt loads for Registered Nursing students with their doctor’s degree.

Student Diversity

More women than men pursue their doctor’s degree in Registered Nursing. About 89.5% of graduates with this degree are women.

Gender Number of Grads
Men 54
Women 462
Gender Diversity of Doctor's Degrees in Registered Nursing

The racial-ethnic distribution of Registered Nursing graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity Number of Grads Share
White 245 47.5%
Asian 47 9.1%
Hispanic or Latino 37 7.2%
Black or African American 59 11.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1 0.2%
Two or More Races 16 3.1%
Race Unknown 74 14.3%
International Students 37 7.2%
Racial-Ethnic Diversity of Registered Nursing Doctor's Degree Students

This degree is moderately popular with international students. Around 7.2% of graduates are in this category.

See the minority definition in the References below.

There are 2,125 colleges that offer a doctor’s degree in Registered Nursing. Learn more about the most popular below:

Chamberlain University-Illinois tops the list of the most popular schools in the U.S. for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 9,802 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

#2

Capella University

Minneapolis, MN

Capella University is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 7,779 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

#3

Western Governors University

Salt Lake City, UT

Western Governors University is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. This school awarded 5,592 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

#4

Walden University

Minneapolis, MN

Walden University is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. This school awarded 4,132 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

#5

Grand Canyon University

Phoenix, AZ

Grand Canyon University is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 4,096 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

The University of Texas at Arlington is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. This school awarded 2,468 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

Galen College of Nursing-Louisville comes in at #7 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. This school awarded 1,491 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

#8

Ivy Tech Community College

Indianapolis, IN

Ivy Tech Community College comes in at #8 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. This school awarded 1,481 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

Ohio University-Main Campus comes in at #9 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. During the most recent year for which we have data, 1,273 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

University of South Alabama is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. This school awarded 1,123 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

West Coast University-Orange County comes in at #11 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. During the most recent year for which we have data, 1,115 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

#12

Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale, FL

Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 1,096 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

#13

NUC University

Bayamon, PR

NUC University is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 1,079 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

Rasmussen University-Florida is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 1,063 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

#15

ECPI University

Virginia Beach, VA

ECPI University comes in at #15 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. This school awarded 1,010 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Data shows that graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,669.

#16

West Coast University-Los Angeles

North Hollywood, CA

West Coast University-Los Angeles is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. This school awarded 972 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 941 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

West Coast University-Ontario comes in at #18 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. This school awarded 925 doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

#19

Nightingale College

Salt Lake City, UT

Nightingale College is a popular choice for Registered Nursing majors seeking their doctor's degree. During the most recent year for which we have data, 912 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

Joyce University of Nursing and Health Sciences comes in at #20 on our list of the most popular colleges offering doctor's degrees in Registered Nursing. During the most recent year for which we have data, 889 people received their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing from this school. Graduates who complete their doctor's degree in Registered Nursing here go on to a median salary of $40,669.

Below are some popular majors similar to Registered Nursing that also offer doctor’s degrees.

Major Annual Degrees Awarded
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 14,847
Nursing Practice 9,206
Nursing Administration 7,911
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 4,379
Nursing Science 4,245

References

The racial-ethnic minority student count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the percentage of racial-ethnic minorities.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Find Nursing Schools Near You

Our free matching tool for schools matches students with nursing schools across the U.S.