2023 Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in California
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which nursing program is right for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. Or you may find the programs at a trade school or bootcamp to be a better alternative for you.
The Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 13 schools in California to see which ones offered the best basic certificate programs for nursing students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.
View our full ranking methodology.
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Top Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in California
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Butte College to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a basic certificate in California.
In-state students pay an average of $1,368 in tuition and fees if they attend Butte College full time. Out-of-state students pay an average of $7,848.
Butte College does offer online classes for certain degree levels. In 2019-2020 about 33% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Merced College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in California list.
Full-time students from California pay an average of $1,180 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend Merced Community College District. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $7,444.
Some students may be able to take online classes at Merced Community College District. During the 2019-2020 year, about 97% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means College of the Sequoias is a great place for nursing students working on their basic certificate.
Full-time students from California pay an average of $1,394 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend College of the Sequoias. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $8,338.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since College of the Sequoias does offer online classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 35% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Santa Rosa Junior College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in California list.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at SRJC is $1,328. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $8,952.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since SRJC does offer online classes for certain majors. In 2019-2020 about 70% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Out of the 13 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Cuesta College landed the # 5 spot on the list.
Full-time students from California pay an average of $1,338 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend Cuesta College. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $8,702.
Online courses are available at Cuesta College, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2019-2020 about 96% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #6, Gavilan College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their basic certificate.
Full-time students from California pay an average of $1,166 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend Gavilan College. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $7,214.
Some students may be able to take online classes at Gavilan College. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 80% took at least some of their classes online.
With a ranking of #7, Riverside City College did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their basic certificate.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at Riverside City College is $1,420. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $10,120.
Online courses are available at Riverside City College, 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, 37% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Modesto Junior College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #8 on the list.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at MJC is $1,274. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $8,550.
MJC does have options available for those who want to take online classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In fact, around 84% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
American River College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #9 on the list.
One thing to take note of is that American River does offer online classes in some areas. During the 2019-2020 year, about 62% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
Bakersfield College landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best basic certificate nursing programs.
In-state students pay an average of $1,430 in tuition and fees if they attend Bakersfield College full time. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $9,380.
Bakersfield College does offer online classes for certain degree levels. In fact, around 97% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Reedley College landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best basic certificate nursing programs.
Students from California who attend Reedley College full time pay an average of $1,304 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $8,504.
One thing to take note of is that Reedley College does offer online classes in some areas. In fact, around 34% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #12, Institute of Technology did quite well on this year’s best schools for nursing students working on their basic certificate.
Mission College ranked #13 on this year’s Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in California list.
In-state students pay an average of $1,204 in tuition and fees if they attend Mission College full time. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $8,572.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Mission College does offer online classes for certain majors. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 82% took at least some of their classes online.
Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in the Far Western US Region
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Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 13 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.
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