2023 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in South Dakota
It's not easy to decide which nursing program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Also there are many trade schools and bpptcamp that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in South Dakota to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 7 schools in South Dakota to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for nursing students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school us, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.
View our full ranking methodology.
Top Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in South Dakota
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Augustana University to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in South Dakota. Augustana Sioux Falls is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It awarded 569 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Augustana Sioux Falls does not offer a discount to in-state students, so the average tuition and fees for all undergraduates is $37,342. This amount may be reduced if you receive financial aid. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from Augustana Sioux Falls accumulate an average of $22,081 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
Augustana Sioux Falls does offer online classes for certain degree levels. In 2020-2021 about 16% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Out of the 7 schools in South Dakota that were part of this year’s ranking, Mount Marty University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Mount Marty University is a small private not-for-profit school located in Yankton, South Dakota that handed out 118 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees at Mount Marty is $31,500. In-state students do not receive a discount, however you may be able to reduce your price if you receive financial aid. By the time they get their bachelor’s degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $25,437 in student loans.
Online courses are available at Mount Marty, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2020-2021 about 32% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means South Dakota State University is a great place for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. This fairly large public school is located in Brookings, South Dakota, and it awarded 2,023 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at South Dakota State is $9,299. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $12,809. By the time they get their bachelor’s degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $23,083 in student loans.
Online courses are available at South Dakota State, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 50% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
Out of the 7 schools in South Dakota that were part of this year’s ranking, University of South Dakota landed the # 4 spot on the list. This medium-sized public school is located in Vermillion, South Dakota, and it awarded 1,293 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
In-state students pay an average of $9,432 in tuition and fees if they attend USD full time. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $12,942. By the time they get their bachelor’s degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $23,673 in student loans.
Some students may be able to take online classes at USD. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 58% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
Out of the 7 schools in South Dakota that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Sioux Falls landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 434 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in 2021-2022.
If you don’t receive financial aid, you can expect a bill for $20,290 to cover tuition and fees at University of Sioux Falls. The school does not offer an in-state discount. On average, bachelor’s degree students take out $22,347 in loans while pursuing their degree.
University of Sioux Falls does offer online classes for certain degree levels. In 2020-2021 about 53% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Dakota Wesleyan University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Dakota Wesleyan University is a very small private not-for-profit school situated in Mitchell, South Dakota. It awarded 157 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Dakota Wesleyan University does not offer a discount to in-state students, so the average tuition and fees for all undergraduates is $31,890. This amount may be reduced if you receive financial aid. By the time they get their bachelor’s degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $24,386 in student loans.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at Dakota Wesleyan University. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2020-2021 academic year, around 6% took at least some of their classes online.
National American University - Rapid City came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in South Dakota ranking. National American University - Rapid City is a private for-profit institution located in Rapid City, South Dakota. The school has a small population, and it awarded 153 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees at National American University - Rapid City is $16,065. In-state students do not receive a discount, however you may be able to reduce your price if you receive financial aid. On average, bachelor’s degree students take out $27,720 in loans while pursuing their degree.
If you are interested in distance education, National American University - Rapid City is an excellent choice, since the school is online.
Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
View Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools Nationwide >
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 7 schools only.
References
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.