Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants at Bladen Community College

Bladen Community College's nursing program shows troubling numbers that deserve careful scrutiny, though the small class size (under 30 graduates) means these figures might not tell the full story. Graduates earn $36,396 in their first year—$10,000 below the North Carolina median for practical nursing programs and roughly $8,000 below the national average. Among the state's 48 programs, this ranks in just the 25th percentile, meaning three-quarters of comparable NC programs deliver better earnings outcomes.

The debt picture adds another concern. While the absolute amount ($8,250) sounds manageable, it actually falls in the 95th percentile nationally—meaning only 5% of similar programs nationwide saddle students with more debt relative to what's typical. Most practical nursing programs carry around $14,800 in debt but lead to higher earnings that justify it. Here, graduates face earnings well below state norms while carrying above-average debt burdens for their program type.

For context, nearby NC community colleges like Isothermal and McDowell Technical see their nursing graduates earning $51,000+—about $15,000 more annually. Even accounting for the small sample size caveat, that gap is substantial enough to warrant exploring other options. With 67% of students receiving Pell grants, many families here can't afford a program that underperforms the state median by this margin. Look at other NC community college nursing programs with stronger track records.