Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at Bowling Green State University-Main Campus

The earnings trajectory here reveals something unusual: Bowling Green nursing graduates start at $68,261—already below both the state median ($70,327) and national average ($74,888)—then see their pay drop 14% by year four. This backward slide is hard to explain in nursing, where experience typically commands higher wages, and it places the program in Ohio's bottom half despite the state's robust nursing market.

The debt load of $25,848 is slightly better than typical for nursing programs, yielding a manageable 0.38 ratio to first-year earnings. But that's cold comfort when the initial earnings already lag and then decline further. Compare this to top Ohio programs like Chamberlain ($83,188) or Kettering ($79,505), where graduates earn $15,000-$25,000 more right out of the gate. Even Ohio's median nursing program delivers better starting outcomes than Bowling Green's four-year mark.

For a profession with strong regional demand, this program underdelivers on the promise of nursing's typically solid returns. Unless there are compelling non-financial reasons to choose Bowling Green—location, specific faculty, or program format—Ohio families have numerous options that better position graduates for nursing's career trajectory. The declining earnings pattern warrants direct questions to the school about where graduates work and why the typical nursing career arc doesn't seem to apply here.