Best ADN Programs in Oregon, Ranked (2026)

Klamath Community College's Nursing AAS program in Klamath Falls trains students for the NCLEX-RN with a clear regional purpose: graduate nurses who stay and practice in rural Southern Oregon. Admission is competitive and structured, applicants must sit for a proctored Kaplan Nursing Entrance Exam at the KCC Testing Center and complete a supervised essay evaluated on critical thinking, leadership, and cultural competence. An LPN Transition track has historically been available but was closed for the 2026 cycle; interested LPNs should check directly with the program for 2027 availability. KCC also participates in a statewide Oregon BSN Consortium, with an RN-to-BSN program scheduled to admit its first cohort in Fall 2026, giving ADN graduates a fully online path to a bachelor's degree conferred by their home institution.

In-state tuition is $4,248 per year, one of the lowest costs to RN licensure in Oregon. The program reports a 43% graduation rate via IPEDS. KCC does not publish a program-specific NCLEX pass rate on its nursing page. With a Hakia Score of 73.9, it ranks first among Oregon ADN programs in this dataset. This program fits students in the Klamath Basin who want local training, low debt, and a clear bridge to a BSN while already working as an RN.

Southwestern Oregon Community College offers an Associate of Applied Science in Nursing designed for students entering the profession as registered nurses. The program is restricted-entry and point-based: 45 credits of prerequisites must be completed before starting the nursing curriculum, with 28 of those credits, including Human Anatomy and Physiology I, required before the application deadline. The nursing curriculum itself runs 63 credits across two years, covering foundations of nursing, pharmacology, pathophysiology, and a scope-of-practice integrated practicum in the final term. All clinical coursework is completed in person. The program catalog notes it is not nationally accredited; prospective students seeking licensure outside Oregon should verify requirements with their target state board before enrolling. Acceptance also carries co-admission to the Oregon Health and Science University nursing program, making the RN-to-BSN path available from day one.

SOCC charges $4,880 per year in-state, and out-of-state students pay the same rate, which is worth noting for anyone near the California or Nevada border. Graduation rate is 40% per IPEDS. No program-specific NCLEX pass rate is published on the catalog page. Total program credits reach 108 including prerequisites, which is substantial for an AAS; students should plan prerequisites carefully with an advisor. The Hakia Score of 73.1 places it second in Oregon. This program suits students on the Southern Oregon coast who want a clear pathway to a BSN without changing institutions mid-career.

Treasure Valley Community College's Associate Degree Nurse program in Ontario, Oregon has served the Eastern Oregon border community for more than 60 years. The program is 60 credits completed over six quarters, beginning each fall and concluding the following spring with a Pinning Ceremony and graduation in June. It is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), and the curriculum is structured to align with the NCSBN framework for the NCLEX-RN. Students who complete the first year have the option to sit for the PN-NCLEX, a voluntary milestone: 11 students took that exam in the 07/2025 to 09/2025 window and all 11 passed. Clinical training is hands-on and completed in person at regional healthcare facilities.

TVCC's published outcomes are among the strongest in Oregon for an ADN program. The program reports 100% NCLEX-RN pass rates for 2020 through 2024, and a 2025 rate of 89% on first attempt and 100% on second attempt. The 2025 cohort also showed a 100% employment rate within six months of graduation. In-state tuition is $5,265 per year per IPEDS. Graduation rate is 37%. The Hakia Score of 67.8 places it third in Oregon. This program is well-suited to students in the Treasure Valley region who want ACEN-accredited training with a documented, multi-year NCLEX track record and strong post-graduation employment.

Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham offers an AAS in Nursing designed for students pursuing careers as registered nurses in hospitals, clinics, long-term care, and community health settings. The program is part of the Oregon Consortium for Nursing Education (OCNE), a statewide collaboration that also connects graduates to a transfer pathway into a BSN through OHSU or another partner institution. The curriculum combines classroom instruction, simulation lab, and hands-on clinical rotations; no portion of this prelicensure program can be completed fully online. MHCC structures the pathway as a three-year sequence, prerequisites followed by the nursing program, rather than the two-year model common at smaller community colleges. Applicants must complete a minimum of 28 prerequisite credits with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 before applying, with all 45 prerequisite credits required before beginning nursing coursework if accepted.

In-state tuition is $4,464 per year per IPEDS; out-of-state students pay $9,036. MHCC is the largest institution in this group with 6,476 enrolled students, which reflects broader program resources and clinical site access in the Portland metro area. Graduation rate is 24%. The program does not publish a specific NCLEX pass rate on its catalog page. With a Hakia Score of 67.4, it ranks fourth in Oregon in this assessment. MHCC suits students in the Portland east-metro region who have a strong academic record and want an OCNE-connected program with a clear BSN articulation built in from the start.

Oregon Coast Community College's Associate of Applied Science in Nursing is a two-year program built on a combination of nursing and transfer credits. Students rotate through hands-on clinical settings and complete a dedicated NUR 244 Preparation for the NCLEX-RN Exam course before sitting for licensure. Working LPNs with an active, in-good-standing Oregon license can enter the LPN-to-RN Bridge Program, a separate track designed for direct and faster progression to the RN credential. The college operates out of two locations, Newport and Lincoln City, serving a region with limited higher-education options on the central Oregon coast.

OCCC is a small institution (enrollment roughly 470) with an in-state tuition of $4,500 per year, among the lowest in Oregon. The program's 36% graduation rate reflects the selective cohort model common to limited-enrollment nursing programs; the scraped page does not publish a specific NCLEX first-time pass rate. Hakia's ranking model scores this program at 66.8, placing it fifth among Oregon ADN programs. The OCCC Foundation offers nursing-specific scholarships, and co-enrollment agreements with Linfield University, Grand Canyon University, and Bushnell University give completers a clear RN-to-BSN pathway. OCCC has also been approved to launch its own BSN starting Fall 2026 through a six-college consortium. ADN graduates sit for the same NCLEX-RN as four-year BSN graduates and hold an identical RN license.

This program fits career-changers and coastal Oregonians who want the shortest, most affordable road to an RN license, especially those already working as LPNs who can use the bridge track to skip duplicated coursework. The low tuition and scholarship availability reduce out-of-pocket costs significantly compared to four-year alternatives.

Umpqua Community College's Registered Nursing program awards an Associate of Applied Science degree and is approved by the Oregon State Board of Nursing. The curriculum is built on the Oregon Consortium for Nursing Education (OCNE) competency framework, jointly developed by nine community colleges and Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). Students rotate through clinical training in a cutting-edge facility and can prepare for the PN-NCLEX to earn an LPN credential after the first year, before completing the full RN program. The six-term structure aligns with OHSU's RN-to-BSN pathway: the first five terms are shared, and term six delivers AAS completion and NCLEX-RN eligibility. Students who complete the AAS and pass the boards can then transfer upper-division nursing courses through OHSU to earn a BSN.

UCC's page states an over 85% NCLEX first-time pass rate and a job placement rate exceeding 90% within 6-9 months, two of the more concrete outcome claims published by any Oregon community college ADN program. In-state tuition runs $4,680 per year, and the program's 31% graduation rate reflects cohort-based enrollment caps rather than academic attrition alone. Hakia scores UCC at 66.0, ranking it sixth in Oregon. The enrollment of about 2,582 students gives the college more financial-aid infrastructure and advising resources than smaller coastal programs. Graduates sit for the NCLEX-RN, the same national licensure exam taken by BSN graduates, and hold a full RN license with no licensing distinction.

UCC fits students in southern Oregon who want verified employment outcomes and a built-in bridge to OHSU's bachelor's program, all at community-college tuition. The optional first-year LPN credential also gives students an income floor while they complete the second year of the RN track.

Lane Community College has offered registered nursing education since 1971. The Associate of Applied Science in Nursing requires approximately two years of prerequisite coursework followed by two years (60 credits) of core nursing courses, making it a four-year total commitment for students entering without prior college credit. Core program costs are listed at $36,904 (not including prerequisites). Clinical rotations cover a variety of settings including acute care, long-term care, home health, hospice, surgical centers, and community health. Instruction happens face-to-face in Eugene, and Lane's nursing division is housed in a LEED-certified building dedicated to health professions. The program is accredited and OSBN-approved; Lane does not publish an admit rate.

Lane's program page states that in 2023 more than 90% of students completed on time and more than 94% passed the NCLEX-RN on the first attempt, one of the highest published pass rates among Oregon ADN programs. In-state tuition is $5,202 per year; out-of-state students pay $12,078. The 20% graduation rate in Hakia's dataset reflects the broad denominator of all students who ever enrolled at Lane, not the nursing-specific cohort completion figure cited by the program itself. Hakia scores Lane at 65.6, ranking it seventh in Oregon. Graduates who want a BSN can transfer to local RN-to-BSN programs or enroll concurrently with Grand Canyon University. RNs earning an ADN from Lane hold the same NCLEX-RN-backed license as a BSN graduate; there is no licensing difference between the two degree levels.

Lane is the right pick for Eugene-area applicants who want a long-established program with strong, publicly stated NCLEX outcomes and the academic resources of a 6,800-student college, and who can plan for the two-year prerequisite phase before cohort admission.

Linn-Benton Community College's two-year Associate of Applied Science in Nursing trains generalist nurses using a combination of on-campus simulation and community clinical placements. The on-campus Nursing Skills Lab provides individual learning stations and human simulation mannequin scenarios before students rotate through public health agencies, long-term care facilities, and hospital partners in the Albany and Lebanon areas. The physical program is based at the Healthcare Occupations Center campus in Lebanon. LBCC is part of the six-college Oregon BSN consortium, and its own post-licensure BSN admits seven students per fall after they complete the ADN and hold an active RN license. As of April 2025, the ADN program is a candidate for initial accreditation by ACEN, with candidacy running through April 2027; the program also carries OSBN approval.

LBCC's program page publishes outcome data by graduating class: the Class of 2024 passed NCLEX at 100% on first attempt, the Class of 2025 also at 100%, and the Class of 2023 at 96.9%. On-time completion has improved each year, reaching 71.4% for the Class of 2025 and projected at 76.6% for 2026. In-state tuition is $6,482 per year, the highest among the four programs here, though nursing-specific startup costs (background check, drug test, vaccination tracking) add roughly $169 upfront. Hakia scores LBCC at 64.9, ranking it eighth in Oregon. The program's 29% graduation rate uses the institution-wide denominator. Students applying should note that applications open in early spring for fall cohort starts, and incomplete applications are not reviewed.

LBCC is the strongest documented choice in this group for proven NCLEX performance: back-to-back 100% first-time pass rates are rare in Oregon or nationally. The tradeoff is slightly higher tuition and a one-to-two year wait to enter the nursing cohort after prerequisites. Graduates earn the same full RN license via the NCLEX-RN as any BSN graduate.

Portland Community College offers a two-year Associate of Applied Science in Nursing at its Sylvania Campus in Portland. The program is limited-entry and structured across six sequential terms, moving from foundations and chronic illness nursing through acute care and an integrative practicum. Clinical rotations are in-person and built into each nursing term; there is no fully online pathway for this prelicensure degree. PCC holds ACEN Continuing Accreditation and is approved by the Oregon State Board of Nursing. Graduates sit for the NCLEX-RN and earn the same registered nurse license as any BSN graduate.

In-state tuition runs $4,788 per year, placing PCC among the most affordable RN entry points in the state. The program reported a graduation rate of 18% in IPEDS data, reflecting the competitive limited-entry selection, not program quality: over 95% of graduates who sat for the NCLEX-RN passed in each of the three most recent reporting years, per PCC's own student achievement data. With a Hakia Score of 64, PCC ranks ninth among Oregon ADN programs on this index. The Portland metro job market reinforces the value: the Oregon Employment Department projects a 20.5% increase in Portland-area nursing employment through 2027, and reports a local RN average of $106,086 annually. The national BLS median for registered nurses sits at $97,550.

PCC is the right pick for a Portland-area candidate who wants an ACEN-accredited ADN at community-college cost, is prepared for a rigorous application process, and plans to complete an online RN-to-BSN bridge after landing their first RN role.

Chemeketa Community College in Salem offers an Associate of Applied Science in Nursing designed to carry students through two distinct practice levels within one program. The curriculum explicitly builds LPN-level competencies first, then advances to RN-level management and clinical judgment skills, giving graduates a stronger foundation before they sit for the NCLEX-RN. Clinical training is in-person at the Salem Campus; this is a prelicensure program that cannot be completed online. The program is approved by the Oregon State Board of Nursing. Entry requires a criminal background check and ten-panel drug screening through a college-approved vendor, with a second round required at the start of year two.

In-state tuition is $4,680 per year, the lower of the two Oregon programs profiled here. IPEDS data show a graduation rate of 21%. Admit rate data is not reported for this program. The scraped program page does not publish a current NCLEX pass rate figure, so none is cited here; the program has previously been recognized by third-party nursing sites for strong NCLEX outcomes, but Hakia relies only on verifiable figures. Chemeketa's Hakia Score of 63.8 places it tenth among Oregon ADN programs on this index. Nationally, BLS reports a median RN salary of $97,550; Salem-area wages will reflect the mid-Willamette Valley market.

Chemeketa is the better fit for a Salem-area candidate who values the structured two-level skill progression, wants the lowest in-state tuition among ranked Oregon ADN programs, and is prepared to meet entry screening requirements before the first day of class.