Best PhD in Nursing Programs in New Jersey, Ranked (2026)
Three PhD in nursing programs in New Jersey, and two of them carry the same name. Rutgers runs a nursing PhD on its New Brunswick campus and another on its Newark campus, so a large part of the choice in this state is a choice between two Rutgers addresses. The third is Seton Hall in South Orange, the only private of the three and the only one taught in hybrid form. All three sit in the northern and central part of the state, and all three will take you part time.
Last updated
Programs ranked
3
Universities
3
Nursing faculty median
$76,980
Faculty jobs in NJ
2,000
How We Ranked the Best PhD in Nursing Programs in New Jersey
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.
New Jersey's 3 Nursing PhD Programs, Compared
PhD in nursing programs in New Jersey, ranked 2026
New Brunswick and Newark are the same Rutgers School of Nursing PhD under two campus IDs, one application, one 66-credit curriculum, conferred through the Graduate School-Newark. Apply once. This listing is the one carrying the federal output.
Where it wins. 129 nursing doctorates in a single reporting year, far more than anywhere else in New Jersey, and the post-baccalaureate track hands you a 30-credit MSN in Nursing Leadership on the way through, four years full-time from a BSN.
What you give up. Nothing is funded. 66 credits at $1,082 comes to $71,412, the largest tuition bill in New Jersey, and financing is grants, scholarships and federal loans. The 3.2 GPA floor is higher than Seton Hall's 3.0.
Funding. The program discusses financing case by case, covering grants, scholarships and federal loans,. Funding is not guaranteed.
Every published detail for Rutgers New Brunswick
Degree awarded
PhD
Delivery
On campus
School
Rutgers School of Nursing
Entry points
BSN-to-PhD, MSN-to-PhD, post-master's
GRE
Not required
Minimum GPA
3.2
Applications close
March 1 for the Post-Master's/DNP to PhD pathway; August 1 for the Post-Baccalaureate to PhD pathway
Part-time study
Available
Dissertation
Required
On campus
Research Residency: hands-on research experience under faculty mentorship (a 3-credit research practicum in the 66-credit curriculum)
This is where the Rutgers PhD is actually conferred, through the Graduate School-Newark, even though the same School of Nursing serves New Brunswick too. Same 66 credits, same $1,082, same March and August deadlines. One application covers both.
Where it wins. The completion clock is generous, seven years full-time or eight part-time, and part-time is allowed, so you can hold a job through it. Nine of the 66 credits are cognates taken largely outside the School of Nursing.
What you give up. Admission opens once a year, and the tuition is identical to the New Brunswick listing at $1,082 a credit with no funding package behind it. Newark itself reports no NINR awards, so the research money sits on the other listing.
Funding. The program discusses financing case by case, covering grants, scholarships and federal loans,. Funding is not guaranteed.
Every published detail for Rutgers Newark
Degree awarded
PhD
Delivery
On campus
School
Rutgers School of Nursing
Entry points
BSN-to-PhD, MSN-to-PhD, post-master's
GRE
Not required
Minimum GPA
3.2
Applications close
March 1 for the Post-Master's/DNP to PhD pathway; August 1 for the Post-Baccalaureate to PhD pathway
Part-time study
Available
Dissertation
Required
On campus
Research Residency: hands-on research experience under faculty mentorship (a 3-credit research practicum in the 66-credit curriculum)
South Orange, NJ · Private nonprofit · scores 37.4
Part time
Hybrid
Classes run in-person and synchronously online at the same time, so you can take the whole PhD from wherever you live and still be in the room. It's built as a part-time cohort for nurse educators and executives.
Where it wins. At 42 credits it's the shortest PhD in New Jersey, 24 fewer than Rutgers, and scholarships can cut the cost by half. Six credits a semester across eight semesters, and it's the only New Jersey program admitting twice a year.
What you give up. $1,585 a credit is the steepest rate in the state, $503 more than Rutgers, so at list price 42 credits still costs $66,570 and only the scholarship closes the gap. New Jersey's faculty median of $76,980 sits $29,520 below the RN median.
Funding. Scholarships can reduce the cost of the degree by up to 50 percent; graduate assistantships and federal aid are also listed
What Nursing Faculty and Nurse Researchers Earn in New Jersey
New Jersey pays its registered nurses well. The state RN median is $106,500 against a national RN median of $97,550. It does not pay its nursing faculty on the same scale. The median for postsecondary nursing instructors is $76,980, under the national faculty median of $80,250 and $29,520 below what the state's own RNs earn. The bottom of the faculty range is $32,220 at the 10th percentile, which is closer to per-course adjunct pay than to a salary. The top reaches $128,910. About 2,000 people hold these jobs statewide, against 92,680 working RNs.
Can You Do a New Jersey Nursing PhD Part Time and Keep Your RN Job?
Yes, and in New Jersey that's the ordinary case rather than the exception. All three programs, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers University-Newark and Seton Hall in South Orange, list part-time study. The median credit load is 66 and the full-time clock is about four years, so part time runs longer than that.
The wage numbers explain why every program in the state offers it. An RN median of $106,500 against a faculty median of $76,980 means leaving practice to study full time costs you twice, once in the wages you stop earning and again in what the destination job pays. Keeping the clinical income while the credits accumulate is the rational move for most people here.
Two of the three admit straight from a BSN and two skip the GRE, which shortens the runway into a program. Seton Hall's hybrid schedule is the only one that cuts down how often you're physically on a campus, and it's also the only private option, so the cost comparison and the commute comparison point in opposite directions.
Questions About Nursing PhD Programs in New Jersey
How many PhD in nursing programs are there in New Jersey?
3, at 3 universities. 3 are campus-based and 0 run online.
How many nursing PhD programs are there in New Jersey?
Three, at three institutions: Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers University-Newark and Seton Hall University in South Orange. Two are public and one is private.
Is there a fully online nursing PhD in New Jersey?
The three New Jersey programs are campus-based. Seton Hall's hybrid schedule is the closest thing to distance study, mixing online coursework with scheduled time in South Orange.
What do nursing professors earn in New Jersey?
Postsecondary nursing instructors in New Jersey earn a $76,980 median. The bottom 10% earn $32,220 and the top 10% clear $128,910, across 2,000 jobs in the state. The national median is $80,250.
Can you do a nursing PhD in New Jersey without moving?
Every nursing PhD program in New Jersey is campus-based, so studying in state means commuting or moving. The alternative is an online program based elsewhere, and those are ranked here.