2025 Best Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Georgia

Ranked #2 in popularity, nursing is one of the most sought-after master'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.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 17 schools in Georgia to determine which ones were the best for nursing students pursuing a master's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,764 master's degrees in nursing during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Master’s Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Nursing School for Your Master's Degree

The nursing master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality nursing program can vary widely even among the top schools. 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 make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree 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

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their master's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your master's 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:

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on nursing students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - The number of nursing students who choose to seek a master's degree at the school.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Student Debt - How easy is it for nursing to pay back their student loans after receiving their master's degree.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized nursing related body.

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

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Nursing Master's Degree Schools in Georgia list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Nursing in Georgia

Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for nursing students seeking a a master's degree.

10 Top Georgia Schools for a Master's in Nursing

1

Emory University
Atlanta, GA

455 Annual Graduates

$107,880 Median Starting Salary

Emory University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a master's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Atlanta, Emory is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.

Nursing master's degree recipients from Emory University receive an earnings boost of about $5,089 over the typical earnings of nursing graduates.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Emory University

2

South University's online programs
Savannah, GA

587 Annual Graduates

$102,397 Median Starting Salary

It is hard to beat South University's online programs if you wish to pursue a master's degree in nursing. South University's online programs is a moderately-sized private for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Savannah.

After graduation, nursing master's recipients usually make around $102,397 in their early careers.

More information about a master’s in nursing from South University’s online programs

3

Mercer University
Macon, GA

28 Annual Graduates

$119,903 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat Mercer University if you want to pursue a master's degree in nursing. Located in the city of Macon, Mercer is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.

Nursing master's degree recipients from Mercer University receive an earnings boost of about $17,112 above the average income of nursing graduates.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Mercer University

4

Augusta University
Augusta, GA

141 Annual Graduates

$78,617 Median Starting Salary

Augusta University is a good choice for individuals interested in a master's degree in nursing. Located in the midsize city of Augusta, Augusta University is a public university with a moderately-sized student population.

After graduation, nursing master's recipients generally make about $78,617 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Augusta University

5

Georgia College & State University
Milledgeville, GA

59 Annual Graduates

$89,092 Median Starting Salary

Located in the town of Milledgeville, Georgia College is a public university with a medium-sized student population.

After graduation, nursing master's recipients typically make an average of $89,092 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Georgia College & State University

6

Georgia State University
Atlanta, GA

46 Annual Graduates

$102,984 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of Atlanta, Georgia State is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program report average early career wages of $102,984.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Georgia State University

7

Georgia Southern University
Statesboro, GA

22 Annual Graduates

$98,272 Median Starting Salary

Located in the distant town of Statesboro, GaSou is a public university with a very large student population.

Master's students who receive their degree from the nursing program earn around $98,272 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Georgia Southern University

8

South University, Savannah
Savannah, GA

20 Annual Graduates

$102,397 Median Starting Salary

South University, Savannah is a small private for-profit university located in the city of Savannah.

After graduating, nursing master's recipients usually make about $102,397 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in nursing from South University, Savannah

9

Brenau University
Gainesville, GA

81 Annual Graduates

$101,548 Median Starting Salary

Located in the small city of Gainesville, Brenau is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the nursing program report average early career earnings of $101,548.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Brenau University

10

Kennesaw State University
Kennesaw, GA

42 Annual Graduates

$102,380 Median Starting Salary

Located in the suburb of Kennesaw, KSU Georgia is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Soon after graduating, nursing master's recipients typically earn an average of $102,380 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a master’s in nursing from Kennesaw State University

Best Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Nursing Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Florida	208	2,300
Virginia	182	728
North Carolina	178	931
Tennessee	166	1,147
Alabama	151	1,997
Kentucky	147	1,361
Louisiana	147	340
South Carolina	146	369
Mississippi	145	175
Arkansas	121	229
West Virginia	112	145

View All Rankings >

Nursing Related Rankings by Major

Nursing is one of 34 different types of Health Professions programs to choose from.

Nursing Focus Areas

Major	Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing	743
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing	723
Nursing Practice	90
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing	84
Nursing Administration	66
School Nursing	18
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery	14
Women’s Health Nurse/Nursing	11
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing	8
Nursing Science	4

Most Popular Related Majors

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Public Health	847
Allied Health Professions	342
Mental & Social Health Services	254
Health & Medical Administrative Services	235
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions	207
Communication Sciences	156
Other Health Professions	94
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services	60
Medical Science	55
Medical Illustration & Informatics	39

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.