Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at Valencia College

Valencia College's nursing program graduates start strong at over $70,000, placing them squarely in the middle of the pack nationally and within Florida. More importantly, they do this while carrying nearly $8,000 less debt than the typical Florida nursing graduate. That 0.25 debt-to-earnings ratio means your child would owe about three months' salary—a manageable starting point for any nursing career.

The catch is the earnings trajectory: graduates see income drop to about $65,000 by year four. This isn't necessarily alarming—many nurses shift between roles, reduce hours for family reasons, or move into positions that trade some income for better schedules. What matters more is that even at the lower figure, these nurses out-earn the Florida median and are making enough to comfortably service their debt.

Valencia sits just below the state's top-performing nursing programs, which cluster around $72,000-73,000 in starting earnings. But those programs often come with significantly higher debt loads. For a community college serving a substantial population of Pell-eligible students, Valencia delivers on nursing's core promise: relatively quick entry into a stable, well-paying profession without crushing debt. Your child won't be at the top of Florida's nursing earnings ladder, but they'll be solidly in the middle with room to breathe financially.