How much debt do Seattle Central College nursing graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $18,312, which ranks 12th lowest of 22 nursing associate's programs in Washington. That works out to about $194 a month over 10 years.

Is a nursing degree from Seattle Central College worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 22% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 29%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Washington programs report higher pay.

Seattle Central College Nursing (ADN): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Seattle Central College nursing graduates stay in Washington?

Most do. 97% (74 of 76) were working in Washington one year after graduating.

Associate's in Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Public college
Seattle, WA
About 134 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Seattle Central College nursing graduates earn more than graduates of most nursing programs nationally, $83,117 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $18,312 in federal loans, close to the national median of $20,423. It is one of the higher-paying nursing degrees in Washington.

First-year earnings$83,11791st percentile of 845 programs nationally

Median federal debt$18,31212th lowest of 22 Washington programs

Debt-to-earnings22%Washington median 23%, national 29%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Washington and national columns are the medians across all nursing associate's programs that report the figure.

	Seattle Central College	Washington	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$83,117	$79,369	$68,521
Median federal debt at graduation	$18,312	$18,239	$20,423
Debt as share of first-year pay	22%	23%	29%
Programs compared		23	845

Debt and first-year pay at every Washington nursing program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Washington medians.

Seattle Central CollegeOther Washington programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Does family income change the outcome?

Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned about the same in their first year as other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $20,121 against $15,166.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$82,659Median debt $20,121

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$84,573Median debt $15,166

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $194 a month, or 2.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

97% of graduates (74 of 76) were working in Washington one year after graduating. Prices in the Seattle area are about 11% above the national average, so a $83,117 salary here buys what about $74,791 buys in a typical US city.

The median Washington RN earns $124,200, compared with a national median of $97,550. After adjusting for Washington prices, that pay is worth about $116,061, which puts Washington ahead.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to nursing, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Registered Nurses

$124,200

Median pay in Washington. 69,260 people work in this job in Washington. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 180,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $89,630Top 10%: $161,910

Medical and Health Services Managers

$145,290

Median pay in Washington. 7,490 people work in this job in Washington. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 24% from 2025 to 2035, with about 62,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $88,970Top 10%: $282,250

Nurse Practitioners

$156,100

Median pay in Washington. 6,700 people work in this job in Washington. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 41% from 2025 to 2035, with about 29,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

Bottom 10%: $122,420Top 10%: $187,240

Nurse Anesthetists

$274,390

Median pay in Washington. 760 people work in this job in Washington. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 2,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

Bottom 10%: $218,640Top 10%: $358,160

About Seattle Central College

In-state tuition and fees	$5,184 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$5,745 / year
Average net price after aid	$8,819 / year
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	32%
Undergraduate students	3,953

Nursing ranks 1st of 3 associate's programs at Seattle Central College by first-year earnings. The others are Design and Applied Arts ($29,775) and Liberal Arts and General Studies ($28,025).

Other nursing associate's programs near Seattle

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Seattle Central CollegeSeattle, WA · public		$83,117	$18,312
Bellevue CollegeBellevue, WA · public	8 mi	$82,286	$17,152
Shoreline CollegeShoreline, WA · public	9 mi	$78,850	$16,334
Lake Washington Institute of TechnologyKirkland, WA · public	9 mi	$83,313	$15,000
Renton Technical CollegeRenton, WA · public	11 mi	$80,411	$18,582
Olympic CollegeBremerton, WA · public	15 mi	$84,108	$20,000
Highline CollegeDes Moines, WA · public	16 mi	$84,619	$13,000
Tacoma Community CollegeTacoma, WA · public	27 mi	$82,447	$19,000
Everett Community CollegeEverett, WA · public	27 mi	$79,945	$19,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $83,117 one year after graduating. Registered nurses in the Seattle metro area earn a median of $128,260 across all experience levels.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Washington comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the nursing program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

Nursing associate's programs in Washington, ranked23 programs by pay and debt Nursing associate's programs in the US, ranked845 programs by pay and debt All Seattle Central College programs, ranked4 programs by pay and debt