2025 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Virginia

Ranked #2 in popularity, nursing is one of the most sought-after associate degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual reviewed 29 schools in Virginia to determine which ones were the best for associate degree seekers in the field of nursing. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 2,398 associate degrees in nursing during the 2022-2023 academic year.

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. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a associate degree school is important to ensure a quality 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 Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of associate graduates during the early years of their career. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their associate degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

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 Virginia ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Nursing in Virginia

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing an associate degree in nursing.

10 Top Virginia Schools for an Associate in Nursing

1

ECPI University
Virginia Beach, VA

678 Annual Graduates

$71,146 Median Starting Salary

$13,242 Median Student Debt

ECPI University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting an associate degree in nursing. ECPI University is a large private for-profit university located in the large city of Virginia Beach.

Associate recipients from the nursing program at ECPI University make $3,399 more than the standard college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a associate in nursing from ECPI University

2

Southside Virginia Community College
Alberta, VA

40 Annual Graduates

$66,693 Median Starting Salary

Any student who is interested in an associate degree in nursing needs to take a look at Southside Virginia Community College. Located in the remote area of Alberta, Southside Virginia Community College is a public college with a small student population.

Associate students who receive their degree from the nursing program make around $66,693 in their early career salary.

More information about a associate in nursing from Southside Virginia Community College

3

Bryant & Stratton College - Virginia Beach
Virginia Beach, VA

162 Annual Graduates

$68,983 Median Starting Salary

$11,583 Median Student Debt

Bryant & Stratton College - Virginia Beach is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting an associate degree in nursing. Bryant & Stratton College - Virginia Beach is a small private not-for-profit college located in the city of Virginia Beach.

After graduating, nursing associate recipients typically make about $68,983 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a associate in nursing from Bryant & Stratton College - Virginia Beach

4

Virginia Highlands Community College
Abingdon, VA

77 Annual Graduates

$65,848 Median Starting Salary

Virginia Highlands Community College is one of the best schools in the country for getting an associate degree in nursing. Located in the small suburb of Abingdon, VHCC is a public college with a small student population.

Associate graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn around $65,848 for their early career.

More information about a associate in nursing from Virginia Highlands Community College

5

Rappahannock Community College
Glenns, VA

47 Annual Graduates

$70,527 Median Starting Salary

Located in the rural area of Glenns, RCC is a public college with a small student population.

Nursing associate degree recipients from Rappahannock Community College get an earnings boost of approximately $2,780 above the average earnings of nursing majors.

More information about a associate in nursing from Rappahannock Community College

6

Mountain Empire Community College
Big Stone Gap, VA

47 Annual Graduates

$62,303 Median Starting Salary

Located in the distant town of Big Stone Gap, MECC is a public college with a small student population.

Associate graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program make around $62,303 for their early career.

More information about a associate in nursing from Mountain Empire Community College

7

Northern Virginia Community College
Annandale, VA

106 Annual Graduates

$72,905 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Associate recipients from the nursing degree program at Northern Virginia Community College make $5,158 more than the typical graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a associate in nursing from Northern Virginia Community College

8

Patrick Henry Community College
Martinsville, VA

19 Annual Graduates

$65,507 Median Starting Salary

Located in the rural area of Martinsville, Patrick Henry is a public college with a small student population.

Associate graduates who receive their degree from the nursing program earn around $65,507 in their early career salary.

More information about a associate in nursing from Patrick Henry Community College

9

Germanna Community College
Locust Grove, VA

131 Annual Graduates

$67,779 Median Starting Salary

Located in the rural area of Locust Grove, Germanna Community College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Students who graduate with their associate from the nursing program report average early career wages of $67,779.

More information about a associate in nursing from Germanna Community College

10

Southwest Virginia Community College
Cedar Bluff, VA

47 Annual Graduates

$56,221 Median Starting Salary

Southwest Virginia is a small public college located in the rural area of Cedar Bluff.

Associate students who receive their degree from the nursing program make about $56,221 for their early career.

More information about a associate in nursing from Southwest Virginia Community College

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
Mississippi	143	1,269
Georgia	121	1,473
Florida	121	9,083
North Carolina	120	2,538
Arkansas	105	1,212
Tennessee	102	1,235
West Virginia	92	813
Kentucky	90	1,848
Louisiana	80	966
South Carolina	77	1,223
Alabama	69	2,116

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	2,398

Most Popular Majors Related to Nursing

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Allied Health Professions	642
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services	585
Health & Medical Administrative Services	171
Mental & Social Health Services	167
Health Sciences & Services	156
Dental Support Services	125
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science	57
Ophthalmic & Optometric Support Services	18
Public Health	8
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences	1

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.