Associate's · Pikeville, Kentucky

Is Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at University of Pikeville worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back fast: graduates typically recover the cost in about 1.1 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $88,412; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $79,960; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $18,106; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $41k (likely $41k – $51k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $44k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in KY; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 1.1 years (likely 0.9–1.5); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $310k (likely $213k – $414k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $727k (likely $529k – $924k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 41%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26