Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants at Rasmussen University-Minnesota

A two-year nursing degree that carries $21,879 in estimated debt against $51,744 in first-year earnings creates a manageable debt burden on paper—you're looking at a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.42, well within the safety zone. But here's the complication: both figures are national estimates since this specific program's outcomes aren't publicly reported due to small graduate samples. What we do know is that Minnesota's nursing assistant and LPN programs typically produce slightly stronger outcomes than the national average, with the state median at $54,376 versus the national $51,744.

The estimated debt here runs close to Minnesota's typical $24,682, suggesting Rasmussen's pricing sits near the state norm for these programs. With over half of students receiving Pell grants, many families here are borrowing to enter healthcare work that, based on peer programs, should generate enough income to manage the repayment. The real question is whether this particular program delivers the clinical training and placement support that translate estimates into reality—something the missing data prevents us from confirming.

For a parent weighing this investment, the numbers suggest reasonable value if the program performs like comparable ones nationally. But without reported outcomes, you're taking on faith what other schools can demonstrate with data. If your student has acceptance to programs with visible track records—like Hennepin Technical College's program showing that $54,376 figure—that transparency might be worth considering alongside cost and convenience factors.