Best Nursing Programs in New Mexico (2026)
Updated
This page ranks the 5 Nursing programs in New Mexico by median earnings of Nursing graduates four years after completing, highest first. New Mexico Highlands University leads the list with median earnings of $97,309 for its graduates four years after completing.
Across the five programs, the figures range from $97,309 to $78,951, with a median of $86,559.
All 5 listed programs are at 5 public institutions. Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus posts the lowest average net price on the page at $4,904.
University of New Mexico-Main Campus ranks 150th on Azimuth's composite ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions, and it also reports the highest admission rate, admitting 95% of applicants.
The ranked list
| Rank | School | Program Earnings | Average net price | Net price, families under $30K | Admission rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Mexico Highlands University · Las Vegas, NM | $97,309 | $14,838 | $13,511 | Not reported |
| New Mexico Highlands University ranks 1st on this list, with median earnings of $97,309 for its Nursing graduates four years after completing. | |||||
| 2 | Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus · Portales, NM | $95,650 | $4,904 | $3,663 | 91.7% |
| Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus reports an average net price of $4,904, the lowest among the 5 programs, and its Nursing graduates earn a median of $95,650 four years after completing. | |||||
| 3 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus · Albuquerque, NM | $86,559 | $15,489 | $11,938 | 95.2% |
| University of New Mexico-Main Campus holds the strongest Azimuth composite rank on the page, 150th among nonprofit four-year institutions, and its Nursing graduates four years out earn a median of $86,559. | |||||
| 4 | Western New Mexico University · Silver City, NM | $84,626 | $8,522 | $8,381 | Not reported |
| Western New Mexico University's Nursing completers who borrowed left with a median of $25,481 in federal loans, and the program reports median earnings of $84,626 four years after completing. | |||||
| 5 | New Mexico State University-Main Campus · Las Cruces, NM | $78,951 | $8,889 | $6,648 | 89.0% |
| New Mexico State University-Main Campus admits 89% of applicants and its Nursing graduates earn a median of $78,951 four years after completing, with a cohort of 153 graduates. | |||||
How this list is ordered
Programs are ordered by the median earnings of their Nursing graduates four years after completing, highest first. Only programs with a reported earnings cohort in New Mexico appear. The figures are medians for federally aided completers of the program who were working and not enrolled four years after completing. The metric does not adjust for graduate school enrollment, cost, or the characteristics of the students who enroll, and it is not a measure of teaching quality. The spread from New Mexico Highlands University to the fifth-ranked program is $18,358, with a gap of $1,659 between New Mexico Highlands University and Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus.
Job market context in New Mexico
The occupations linked to Nursing in New Mexico, such as Registered Nurses and Nurse Practitioners, carry a median annual wage of $100,140; a quarter of workers in those occupations earn less than $86,841. Projections for 2024 to 2034 show about 1,670 openings a year, or about 206 openings a year for every hundred graduates, with more projected openings than graduates. Projections for 2024 to 2034 put employment in those occupations about 14.1% higher. Wages and top occupations exclude management occupations; openings include them. The ranking above uses graduate earnings four years after completing, not the occupation-wide wage figures described here.
Related rankings
- Health Professions Colleges in New Mexico
- Nursing Colleges in New Mexico