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2025 Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Associate Degree Schools

45 Colleges in the United States
2,219 Associate Degrees
$51,095 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your associate degree in practical nursing & nursing assistants, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #57 in the country in terms of popularity. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 45 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for practical nursing & nursing assistants students pursuing a associate degree. Combined, these schools handed out 2,219 associate degrees in practical nursing & nursing assistants to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants School for Your Associate Degree

Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Associate Degree Schools Your choice of practical nursing & nursing assistants for getting your associate degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:

Overall Quality Is a Must

The overall quality of a associate degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Early-Career Salaries

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their associate degree from the school. After all, your associate degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for practical nursing & nursing assistants students working on their associate degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Practical Nursing Rankings Other Ranking Categories

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Associate Degree Schools list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants in the United States

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing an associate degree in practical nursing & nursing assistants.

10 Top Schools for an Associate in Practical Nursing

1

Carrington College, Sacramento is a wonderful decision for students pursuing an associate degree in practical nursing & nursing assistants. Located in the suburb of Sacramento, Carrington College, Sacramento is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

Those practical nursing & nursing assistants students who get their associate degree from Carrington College, Sacramento earn $13,940 more than the average practical nursing grad.

More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Carrington College, Sacramento

2
SWC Chula Vista crest
Southwestern College
Chula Vista, CA
25 Annual Graduates

Southwestern College is a good decision for individuals interested in an associate degree in practical nursing & nursing assistants. Located in the large city of Chula Vista, SWC Chula Vista is a public college with a fairly large student population.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Southwestern College

3
26 Annual Graduates

SOWELA Technical Community College is a good decision for students pursuing an associate degree in practical nursing & nursing assistants. SOWELA is a small public college located in the city of Lake Charles.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from SOWELA Technical Community College

4
30 Annual Graduates

Riverside City College is one of the best schools in the United States for getting an associate degree in practical nursing & nursing assistants. Located in the large city of Riverside, Riverside City College is a public college with a fairly large student population.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Riverside City College

5
10 Annual Graduates

Located in the medium-sized city of Worcester, Quinsigamond Community College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Quinsigamond Community College

6
82 Annual Graduates

South Louisiana Community College is a medium-sized public college located in the city of Lafayette.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from South Louisiana Community College

7
Allan Hancock College crest
Allan Hancock College
Santa Maria, CA
30 Annual Graduates

Located in the medium-sized city of Santa Maria, Allan Hancock College is a public college with a fairly large student population.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Allan Hancock College

8
Butte College crest
Butte College
Oroville, CA

Located in the rural area of Oroville, Butte College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Associate recipients from the practical nursing & nursing assistants program at Butte College get $14,372 above the typical college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Butte College

9
Cuesta College crest
Cuesta College
San Luis Obispo, CA
17 Annual Graduates

Cuesta College is a large public college located in the rural area of San Luis Obispo.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Cuesta College

10
DMC crest
Del Mar College
Corpus Christi, TX
128 Annual Graduates

DMC is a medium-sized public college located in the city of Corpus Christi.More information about a associate in practical nursing & nursing assistants from Del Mar College

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Associate Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
11 Mission College Santa Clara, CA
12 Santa Barbara City College Santa Barbara, CA
13 Sacramento City College Sacramento, CA
14 Green River College Auburn, WA
15 Pacific College Costa Mesa, CA

Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants by Region

View the Best Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants Associate Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

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One of 34 majors within the Health Professions area of study, Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants has other similar majors worth exploring.

Practical Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training 1,755
Other Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants 390
Nursing Assistant/Aide and Patient Care Assistant/Aide 74

Majors Similar to Practical Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Nursing 82,967
Allied Health Professions 29,240
Health & Medical Administrative Services 17,166
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 16,805
Health Sciences & Services 10,346
Dental Support Services 7,002
Mental & Social Health Services 3,539
Health/Medical Prep Programs 3,280
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science 2,666
Other Health Professions 1,316

Notes and References

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