Best Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants Degrees in the US by ROI
Top colleges ranked by estimated 20-year net return on investment across all active states. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
Programs Analyzed
42
Colleges with salary data
Average 20-Yr Net ROI
-$34,326
Across all programs
Average Annual Cost
$22,166
Cost of attendance
| # | College | State | 20-Yr Net ROI | Median Salary | Annual Cost | Avg Debt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Eastern Virginia Career College
Grad rate: 89.8% |
VA | +$408,278 | $66,845 | $44,311 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 2 |
Montana State University Billings
Grad rate: 28.4% |
MT | +$377,794 | $62,737 | $18,473 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 3 |
Unitek College
Grad rate: 74.5% |
CA | +$359,941 | $64,375 | $28,357 | $22,848 | Full ROI → |
| 4 |
Dickinson State University
Grad rate: 43.9% |
ND | +$354,960 | $63,033 | $20,155 | $18,807 | Full ROI → |
| 5 |
Carrington College-San Jose
Grad rate: 54.8% |
CA | +$352,132 | $65,323 | $35,002 | $32,832 | Full ROI → |
| 6 |
Carrington College-Sacramento
Grad rate: 51.8% |
CA | +$340,960 | $65,323 | $40,588 | $32,832 | Full ROI → |
| 7 |
Helena College University of Montana
Grad rate: 35.7% |
MT | +$284,954 | $57,997 | $17,493 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 8 |
Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale
Grad rate: 49.1% |
FL | +$270,878 | $60,114 | $45,701 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 9 |
Flathead Valley Community College
Grad rate: 29.6% |
MT | +$269,462 | $56,968 | $14,949 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 10 |
The University of Montana
Grad rate: 45.9% |
MT | +$261,632 | $57,456 | $23,744 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 11 |
Southern Union State Community College
Grad rate: 25.6% |
AL | +$194,746 | $53,279 | $15,417 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 12 |
Sumner College
Grad rate: 77.5% |
OR | +$188,526 | $54,526 | $30,997 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 13 |
Bates Technical College
Grad rate: 34.9% |
WA | +$115,670 | $49,364 | $15,805 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 14 |
Colorado Mesa University
Grad rate: 40.3% |
CO | +$87,834 | $48,680 | $22,883 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 15 |
Hennepin Technical College
Grad rate: 38.1% |
MN | +$61,759 | $48,337 | $15,830 | $24,682 | Full ROI → |
| 16 |
Minnesota State Community and Technical College
Grad rate: 44.1% |
MN | +$53,220 | $46,218 | $15,570 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 17 |
Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas
Grad rate: 46.7% |
AR | +$42,484 | $45,298 | $11,738 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 18 |
Southeastern College-West Palm Beach
Grad rate: 67.8% |
FL | +$38,894 | $48,184 | $42,393 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 19 |
Northland Community and Technical College
Grad rate: 43.6% |
MN | +$36,834 | $45,631 | $17,893 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 20 |
Panola College
Grad rate: 39.1% |
TX | +$11,380 | $43,864 | $12,950 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 21 |
Dakota County Technical College
Grad rate: 49.5% |
MN | +$10,176 | $44,088 | $15,792 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 22 |
San Joaquin Valley College-Santa Maria
Grad rate: 48.6% |
CA | -$35,258 | $42,808 | $25,709 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 23 |
San Joaquin Valley College-Rancho Mirage
Grad rate: 63.8% |
CA | -$41,144 | $42,808 | $28,652 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 24 |
North Dakota State College of Science
Grad rate: 46.7% |
ND | -$48,521 | $42,849 | $16,291 | $24,385 | Full ROI → |
| 25 |
Miller-Motte College-Chattanooga
Grad rate: 53.9% |
TN | -$56,168 | $43,582 | $29,136 | $21,879 | Full ROI → |
| 26 |
San Joaquin Valley College-Bakersfield
Grad rate: 45.7% |
CA | -$67,118 | $42,808 | $28,139 | $20,000 | Full ROI → |
| 27 |
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia
Grad rate: 32.9% |
CA | -$76,366 | $42,808 | $32,763 | $20,000 | Full ROI → |
| 28 |
Clarendon College
Grad rate: 54.2% |
TX | -$114,126 | $37,819 | $15,253 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 29 |
Fortis Institute-Scranton
Grad rate: 44.8% |
PA | -$117,789 | $41,031 | $31,149 | $26,749 | Full ROI → |
| 30 |
Guam Community College
Grad rate: 21.7% |
GU | -$137,930 | $36,165 | $10,615 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 31 |
Anoka Technical College
Grad rate: 50.5% |
MN | -$138,364 | $36,748 | $16,662 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 32 |
Trinity Valley Community College
Grad rate: 24.6% |
TX | -$141,931 | $37,236 | $13,707 | $14,250 | Full ROI → |
| 33 |
Arkansas Tech University
Grad rate: 48.8% |
AR | -$161,009 | $37,722 | $21,536 | $23,983 | Full ROI → |
| 34 |
Miller-Motte College-Tulsa
Grad rate: 60.6% |
OK | -$170,702 | $37,718 | $27,763 | $21,879 | Full ROI → |
| 35 |
ATA College
Grad rate: 35.1% |
KY | -$214,149 | $36,611 | $31,263 | $32,477 | Full ROI → |
| 36 |
Rock Valley College
Grad rate: 38.0% |
IL | -$295,162 | $28,677 | $14,351 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 37 |
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Guayama
Grad rate: 39.9% |
PR | -$373,667 | $25,267 | $15,791 | $5,500 | Full ROI → |
| 38 |
Ultimate Medical Academy
Grad rate: 53.8% |
FL | -$400,466 | $24,544 | $25,673 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 39 |
Caribbean University-Bayamon
Grad rate: 28.2% |
PR | -$742,836 | $6,373 | $9,748 | $8,000 | Full ROI → |
| 40 |
Caribbean University-Vega Baja
Grad rate: 33.3% |
PR | -$743,180 | $6,373 | $9,920 | $8,000 | Full ROI → |
| 41 |
Caribbean University-Ponce
Grad rate: 43.5% |
PR | -$743,424 | $6,373 | $10,042 | $8,000 | Full ROI → |
| 42 |
Caribbean University-Carolina
Grad rate: 41.3% |
PR | -$744,908 | $6,373 | $10,784 | $8,000 | Full ROI → |
How ROI is calculated
20-Year Net ROI = Gross Earnings (salary × 20) − Total Degree Cost − Debt Payoff (×1.35) − Baseline Opportunity Cost ($42,000 × 20). Data from the U.S. College Scorecard.
Find Best Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants Degrees by State
Browse Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.