Nursing Programs in Missouri

Missouri is known as the “Show Me State” and is the 24th state of the union. Today, Missouri is showing nurses the money. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the annual mean nurse’s wage in Missouri is about $58,000. Missouri LPNs make about $38,000, Registered Nurses (RNs) make $58,000 and Nurse Practitioners (NP, DNP) typically make about $90,000 annually.

Missouri ranks 5th as one of the highest concentrations of jobs and locations to work for nurses. It employs just over 67,000 Registered Nurses as of May 2014. The unemployment rate in Missouri during 2014 was 6.1% and that rate has decreased to 5.6% as of March 2015.

As far as nursing education is concerned, Missouri has 62 colleges and universities that offer active nursing programs; 62 offering undergraduate nursing degrees and 17 offering graduate nursing degrees. Missouri has 4 of the top 10 nursing schools in the nation – The University of Missouri, Columbia (ranked #1), Southeast Missouri State University (ranked #4), Truman State University (ranked #6), and Missouri Southern State University (ranked #7). Each of these schools ranks in the top 5%-10% of the nation for NCLEX-RN pass rates and offer nursing students a quality nursing education for an in-state tuition price of under $10,000.

Missouri is within just one day’s drive to reach 50% of the U.S. population. It is home to two major metro areas: St. Louis and Kansas City. St. Louis, MO is the only state location other than our nation’s capital to offer free major visitor attractions. Kansas City has more miles of freeway than any metro area with a population of more than 1 million residents; it’s the state’s largest city and is known as the city of fountains and love of BBQ.

If you are thinking of moving to Missouri with a family, a recent report by the St. Louis Chamber of Commerce, shows that the state is focused on helping children reach their full potential as it has higher than average educational standards. The recent Missouri Chamber report predicts that by 2018 there will be 1.4 million jobs available to fill in the state of Missouri and more than 60 percent of those job openings will require additional post-secondary education.

Missouri’s cost of living is cheaper than the US average; the cost of living is 91.10 as compared to the national, 100. This Cost of Living Calculator will assist you in determining what you need to make for your current job title and salary as comparable for your current standard of living in a new location and the median salary of that position. The cost of housing in St. Louis is lower by a significant amount as compared to the national average.

Want to get your nursing degree? You may qualify for a $6,095 grant. Search Missouri Nursing Schools.