Nursing · Kentucky

Kentucky colleges that awarded Nursing credentials

40 colleges in Kentucky reported conferring Nursing credentials to the federal IPEDS collection in 2023-24, and every one of them also awarded in the year before. 40 awarded a degree. That is a record of credentials already awarded, not confirmation that a program is currently admitting.

Colleges and what they awarded

Largest first by credentials conferred in 2023-24. That order measures the size of the graduating class and nothing else: it is not a ranking, and the largest entry is often a certificate provider rather than the strongest degree program. The credential is labelled on every row for exactly that reason.

Colleges in Kentucky that conferred Nursing credentials in 2023-24, with the number awarded and whether any was a degree.
CollegeCredentials awardedHighest level
Galen College of Nursing-Louisville1,491Degree
Northern Kentucky University864Degree
University of Kentucky359Degree
University of Louisville293Degree
Western Kentucky University273Degree
Eastern Kentucky University215Degree
Sullivan University165Degree
Galen College of Nursing-ARH161Degree
Bluegrass Community and Technical College147Degree
Bellarmine University146Degree
University of the Cumberlands144Degree
Morehead State University122Degree
Murray State University104Degree
Gateway Community and Technical College98Degree
West Kentucky Community and Technical College93Degree
Jefferson Community and Technical College86Degree
Somerset Community College83Degree
Beckfield College-Florence81Degree
Ashland Community and Technical College75Degree
Campbellsville University73Degree
University of Pikeville62Degree
Hazard Community and Technical College61Degree
Midway University61Degree
Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College61Degree
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College59Degree
Owensboro Community and Technical College53Degree
Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College53Degree
Spalding University49Degree
Madisonville Community College47Degree
Henderson Community College41Degree
Hopkinsville Community College39Degree
Maysville Community and Technical College36Degree
Big Sandy Community and Technical College27Degree
Kentucky State University27Degree
Thomas More University26Degree
American National University-Pikeville23Degree
Lindsey Wilson College19Degree
Berea College17Degree
Union College12Degree
Kentucky Christian University11Degree

Looking for Nursing programs in Kentucky? This page lists every college that reported awarding Nursing credentials to the federal government in 2023-24 — 40 of them — with the credential level each one awarded. That is a record of credentials conferred, not a confirmation that a college is currently admitting students, so confirm current availability with the college before it changes where you apply.

How much of this field is in Kentucky

Credentials awarded
5,857
Share of U.S. total
2.3%
Colleges awarding it
40
Awarding a degree
40

Kentucky colleges conferred 5,857 Nursing credentials in 2023-24, which is 2.3% of the 250,183 conferred across the 51 U.S. jurisdictions reporting any. Of the 40 colleges here, every one awarded a degree. These counts measure the size of graduating classes, not program quality, and not how many students are currently enrolled.

What level those credentials were

  • Associate38%2,216
  • Bachelor's49%2,882
  • Graduate13%759

Most Nursing credentials awarded in Kentucky were bachelor's degrees. The mix here is close to the national pattern for this field. A certificate is a different credential from a degree, not a lesser one, and the level a program awards is set by the program rather than by the student.

We measured how much this varies nationwide, and for most fields the credential level is set by the field rather than the state: is your major a certificate or a degree?

How concentrated it is. The single college with the largest reported graduating class in this field accounted for 25% of Kentucky’s Nursing credentials. Activity is spread across several institutions rather than sitting with one.

What these Kentucky colleges cost

Median net price across the 35 of these 40 colleges that report it, by family income. Net price is what students receiving federal aid actually paid for the WHOLE college after grants and scholarships, so it is not the price of a Nursing program specifically, and not a quote for any family.

0-30k
$5,197
30-48k
$5,703
48-75k
$9,326
75-110k
$13,423
110k+
$14,197

By the kind of college

The figure above averages very different institutions together. Split by federal sector, for a family earning under $30,000:

Median net price for a family earning under $30,000, by kind of college, among Kentucky colleges that reported awarding Nursingcredentials.
Kind of collegeCollegesMedian net price
Public two-year16$3,971
Public four-year8$7,334
Private11$18,542

Sector is the federal classification (IPEDS ICLEVEL and CONTROL). Private covers both nonprofit and for-profit colleges, which CampusPin does not split here because the for-profit sample in a single state is usually too small to publish a median. Each row needs at least five colleges reporting net price, so a sector with fewer is left out rather than estimated.

A family earning under $30,000 paid a median of $5,197 at these colleges, against $14,197 for a family earning over $110,000. Individual colleges vary widely around these medians. See every Kentucky college by income band.

What this evidence does and does not prove

This lists colleges that reported conferring credentials in this field to the federal IPEDS completions collection, in both 2022-23 and 2023-24. It does not confirm that any of them is currently admitting students to the program, and a college can appear here after deciding to close it. Confirm with the institution before it affects where you apply.

How this list was built

From the U.S. Department of Education IPEDS completions collection, matched to each college on its exact federal program classification. A college appears only if it conferred credentials in both 2022-23 and 2023-24, which is what separates a running program from one that has already closed.

This page exists because its list of colleges is materially different from that of every closely related field in Kentucky — the fields a reader could otherwise mistake it for, such as two engineering disciplines, or nursing and practical nursing. Where a related field resolves to the same colleges, the second page would be the first one with its title changed, and CampusPin does not publish it. Sharing colleges with an unrelated field is different, and not a reason to withhold the page: in most states the same colleges award business, psychology and biology alike, which says something about the colleges rather than about the fields. We measured exactly how often that happens, and published the result: does choosing a major narrow your college list?

What Nursing graduates go on to do

Occupations the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk associates with Nursing, ordered by projected annual openings. National figures: openings and pay do not vary by where you studied, and the crosswalk describes related fields rather than a required or guaranteed path.

Occupations associated with Nursing, with median annual wage, projected annual openings, and the education most entrants hold.
OccupationMedian payOpenings / yrMost entrants hold
Registered Nurses$93,600189,100Bachelor's degree
Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary$79,9408,600Doctoral or professional degree

Crosswalk: U.S. Department of Education (NCES), CIP 2020 to SOC 2018. Pay and projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024 wages, Employment Projections). “Most entrants hold” is what BLS observes about people already in the occupation, not a legal requirement, an admission rule, or a guarantee of entry. Projected openings are a projection, not jobs promised.

Keep going