Nursing Education › Missouri
Missouri Nursing Programs

Top Nursing Schools in
Missouri — 2026

Compare the best BSN, MSN, ADN, and RN programs in Missouri. Tuition costs, NCLEX pass rates, accreditation, and unique program highlights for prospective nursing students.

7 programs listed BSN · MSN · ADN Missouri State Board of Nursing Nurse Licensure Compact member

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Nursing Programs in Missouri

BSN · On-Campus
University of Missouri
BSN Program — Columbia

MU's Sinclair School of Nursing is consistently ranked among the top 50 nationally, with a strong emphasis on research and rural health nursing.

$11,000/yearAvg Cost
4 yearsLength
93%NCLEX Pass
Top 50 Nationally — Strong Rural Health Focus Visit Program →
BSN · On-Campus
Saint Louis University
BSN Program — St. Louis

SLU's Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing prepares nurses in the Jesuit tradition of service, with strong clinical partnerships across St. Louis's major health systems including SSM Health and BJC HealthCare.

$24,000/yearAvg Cost
4 yearsLength
93%NCLEX Pass
Top Jesuit Nursing School in the Midwest Visit Program →
BSN · On-Campus
University of Missouri
BSN Program — Columbia

Flagship public university BSN with MU Health Care clinical network

$18,000/yrAvg Cost
4 yearsLength
92%NCLEX Pass
Mizzou Nursing top-ranked public program in Missouri Visit Program →
MSN · On-Campus
Washington University in St. Louis
MSN – NP Program — St. Louis

Elite private research university MSN embedded in BJC HealthCare system

$48,000/yrAvg Cost
2 yearsLength
N/ANCLEX Pass
WashU Nursing among top 10 graduate nursing programs nationally Visit Program →
ADN · On-Campus
St. Louis Community College
ADN Program — St. Louis

Large urban community college ADN with extensive St. Louis clinical placements

$7,800 totalAvg Cost
2 yearsLength
88%NCLEX Pass
STLCC ADN key workforce pipeline for St. Louis area hospitals Visit Program →
ADN · On-Campus
Ozarks Technical Community College
ADN Program — Springfield

Southwest Missouri ADN with CoxHealth and Mercy Springfield partnerships

$7,200 totalAvg Cost
2 yearsLength
87%NCLEX Pass
OTC ADN top community college program in the Ozarks Visit Program →
BSN · On-Campus
Research College of Nursing
BSN Program — Kansas City

Private specialty nursing college affiliated with Research Medical Center in KC

$26,000/yrAvg Cost
4 yearsLength
91%NCLEX Pass
Research College delivers exceptional clinical integration in Kansas City Visit Program →

About Nursing Programs in Missouri

Missouri anchors two strong metro healthcare markets: St. Louis, home to BJC HealthCare and Washington University, and Kansas City, home to Saint Luke's and Children's Mercy, with Mercy and other systems serving the rest of the state. Demand is steady across urban hospitals, rural facilities, and long-term care.

Students can pursue affordable community-college ADN programs, BSN degrees at public universities and private institutions, accelerated second-degree options, and RN-to-BSN bridges plus MSN tracks for advanced practice and leadership. Missouri's community colleges make the ADN-then-BSN path an accessible and economical route into nursing.

Licensure is handled by the Missouri State Board of Nursing. Missouri is a member of the Nurse Licensure Compact, so an RN or LPN license issued to a Missouri resident is a multistate license valid across all compact states — particularly useful in the Kansas City area, where nurses often work across the state line.

Licensing authority: Missouri State Board of Nursing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Missouri is a member of the Nurse Licensure Compact. If Missouri is your primary state of residence, your RN or LPN license is a multistate license valid across all compact states.
Complete a Missouri State Board of Nursing-approved ADN or BSN program, pass the NCLEX-RN, and apply for licensure through the board.
Both Missouri and Kansas are compact states, so a Missouri multistate license lets you practice in Kansas without a separate license — convenient for the Kansas City metro, which spans both states.
Both qualify you for the NCLEX-RN. A community-college ADN is an affordable entry point, while a BSN is preferred at academic medical centers and for leadership tracks.
About two years for an ADN and four for a BSN, with accelerated BSN options finishing in roughly 12 to 18 months for second-degree students.
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