2025 Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Ohio

Ranked #5 in popularity, nursing is one of the most sought-after doctor's degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 6 schools in Ohio to determine which ones were the best for doctor's degree seekers in the field of nursing. Combined, these schools handed out 318 doctor's degrees in nursing to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

• Best Doctor’s Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Nursing School for Your Doctor's Degree

The nursing doctor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. 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

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To account for this we include a school's overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Average Early-Career Salaries

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their doctor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. That is, everyone wants their doctor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

• Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to nursing students as compared to other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other nursing students want to attend this school to pursue a doctor's degree.
• Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
• Student Debt - How much debt nursing students go into to obtain their doctor's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized nursing related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for nursing students working on their doctor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Nursing Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Ohio ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Doctorate Students to Study Nursing in Ohio

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for nursing students seeking a a doctor's degree.

Top Ohio Schools for a Doctorate in Nursing

1

Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, OH

75 Annual Graduates

Case Western Reserve University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Cleveland, Case Western is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in nursing from Case Western Reserve University

2

University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Cincinnati, OH

90 Annual Graduates

$174,326 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat University of Cincinnati - Main Campus if you want to pursue a doctor's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Cincinnati, UC is a public university with a very large student population.

Those nursing students who get their doctor's degree from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus earn $26,478 more than the typical nursing student.

More information about a doctorate in nursing from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus

3

Ohio State University - Main Campus
Columbus, OH

37 Annual Graduates

$123,858 Median Starting Salary

Ohio State University - Main Campus is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a doctor's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their doctorate from the nursing program report average early career earnings of $123,858.

More information about a doctorate in nursing from Ohio State University - Main Campus

4

Otterbein University
Westerville, OH

34 Annual Graduates

Otterbein University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in nursing. Otterbein is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Westerville.More information about a doctorate in nursing from Otterbein University

5

Kent State University at Kent
Kent, OH

17 Annual Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Kent, Kent State is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in nursing from Kent State University at Kent

6

Ohio University - Athens Campus
Athens, OH

15 Annual Graduates

Located in the distant town of Athens, OHIO Athens is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in nursing from Ohio University - Athens Campus

Best Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Illinois	153	1,166
Michigan	149	169
Indiana	132	190
Wisconsin	108	209

View All Rankings >

Rankings in Majors Related to Nursing

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

Nursing Concentrations

Major	Annual Graduates
Nursing Practice	134
Nurse Anesthetist	79
Registered Nursing	57
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing	15
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing	10
Nursing Science	6
School Nursing	6
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	5
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing	4
Nursing Administration	1

Most Popular Related Majors

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Medicine	1,332
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences	614
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions	610
Dentistry	204
Communication Sciences	74
Optometry	62
Public Health	29
Health & Medical Administrative Services	17
Other Health Professions	13
Medical Science	5

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle. More about our data sources and methodologies.