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

Based on comparable nursing programs in Oregon, this credential appears to position graduates well above the national norm—peer programs in the state suggest first-year earnings around $55,000, versus $44,000 nationally. The estimated $13,700 in debt falls below both the state and national medians for these programs, creating a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.25 that should be manageable on an LPN salary. That means graduates are looking at roughly three months of gross earnings to cover their educational investment, assuming the estimates hold.

The challenge is that we're working entirely with estimates here—Rogue's cohort size is too small for the Department of Education to report actual outcomes. The earnings figure comes from just four Oregon programs, and while those programs cluster in a reasonable range ($50,500 to $58,500), Rogue could fall anywhere within or outside that spread. Programs like Institute of Technology and Concorde show slightly higher earnings, but we can't know if Rogue's clinical partnerships and employer connections produce similar results.

For families, this looks like a relatively low-risk bet if your child is committed to nursing. The debt load is modest enough that even if earnings come in below estimate, the financial burden shouldn't be crushing. But before enrolling, contact the nursing department directly and ask about their graduates' actual placement rates and starting salaries—they'll have more current data than these peer-based estimates can provide.