Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at Highland Community College

Highland Community College's nursing program sits at the median for Kansas, with peer programs across the state suggesting first-year earnings around $62,370—about $6,000 below the national benchmark for associate nursing degrees. The estimated debt of roughly $21,000 creates a manageable 0.34 debt-to-earnings ratio, meaning graduates from comparable programs typically earn three times their debt load in their first year. That's reasonable for healthcare education, though some Kansas programs like Pratt and Rasmussen produce notably stronger outcomes.

What's harder to pin down without school-specific data is why earnings dip to $58,560 by year four when nursing salaries typically rise with experience. This could reflect part-time work, career transitions, or simply the limitations of estimated figures. Comparable Kansas programs show a wide range—from $64,000 to over $70,000 first-year earnings—suggesting local healthcare demand and clinical partnerships matter significantly.

For parents, the investment looks defensible if your student wants to stay in Kansas and can graduate with debt near the state median. Nursing offers job security and room for advancement, and the debt burden here won't be crushing. But before committing, talk directly to Highland's nursing department about their clinical placements, NCLEX pass rates, and where recent graduates actually land jobs—the real-world outcomes that these state-level estimates can't capture.