U.S. News & World Report released its annual "Best Nursing Schools" list, with  Emory University topping the list for master's degrees and  Johns Hopkins University topping the list for doctor of nursing practice (DNP) degrees.

Methodology

To determine the best nursing schools rankings, U.S. News   in fall 2022 and early 2023 surveyed 648 nursing schools with master's programs or doctoral programs accredited by either the  Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or the  Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing. Of the schools surveyed, 184 provided enough data to be included in the master's program rankings, and 169 provided enough data to be included in the DNP rankings.

U.S. News  assessed each school's performance based on the weighted averages of 15 indicators for the master's ranking and 14 for the DNP ranking across four broad assessment categories:

• Quality assessment, including a peer assessment score and a healthcare professionals assessment score
• Student selectivity, including average undergraduate GPA and program acceptance rate, enrollment
• Faculty resources, including faculty-to-student ratio, faculty credentials, nursing practice participation, and master's degree output productivity
• Research activity, including total grants, total educational and practical initiative grants, and the average dollar amounts of these grants

Emory University tops the master's list

The top 10 schools for a master's of nursing degree, according to U.S. News, are:

1. Emory University (Atlanta, GA)

2. Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)

3. University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA)

4. Duke University (Durham, NC)

4. University of Washington (Seattle, WA)

6. Columbia University (New York, NY)

6. Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN)

8. Ohio State University (Columbus, OH)

8. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor, MI)

10. University of Alabama-Birmingham (Birmingham, AL)

10. University of California-San Francisco (San Francisco, CA)

10. University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, NC)

Click here to see the full list.

Johns Hopkins tops the DNP list

1. Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)

2. Columbia University (New York, NY)

2. Duke University (Durham, NC)

2. Rush University (Chicago, IL)

2. University of Washington (Seattle, WA)

6. Emory University (Atlanta, GA)

6. Rutgers University-Newark (Newark, NJ)

6. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor, MI)

6. University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (Minneapolis, MN)

10. University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA)

Click here to see the full list.

The best schools for 14 nursing specialties

In addition, U.S. News  ranked the best schools for 14 nursing specialties. The rankings were based entirely on the assessments of nursing school deans and deans of graduate studies, who were asked to name up to 15 schools that offered the best programs in each specialty area.

• DNP Administration/Management: Emory University (Atlanta, GA) and Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN) (tie)
• DNP Family: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• DNP Leadership: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• DNP Nurse Practitioner: Adult/Gerontology, Acute Care: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• DNP Nurse Practitioner: Adult/Gerontology, Primary Care: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• DNP Nurse Practitioner: Pediatric, Primary Care: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• DNP Nurse Practitioner: Psychiatric/Mental Health, Across the Lifespan: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Master's Nurse Practitioner: Adult/Gerontology, Acute Care: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Master's Nurse Practitioner: Adult/Gerontology, Primary Care: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Master's Nurse Practitioner: Family: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Master's Nurse Practitioner: Psychiatric/Mental Health, Across the Lifespan: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Master's Nursing Administration: Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Master's Nursing Leadership: Rush University (Chicago, IL)
• Master's Nursing Practitioner: Pediatric Primary Care: Duke University (Durham, NC), Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD), and Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN) (tie)

(U.S. News & World Report Doctor of Nursing Practice rankings, accessed 4/26; U.S News & World Report, Master's in Nursing rankings, accessed 4/26; Morse et. al., U.S. News & World Report methodology, 4/24)