Critical Care Nursing Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Critical Care Nursing maps to BLS occupations averaging about $147,028, with roughly 3,983,970 workers nationwide in those roles. Median in-state published tuition is about $7,361; common paths include Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary and Nurse Anesthetists.
Key Statistics
Critical Care Nursing: what the data shows
Common questions about critical care nursing degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a critical care nursing degree?
A Critical Care Nursing program is classified under NCES CIP 51.3814 in the Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing field family (51.38).
A program that prepares registered nurses to provide specialized care to patients with life-threatening problems, including those in intensive care facilities and on life support. Includes instruction in adult, neonatal, and pediatric critical care; technical skills; patient monitoring and assessment; normal and abnormal readings; and troubleshooting
Types of critical care nursing degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 51.38 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Adult Health Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3803)
- Clinical Nurse Leader (CIP 51.3820)
- Clinical Nurse Specialist (CIP 51.3813)
- Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing (CIP 51.3816)
- Family Practice Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3805)
- Forensic Nursing (CIP 51.3824)
- Geriatric Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3821)
- Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3806)
- Nurse Anesthetist (CIP 51.3804)
- Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery (CIP 51.3807)
- Nursing Administration (CIP 51.3802)
- Nursing Education (CIP 51.3817)
- Nursing Practice (CIP 51.3818)
- Nursing Science (CIP 51.3808)
- Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing (CIP 51.3815)
- Palliative Care Nursing (CIP 51.3819)
- Pediatric Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3809)
- Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3812)
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3810)
- Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3811)
- Registered Nursing (CIP 51.3801)
- Women's Health Nurse/Nursing (CIP 51.3822)
How long does it take to get a critical care nursing degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 51.3814 in our file:
- 431 Master's (80.9% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 102 Doctorate (19.1% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What degree do you need?
For Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a critical care nursing degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Critical Care Nursing to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary | 74,250 | $79,940 |
| Nurse Anesthetists | 50,350 | $223,210 |
| Nurse Midwives | 8,280 | $128,790 |
| Nurse Practitioners | 307,390 | $129,210 |
| Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse | 261,690 | $35,690 |
| Registered Nurses | 3,282,010 | $93,600 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a critical care nursing degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing bachelor's program family: median debt $21,490, median earnings $88,910 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.29.
About 1.2% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $7,361 and median net price is $16,419.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Critical Care Nursing and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$7,361 Median In-State Public
$34,090 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Critical Care Nursing majors are, on average, $7,361 for in-state public colleges, and $34,090 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Critical Care Nursing programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
100,000 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Critical Care Nursing from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Critical Care Nursing.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 2 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 3 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 4 | Western Governors University | UT | 155,088 |
| 5 | Western Governors University | UT | 155,088 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Critical Care Nursing programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 2 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 3 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
| 4 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
| 5 | Compton College | CA | $1,142 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Critical Care Nursing programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $480 |
| 2 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
| 3 | Wiregrass Georgia Technical College | GA | $614 |
| 4 | Henry Ford College | MI | $660 |
| 5 | North Florida College | FL | $804 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Critical Care Nursing programs.
Graduation Rates
Graduation rate data is not available for this degree program.
Graduation/completion rates for Critical Care Nursing programs across institutions.
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 51.38 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Adult Health Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3803
- Clinical Nurse Leader CIP 51.3820
- Clinical Nurse Specialist CIP 51.3813
- Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing CIP 51.3816
- Family Practice Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3805
- Forensic Nursing CIP 51.3824
- Geriatric Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3821
- Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3806
- Nurse Anesthetist CIP 51.3804
- Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery CIP 51.3807
- Nursing Administration CIP 51.3802
- Nursing Education CIP 51.3817
- Nursing Practice CIP 51.3818
- Nursing Science CIP 51.3808
- Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing CIP 51.3815
- Palliative Care Nursing CIP 51.3819
- Pediatric Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3809
- Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3812
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3810
- Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3811
- Registered Nursing CIP 51.3801
- Women's Health Nurse/Nursing CIP 51.3822
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 51.3814 in the survey year used in our extract (533 total across levels below).
- 431 Master's (80.9% of IPEDS total)
- 102 Doctorate (19.1% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $147,028. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Critical Care Nursing graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary | $104,536 | 74,250 |
| Nurse Anesthetists | $225,979 | 50,350 |
| Nurse Midwives | $184,512 | 8,280 |
| Nurse Practitioners | $177,897 | 307,390 |
| Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse | $39,570 | 261,690 |
| Registered Nurses | $152,361 | 3,282,010 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing CIP family (602 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Critical Care Nursing graduate.
- $21,490 median federal loan debt among completers
- $88,910 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.29 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 1.2% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$147,028 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Critical Care Nursing majors is $147,028.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Critical Care Nursing majors.
Occupations by Share
3,983,970 2023 Workforce
The number of Critical Care Nursing graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Critical Care Nursing by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Critical Care Nursing in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Critical Care Nursing.
Age distribution for Critical Care Nursing degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
596 Total Degrees Awarded
108 Male (18.12%)
488 Female (81.88%)
Gender distribution of Critical Care Nursing degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
377 White (63.26%)
113 Hispanic or Latino (18.96%)
40 Asian (6.71%)
36 Black or African American (6.04%)
11 Two or More Races (1.85%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Critical Care Nursing degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Critical Care Nursing are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Critical Care Nursing.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Critical Care Nursing field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Critical Care Nursing majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Critical Care Nursing majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Critical Care Nursing majors.
About
A program that prepares registered nurses to provide specialized care to patients with life-threatening problems, including those in intensive care facilities and on life support. Includes instruction in adult, neonatal, and pediatric critical care; technical skills; patient monitoring and assessment; normal and abnormal readings; and troubleshooting
In 2023, 100,000 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Critical Care Nursing.
CIP Code
51.3814 - Critical Care Nursing
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $21,490 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $88,910, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.29. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Critical Care Nursing graduate.
Women earned 81.9% of 596 Critical Care Nursing completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $147,028. The largest mapped role by headcount is Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary (74,250 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $7,361 in-state at public colleges and $34,090 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.