Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at South Puget Sound Community College

The headline number looks solid—$69,107 right after graduation—but that 18% earnings decline over four years is a real red flag. Unlike most nursing careers that see steady growth, South Puget Sound's graduates actually earn less four years in ($56,345) than they do fresh out of school. This suggests either difficulties advancing in the field or shifts to lower-paying healthcare settings, patterns that don't appear at the top-performing Washington nursing programs where earnings typically climb steadily.

Within Washington's competitive nursing landscape, this program trails significantly. At 40th percentile statewide, graduates here earn about $13,000 less annually than the state median for associate nursing programs. That gap matters when peer schools like Highline College ($84,619) and Olympic College ($84,108) place graduates at substantially higher starting salaries just an hour or two away. The manageable $18,166 debt load helps offset this somewhat—it's right at the Washington median and creates a reasonable 0.26 debt-to-earnings ratio initially.

For families focused purely on financial return, the upside-down earnings trajectory makes this harder to recommend when better-performing options exist across Washington. The program does get students into nursing jobs quickly, which has value, but without the career momentum you'd want to see. If South Puget Sound is your best geographic option, the debt level won't sink you, but proactively planning for career advancement will be critical to reverse that earnings slide.