Best Registered Nurse programs in New Jersey, ranked by enrollment
Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records. Administer nursing care to ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled patients.
51 schools in New Jersey run programs that feed this job, graduating 6,544 people a year. The job pays a median of $106,500 in New Jersey across about 92,680 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in New Jersey that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
12 programs in New Jersey that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in New Jersey (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own New Jersey page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nursemain feeder CIP 51.3801In New Jersey → | 5,869 | 89.7% | 49 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 2 | Nursing Sciencemain feeder CIP 51.3808In New Jersey → | 311 | 4.8% | 9 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 3 | CIP 51.3899In New Jersey → | 104 | 1.6% | 2 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 4 | Nursing Practicemain feeder CIP 51.3818In New Jersey → | 59 | 0.9% | 7 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 5 | Clinical Nurse Leadermain feeder CIP 51.3820In New Jersey → | 58 | 0.9% | 1 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 6 | Adult Health Nurse/Nursingmain feeder CIP 51.3803In New Jersey → | 45 | 0.7% | 5 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 7 | Family Practice Nurse/Nursingmain feeder CIP 51.3805In New Jersey → | 32 | 0.5% | 4 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 8 | Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursingmain feeder CIP 51.3810In New Jersey → | 32 | 0.5% | 4 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 9 | Geriatric Nurse/Nursingmain feeder CIP 51.3821In New Jersey → | 12 | 0.2% | 1 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 10 | Critical Care Nursingmain feeder CIP 51.3814In New Jersey → | 11 | 0.2% | 1 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 11 | Pediatric Nurse/Nursingmain feeder CIP 51.3809In New Jersey → | 9 | 0.1% | 2 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
| 12 | Nursing Administrationmain feeder CIP 51.3802In New Jersey → | 2 | 0.0% | 1 | $71,623 | $25,750 |
Top 25 schools in New Jersey
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 42 of the 51 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jersey College Teterboro, NJ Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 773 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $79,852 | 45% | $29,255 | 68% |
| 2 | William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs | 726 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $92,257 | 44% | — | 90% |
| 3 | Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs | 440 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $87,594 | 84% | — | 58% |
| 4 | Chamberlain University - New Jersey North Brunswick, NJ Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 323 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $83,188 | 33% | $37,342 | 100% |
| 5 | UCNJ Union College of Union County, New Jersey Cranford, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 323 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $82,581 | 35% | — | — |
| 6 | Rutgers University - Camden Camden, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs | 262 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $87,594 | 67% | — | 66% |
| 7 | Felician University Lodi, NJ Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 213 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $95,990 | 47% | $41,497 | — |
| 8 | Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ Private not-for-profit · 7 feeder programs | 208 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $91,908 | 69% | $27,376 | 73% |
| 9 | JFK Muhlenberg Harold B. and Dorothy A. Snyder Schools Plainfield, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 169 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | — | — | $35,344 | 59% |
| 10 | Thomas Edison State University Trenton, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs | 157 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $95,053 | — | — | — |
| 11 | Eastwick College - Hackensack Hackensack, NJ Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 149 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | — | 43% | $36,020 | — |
| 12 | Ramapo College of New Jersey Mahwah, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs | 146 | Nursing Science | $95,153 | 70% | — | 71% |
| 13 | Rowan University Glassboro, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs | 143 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $84,859 | 67% | — | 78% |
| 14 | Ocean County College Toms River, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 133 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $82,925 | 42% | — | — |
| 15 | Camden County College Blackwood, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 132 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $76,681 | 31% | — | — |
| 16 | Bergen Community College Paramus, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 126 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $76,147 | 21% | — | — |
| 17 | Brookdale Community College Lincroft, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 126 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $80,574 | 30% | — | — |
| 18 | Eastwick College - Ramsey Ramsey, NJ Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 106 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | — | 75% | $29,398 | — |
| 19 | Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan Campus Teaneck, NJ Private not-for-profit · 6 feeder programs | 106 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $91,523 | 53% | $18,059 | 91% |
| 20 | Mercer County Community College West Windsor, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 105 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $74,795 | 25% | — | — |
| 21 | County College of Morris Randolph, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 104 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | — | 36% | — | — |
| 22 | Rowan College at Burlington County Mount Laurel, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 102 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $71,796 | 36% | — | — |
| 23 | Stockton University Galloway, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 96 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $81,885 | 69% | — | 89% |
| 24 | Montclair State University Montclair, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs | 90 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $104,219 | 65% | — | 88% |
| 25 | Georgian Court University Lakewood, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 89 | Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse | $85,963 | 54% | $19,504 | 79% |
All 51 schools in New Jersey
Every school in New Jersey with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jersey College | Teterboro | Private for-profit | 773 | 1 |
| William Paterson University of New Jersey | Wayne | Public | 726 | 3 |
| Rutgers University - New Brunswick | New Brunswick | Public | 440 | 3 |
| Chamberlain University - New Jersey | North Brunswick | Private for-profit | 323 | 1 |
| UCNJ Union College of Union County, New Jersey | Cranford | Public | 323 | 1 |
| Rutgers University - Camden | Camden | Public | 262 | 3 |
| Felician University | Lodi | Private not-for-profit | 213 | 3 |
| Seton Hall University | South Orange | Private not-for-profit | 208 | 7 |
| JFK Muhlenberg Harold B. and Dorothy A. Snyder Schools | Plainfield | Private not-for-profit | 169 | 1 |
| Thomas Edison State University | Trenton | Public | 157 | 3 |
| Eastwick College - Hackensack | Hackensack | Private for-profit | 149 | 1 |
| Ramapo College of New Jersey | Mahwah | Public | 146 | 2 |
| Rowan University | Glassboro | Public | 143 | 3 |
| Ocean County College | Toms River | Public | 133 | 1 |
| Camden County College | Blackwood | Public | 132 | 1 |
What registered nurses earn in New Jersey
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $97,550. New Jersey pays above the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in New Jersey
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Registered Nurses page.
How to become a Registered Nurse
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in New Jersey
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 21 majors mapped to Registered Nurses21 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 51.3801Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse
- 51.3802Nursing Administration
- 51.3803Adult Health Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3805Family Practice Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3806Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3808Nursing Science
- 51.3809Pediatric Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3810Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3811Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3812Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3813Clinical Nurse Specialist
- 51.3814Critical Care Nursing
- 51.3815Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing
- 51.3816Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing
- 51.3818Nursing Practice
- 51.3819Palliative Care Nursing
- 51.3820Clinical Nurse Leader
- 51.3821Geriatric Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3822Women's Health Nurse/Nursing
- 51.3824Forensic Nursing
- 51.3899Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing, Other
Common questions
Answers for people weighing registered nurses programs in New Jersey.
What degree do you need to become a Registered Nurse?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse, which awarded 5,869 degrees in New Jersey in 2024-25, 89.7% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Registered Nurse?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 12 programs to this occupation. The largest are Registered Nursing. Together they graduate about 6,544 people a year in New Jersey.
How much do registered nurses earn in New Jersey?+
The median is $106,500 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 9.2% above the U.S. median of $97,550. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for registered nurses growing?+
BLS projects a +4.9% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 189,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in New Jersey?+
51 institutions in New Jersey reported graduates from at least one of the 12 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do registered nurses work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Staff Nurse, Charge Nurse, APN (Advanced Practice Nurse), CNS (Clinical Nurse Specialist), Critical Care Nurse Practitioner, Advanced Practice Psychiatric Nurse among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 29-1141.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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