Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at University of Virginia's College at Wise

Something unusual happens to earnings from this nursing program that deserves a closer look. First-year nurses coming out of UVA-Wise earn $72,911—slightly below Virginia's typical $76,056 for nursing programs—but by year four, that number drops to $50,970. That 30% decline is the opposite of what nursing careers typically deliver, and it raises questions about whether graduates are leaving the profession, shifting to lower-paid roles, or facing regional employment challenges in Southwest Virginia that the statewide debt estimate of $24,375 doesn't account for.

The debt burden itself appears manageable at roughly one-third of first-year earnings, based on what similar Virginia nursing programs report. But that ratio assumes the $72,911 starting salary holds, and the dramatic earnings drop by year four suggests it doesn't. If graduates are actually experiencing that income decline, a debt load that seemed reasonable becomes harder to manage just as loan payments hit their stride. The program also sits in the bottom half nationally and statewide for nursing outcomes, trailing Virginia leaders like Chamberlain and Shenandoah by $10,000 or more in starting pay.

For parents, the central question is what's driving that earnings collapse. If it's data noise from small sample sizes (which is why debt figures here are estimated in the first place), this might be fine. But if it reflects real career disruption, you need to understand whether graduates are staying in nursing and what local employment prospects actually look like before committing.