Best PhD in Nursing Programs in Nebraska, Ranked (2026)
The nursing PhD at the University of Nebraska Medical Center runs hybrid, which is the single most useful fact about PhD in nursing programs in Nebraska. Hybrid isn't online. You'll still be in Omaha for coursework blocks and for whatever your committee wants done in person, and Omaha sits at the eastern edge of a long state. What hybrid buys you is the ability to keep your job and your house while you do the degree. Work out the driving before you apply, not after.
Last updated
Programs ranked
1
Universities
1
Nursing faculty median
$82,720
Faculty jobs in NE
300
How We Ranked the Best PhD in Nursing Programs in Nebraska
Campus and online programs are scored on separate models, because they compete on different
things, and this page lists both together with each one's score from its own model. Research
funding comes from NIH RePORTER, doctoral scale from federal IPEDS completions, and the
curriculum, funding and deadline figures from each school's own pages.
The full scoring model is here.
Most PhD nursing courses at UNMC land on Thursdays, and classes run live so you can either sit in the Omaha room or join by video. That single design decision is why a Nebraska nurse can do this without quitting.
Where it wins. Nebraska nursing instructors earn a median $82,720 against $84,730 for the state's RNs, a gap of just $2,010, and the faculty median sits $2,470 above the national one. Moving into teaching here costs you almost nothing, which is not how this usually works.
What you give up. $746 a credit, and assistantships come up as a possibility rather than a package. Research money in the building is thin at $394,254 across 3 NINR awards, so a large funded lab isn't what you're joining. One deadline a year, April 15.
Funding. Students may have the possibility of gaining research experience as a Research Assistant or teaching experience as a Graduate Assistant, along with receiving a stipend and tuition.
Research. Cardiovascular health, Symptom science, Cancer survivorship, Social determinants of health, Health systems and quality, Nursing education.
Every published detail for Nebraska Medical Center
What Nursing Faculty and Nurse Researchers Earn in Nebraska
Nebraska pays nursing instructors a median of $82,720, which is $2,470 above the national median of $80,250. Registered nurses in the state earn $84,730, so teaching costs about $2,010 against staff pay, one of the narrower gaps you'll find anywhere. The floor is what's interesting: faculty pay starts at $62,980 at the tenth percentile against $66,020 for RNs, so the bottom ends nearly match. The top ends part company, and they favor faculty, $121,250 against $106,190. About 300 people hold these instructor jobs statewide, so read the median as a marker rather than a quote.
How Much Nursing Research Funding Does Nebraska Actually Have?
Nebraska took in $394,254 in NIH nursing research awards across FY2021 through FY2025. Spread over five years, that's a small pot, and it changes the questions you should be asking the program.
Funding for a nursing PhD comes from somewhere: a grant, a teaching assistantship, an employer, a training award. When the state's federal nursing research total is that size, more of your answer has to come from the other sources. Ask the University of Nebraska Medical Center directly what funds doctoral students, how many years of support that covers, and what happens in year four if a grant closes. Get the answer from the program, not from a brochure.
The structure itself is built for working nurses: about four years, hybrid delivery, BSN entry accepted, no GRE, and part-time enrollment allowed. Nebraska awards roughly five nursing doctorates a year, so you'd be one of a handful, with the close faculty access that implies and the narrow choice of advisors that comes with it.
Questions About Nursing PhD Programs in Nebraska
How many PhD in nursing programs are there in Nebraska?
1, at 1 university. 1 is campus-based and 0 run online.
Is the UNMC nursing PhD online?
It's hybrid, not fully online. Part of the work happens remotely and part of it happens in Omaha, so treat travel to campus as part of the cost of the degree.
Can you work while doing the Nebraska nursing PhD?
Part-time enrollment is available at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and the hybrid format is built with working nurses in mind. Full time runs about four years, so part time runs longer than that.
What do nursing professors earn in Nebraska?
Postsecondary nursing instructors in Nebraska earn a $82,720 median. The bottom 10% earn $62,980 and the top 10% clear $121,250, across 300 jobs in the state. The national median is $80,250.
Can you do a nursing PhD in Nebraska without moving?
Every nursing PhD program in Nebraska is campus-based, so studying in state means commuting or moving. The alternative is an online program based elsewhere, and those are ranked here.