Best PhD in Nursing Programs in Nevada, Ranked (2026)
Nine nursing doctorates a year come out of Nevada, all from one program in Las Vegas. That's a working cohort rather than a trickle, and it matters more than it sounds, because a program finishing students that regularly has a dissertation process people have actually been through recently. The PhD in nursing programs in Nevada begin and end with the University of Nevada Las Vegas, delivered online and open to part-time study, so the degree doesn't require you to leave the job you have now.
Last updated
Programs ranked
1
Universities
1
Nursing faculty median
$96,500
Faculty jobs in NV
870
How We Ranked the Best PhD in Nursing Programs in Nevada
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.
Built for nurses who already hold a master's or a DNP. The Post-DNP track carries 18 units across, so you finish on 44 credits of research coursework, roughly $16,900 in tuition at $383.25 a credit.
Where it wins. Nine doctorates awarded a year against a cohort of about ten says the pipeline actually moves, which is not a given in nursing PhDs. Nevada also pays nursing faculty a median $96,500 against a national median of $80,250.
What you give up. You need a master's to get in, so this closes the door on BSN nurses. Asynchronous doesn't mean absent either: orientation is on campus, the defense is on campus, and the Post-DNP track adds two or three day-long campus sessions each fall.
Every published detail for University of Nevada-Las Vegas
Degree awarded
PhD
Delivery
Online
School
UNLV School of Nursing
Entry points
MSN-to-PhD, post-master's
Part-time study
Available
Dissertation
Required
On campus
An on-campus orientation session before the first fall semester; the Post-DNP to PhD track holds two to three day-long on-campus orientation sessions at the start of each fall semester.
What Nursing Faculty and Nurse Researchers Earn in Nevada
Nursing instructors in Nevada earn a median of $96,500, about $16,250 above the national median of $80,250. That's one of the stronger faculty wage pictures you'll see, and the range runs from $57,670 at the tenth percentile to $121,190 at the ninetieth, so rank and institution decide a lot about where you land. There are 870 nursing instructor jobs in the state. Staff RNs still earn more, with a median of $103,670 against the faculty median of $96,500, so the move into teaching is a pay cut even in a state that pays faculty well.
How Many Students Finish the UNLV Nursing PhD Each Year?
About nine a year, which is the single most useful number on this page. Doctoral programs stall for structural reasons more than intellectual ones: committees that never meet, advisors who leave, a proposal stage nobody has cleared in three years. A program producing nine finished dissertations annually has a machine that runs, and you can ask directly about median time to completion knowing the answer isn't hypothetical.
It also shapes who's around you. Nine graduates a year means a stack of recent dissertations to read, students a year or two ahead who can tell you what the qualifying exam is like, and a faculty group used to supervising rather than doing it once a decade. In a state with one nursing PhD, that internal depth is doing the work that a second or third program would do elsewhere.
The University of Nevada Las Vegas program is delivered online and supports part-time study, so it reaches nurses working anywhere in Nevada. It isn't built as a BSN to PhD track, so it's aimed at nurses who already hold a graduate degree in nursing. No Nevada program is listed as fully funded, so ask about assistantships and tuition support during the application, not after.
Questions About Nursing PhD Programs in Nevada
How many PhD in nursing programs are there in Nevada?
1, at 1 university. 0 are campus-based and 1 runs online.
Is the UNLV nursing PhD online?
Yes. The University of Nevada Las Vegas program is delivered online and can be taken part time, so nurses outside the Las Vegas area can enroll without relocating. It's the only nursing PhD in Nevada.
How many nursing PhD programs are there in Nevada?
One, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. It awards roughly nine nursing doctorates a year, which is a high output for a single program and gives it more finished dissertations to point at than most one-program states have.
What do nursing professors earn in Nevada?
Postsecondary nursing instructors in Nevada earn a $96,500 median. The bottom 10% earn $57,670 and the top 10% clear $121,190, across 870 jobs in the state. The national median is $80,250.
Can you do a nursing PhD in Nevada without moving?
1 of the 1 program in Nevada runs online. You can also apply to any of the online programs based in other states, since an online nursing PhD does not care where you live. They are all ranked here.