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Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region

2023 Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

92 Colleges
$5,274 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$36,677 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate School for You

In 2021-2022, 85,339 practical nursing & nursing assistants students received a degree or certificate, making the major the #2 most popular in the country.

There are so many trade school programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Trade College Search has created the Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 92 schools in the Plains States Region to see which ones offered the best value undergraduate certificate programs for practical nursing students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Colleges.

Top 15% Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Southeast Community College Area the best value school in the Plains States Region for practical nursing & nursing assistants students working on their undergraduate certificate. Located in the city of Lincoln, Southeast Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southeast Community College are $3,864 per year. After completing their Undergraduate Certificate, practical nursing graduates from Southeast Community College carry an average student debtload of $14,405.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Cloud County Community College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the rural area of Concordia, Cloud County Community College is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Cloud County Community College are $3,570 a year.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Cloud County Community College

#3

Central Community College

Grand Island, NE

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Central Community College is a great value for practical nursing & nursing assistants students working on their undergraduate certificate. Central Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Grand Island.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Central Community College are $4,710 per year. After completing their Undergraduate Certificate, practical nursing graduates from Central Community College carry an average student debtload of $7,874.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Central Community College

Out of the 92 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Metropolitan Community College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Omaha, MCC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at MCC are $4,815 a year. The average amount in student loans that practical nursing majors at MCC take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $5,964.

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Out of the 92 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Neosho County Community College landed the # 5 spot on the list. Neosho County Community College is a small public school located in the town of Chanute.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Neosho County Community College are $4,416 a year. Practical Nursing majors at Neosho County Community College take out an average of $10,453 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Neosho County Community College Report

Western Iowa Tech Community College ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list. Western Iowa Tech Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Sioux City.

Western Iowa Tech Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,946 in tuition and fees each year. Practical Nursing majors at Western Iowa Tech Community College take out an average of $11,238 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.

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Alexandria Technical & Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for practical nursing & nursing assistants students to get a undergraduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. ATCC is a small public school located in the remote town of Alexandria.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at ATCC are $6,107 a year. Practical Nursing majors at ATCC take out an average of $8,486 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.

ATCC also took the #3 spot in our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Trade Schools in the Plains States Region rankings.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Alexandria Technical & Community College Report

Northland Community and Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for practical nursing & nursing assistants students to get a undergraduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. Northland Community and Technical College is a small public school located in the remote town of Thief River Falls.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Northland Community and Technical College are $6,244 a year. The average amount in student loans that practical nursing majors at Northland Community and Technical College take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $14,525.

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With a ranking of #9, Hutchinson Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students working on their undergraduate certificate. Hutchinson Community College is a small public school located in the distant town of Hutchinson.

Hutchinson Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,530 in tuition and fees each year. On average, practical nursing graduates from Hutchinson Community College take out $12,094 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.

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#10

Lake Region State College

Devils Lake, ND

Lake Region State College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in the town of Devils Lake, Lake Region State College is a public school with a small student population.

Lake Region State College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,435 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, practical nursing majors at Lake Region State College accumulate an average of around $9,782 in student debt.

Full Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Lake Region State College Report

#11

Garden City Community College

Garden City, KS

Garden City Community College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Garden City Community College is a small public school located in the town of Garden City.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Garden City Community College are $4,110 per year. The average amount in student loans that practical nursing majors at Garden City Community College take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $14,874.

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#12

Mid-Plains Community College

North Platte, NE

Mid-Plains Community College ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region list. Mid-Plains Community College is a small public school located in the town of North Platte.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Mid-Plains Community College are $4,380 a year.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Mid-Plains Community College

#13

Hennepin Technical College

Brooklyn Park, MN

Hennepin Technical College landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value undergraduate certificate practical nursing & nursing assistants programs. Hennepin Technical College is a small public school located in the large suburb of Brooklyn Park.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Hennepin Technical College are $5,881 per year. After completing their Undergraduate Certificate, practical nursing graduates from Hennepin Technical College carry an average student debtload of $10,848.

Hennepin Technical College also claimed a spot on our Best Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Trade Schools in the Plains States Region list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.

Read full report on Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants at Hennepin Technical College

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great value schools for Nursing & Nursing Assistants students in the Plains States Region seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Nursing & Nursing Assistants Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region award.

Rank College Location
14 St Cloud Technical and Community College Saint Cloud, MN
15 Lake Area Technical Institute Watertown, SD
16 Southeastern Community College West Burlington, IA
17 Rochester Community and Technical College Rochester, MN
18 Anoka Technical College Anoka, MN
18 Dakota County Technical College Rosemount, MN

Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Colleges by State

Explore the best practical nursing & nursing assistants colleges for a specific state in the Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Kansas 3,821
Missouri 962
Minnesota 2,176
South Dakota 245
Iowa 1,762
North Dakota 256
Nebraska 346

One of 11 majors within the trade school area of study, practical nursing & nursing assistants has other similar majors worth exploring.

Practical Nursing Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training 45,031
Nursing Assistant/Aide and Patient Care Assistant/Aide 35,655
Other Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants 4,653

Related Major Annual Graduates
Health & Medical Administrative Services 88,600
Allied Health Professions 83,905
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 83,587
Health Sciences & Services 36,762
Mental & Social Health Services 30,331

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • 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 the rest 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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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