2025 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Oregon

If you pursue a associate degree in nursing, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #2 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual looked at 14 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Oregon ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 615 associate degrees in nursing to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Associate Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Nursing School for Your Associate Degree

The nursing associate 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. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

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.

Early-Career Earnings

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

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 associate 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 much debt nursing students go into to obtain their associate 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 schools for nursing students working on their associate degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Nursing in Oregon

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for nursing students seeking a an associate degree.

10 Top Oregon Schools for an Associate in Nursing

1

Portland Community College
Portland, OR

28 Annual Graduates

$78,033 Median Starting Salary

Portland Community College is a good option for individuals interested in an associate degree in nursing. Located in the large city of Portland, Portland Community College is a public college with a very large student population.

Associate graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn around $78,033 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a associate in nursing from Portland Community College

2

Central Oregon Community College
Bend, OR

54 Annual Graduates

$82,582 Median Starting Salary

Central Oregon Community College is a good option for students pursuing an associate degree in nursing. Located in the midsize city of Bend, COCC is a public college with a small student population.

Associate graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn about $82,582 in their early career salary.

More information about a associate in nursing from Central Oregon Community College

3

Lane Community College
Eugene, OR

86 Annual Graduates

$89,567 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat Lane Community College if you wish to pursue an associate degree in nursing. Located in the large suburb of Eugene, Lane Community College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Associate recipients from the nursing degree program at Lane Community College get $6,820 more than the average college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a associate in nursing from Lane Community College

4

Rogue Community College
Grants Pass, OR

29 Annual Graduates

$90,235 Median Starting Salary

Rogue Community College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting an associate degree in nursing. Rogue Community College is a small public college located in the suburb of Grants Pass.

Associate recipients from the nursing major at Rogue Community College make $7,488 above the average college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a associate in nursing from Rogue Community College

5

Chemeketa Community College
Salem, OR

33 Annual Graduates

$79,890 Median Starting Salary

Chemeketa Community College is a medium-sized public college located in the large suburb of Salem.

Students who graduate with their associate from the nursing program report average early career wages of $79,890.

More information about a associate in nursing from Chemeketa Community College

6

Mt. Hood Community College
Gresham, OR

56 Annual Graduates

$89,499 Median Starting Salary

MHCC is a moderately-sized public college located in the large suburb of Gresham.

Those nursing students who get their associate degree from Mt. Hood Community College earn $6,752 more than the average nursing graduate.

More information about a associate in nursing from Mt. Hood Community College

7

Southwestern Oregon Community College
Coos Bay, OR

46 Annual Graduates

$75,458 Median Starting Salary

Located in the remote town of Coos Bay, SWOCC is a public college with a small student population.

Students who graduate with their associate from the nursing program report average early career earnings of $75,458.

More information about a associate in nursing from Southwestern Oregon Community College

8

Umpqua Community College
Roseburg, OR

52 Annual Graduates

$88,854 Median Starting Salary

Umpqua Community College is a small public college located in the remote town of Roseburg.

Nursing associate degree recipients from Umpqua Community College get an earnings boost of about $6,107 above the typical earnings of nursing majors.

More information about a associate in nursing from Umpqua Community College

9

Treasure Valley Community College
Ontario, OR

13 Annual Graduates

$70,211 Median Starting Salary

Treasure Valley Community College is a small public college located in the town of Ontario.

After graduating, nursing associate recipients generally earn an average of $70,211 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a associate in nursing from Treasure Valley Community College

10

Blue Mountain Community College
Pendleton, OR

15 Annual Graduates

Located in the distant town of Pendleton, BMCC is a public college with a small student population.More information about a associate in nursing from Blue Mountain Community College

Best Nursing Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
California	192	5,581
Washington	131	1,825
Nevada	112	533
Hawaii	59	135

View All Rankings >

Nursing Related Rankings by Major

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

Nursing Focus Areas

Major	Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing	615

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Allied Health Professions	287
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services	76
Health & Medical Administrative Services	57
Dental Support Services	55
Alternative Medicine & Systems	42
Mental & Social Health Services	29
Ophthalmic & Optometric Support Services	22
Health Sciences & Services	13
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science	12
Somatic Bodywork & Therapeutic Services	11

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.