What Degree Do Most Kansas Nurses Start With?
If you're planning your path into nursing, it helps to know what routes your future colleagues actually took, and what's becoming more common.
| Degree or Credential | 2015 | 2017 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vocational/Practical Certificate | 6.0% | 8.2% | 7.3% | 10.8% | 8.0% |
| Diploma | 11.8% | 7.7% | 5.8% | 6.8% | 4.9% |
| Associate Degree | 35.6% | 31.9% | 33.0% | 33.2% | 30.9% |
| Baccalaureate Degree | 44.4% | 50.0% | 52.1% | 45.2% | 53.7% |
| Masters Degree | 2.1% | 2.2% | 1.8% | 4.0% | 2.5% |
| Degree or Credential | 2015 | 2017 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vocational/Practical Certificate | 84.5% | 85.6% | 81.6% | 83.8% | 82.4% |
| Diploma | 5.8% | 6.0% | 6.0% | 6.6% | 6.5% |
| Associate Degree | 9.7% | 7.6% | 11.6% | 9.3% | 10.6% |
| Baccalaureate Degree | 0.0% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.2% | 0.5% |
In Kansas, the bachelor's degree (BSN) has become the most popular starting point by far.
More than half of Kansas RNs, 53.7% in 2024, began their nursing careers with a four-year degree, up from 44.4% in 2015. That's actually a faster shift toward the BSN than the national trend, and it's happening even though Kansas doesn't require a bachelor's degree just to get licensed.
What does that tell you? Nurses themselves are choosing the BSN because it opens more doors, more job options, more advancement opportunities, and stronger earning potential right out of the gate.
That said, it's far from the only path. About 31% of Kansas RNs started with a two-year associate degree, and 8% began as LPNs before advancing to RN licensure. Nationally, direct-entry master's degrees are also on the rise for career changers who already hold a bachelor's degree in another field. (The University of Kansas School of Nursing will debut Kansas’s first Master of Science in Nursing-Direct Entry program starting Fall 2027.)
Weigh the investment: the trend strongly favors the BSN as the starting point that best positions you for long-term success, and Kansas nurses are choosing it even when they aren't required to. But no matter where you begin, there is a clear and supported path forward in nursing.
