Top 10 Nursing Informatics Programs | 2025
Technology growth in healthcare has yielded a growing need for nursing informatics professionals. As the subspecialty grows, so does the pool of nurses interested in entering this field. If you're among them, you probably want to know what it takes to be an informatics nurse.
This article explores the best nursing informatics programs in 2025. Read on to discover top programs, including tuition, program length, online options, and so much more.
Popular Online Nursing Informatics Programs
Earn your nursing degree from one of the largest nursing education providers in the U.S. Walden University’s BSN, MSN, post-master’s APRN certificate, and DNP programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Get enhanced practicum support with our Practicum Pledge.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide, excluding CT, ND, NY and RI. Certain programs have additional state restrictions. Check with Walden for details.
GCU's College of Nursing and Health Care Professions has a nearly 35-year tradition of preparing students to fill evolving healthcare roles as highly qualified professionals.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
For more than 15 years, American Sentinel College of Nursing & Health Sciences at Post University has been educating registered nurses and healthcare professionals like you online. We offer a number of advanced online nursing degrees designed to give you the advanced education needed to achieve your personal and professional goals.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Natiowide except AZ, CA, DC, LA, NY, OR, TN, WA, PR
WGU's award-winning online programs are created to help you succeed while graduating faster and with less debt. WGU is a CCNE accredited, nonprofit university offering nursing bachelor's and master's degrees.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
As a pioneer in distance learning since 1985, Liberty University’s online nursing programs are designed to prepare practicing nurses to serve with integrity by teaching advanced skills from an ethical perspective. Liberty's programs are based on industry best practices and up-to-date research – so you can get the tools you need to stay on the cutting edge of nursing care and innovation.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
What is Nursing Informatics?
Nursing informatics combines nursing science with technology to improve communication and the transfer of information within the field.
Some of the most common nursing informatics examples include:
- Electronic medical records (EMR) systems
- Computerized provider order entry (CPOE)
- Telemedicine
You may also not know that many different career titles are associated with nursing informatics. Common titles may include:
- Clinical Nurse Analyst
- Chief Information Officer
- Informatics Nurse
- Nursing Informatics Specialist
- Health Informatics Specialist
- Chief Nursing Officer
If you have ever considered a non-bedside nursing job, enjoy learning about advancements in nursing technology, and want to improve the flow of information for better patient outcomes, you might consider learning more about this growing subspecialty.
What is a Nursing Informatics Program?
You can work in nursing informatics with a standard Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree. However, attending a nursing informatics-specific program can increase your eligibility for higher-level, advanced-salary positions.
Nursing informatics programs generally award advanced degrees, requiring an undergrad education for admissions. These programs award Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degrees.
These programs teach nursing students about utilizing technology to:
- Improve communication between nurses and ancillary healthcare specialists
- Provide fast data to healthcare providers so they can make informed choices
- Help administrators analyze large amounts of patient data
- Provide detailed patient health insights
- Influence healthcare policies with better-informed patient data
- Achieve better patient outcomes
- Help lower healthcare costs
Top Nursing Informatics Programs
Our ranking criteria is based on factors such as tuition, acceptance rate, student-to-faculty ratio, and accreditation and uses the latest and most robust U.S. government data sets, specifically the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and College Scorecard.
Nurses Helping Nurses: Why You Can Trust Nurse.org
As the leading educational website for nurses by nurses, Nurse.org is committed to editorial integrity and data-driven analysis. We independently research schools and programs for nurses and strive to write recommendations that genuinely reflect our true opinion of the product or service. Where relevant, our recommendations may incorporate feedback from 500,000+ nurses in our social communities.
✔ Evaluated 1,100+ accredited nursing school programs using the latest U.S. government data sets. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
✔ Content written by 80+ licensed, practicing nurses who are experts in their respective specialties. Learn more about our nurse contributors.
✔ Connected 1,500,000+ nurses to educational programs since 2020.
ACEN
University of Pittsburgh's MSN in nursing informatics is a 100% online program. It is a go-at-your-own-pace MSN, with options to attend full-time or part-time. This program is also unique because students can earn an MSN in Nursing Informatics, and it’s also possible for other MSN students to earn a minor or a post-professional nursing informatics certification.
The school prides itself on a 100% national certification pass rate. Students in the program also have unique opportunities to customize their programs and present their capstone projects at local, state, and national meetings.
Program options:
- Online MSN in Nursing Informatics
- Minor in Nursing Informatics
- Post Graduate Certificate
- Application deadline:
- Fall: June 15th
- Spring: October 1st
- Summer: March 1st
- Contact info:
- Email: sao50@pitt.edu
- Phone number: (412) 624-4586 or (888) 747-0794
Popular Online Nursing Informatics Programs
Earn your nursing degree from one of the largest nursing education providers in the U.S. Walden University’s BSN, MSN, post-master’s APRN certificate, and DNP programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Get enhanced practicum support with our Practicum Pledge.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide, excluding CT, ND, NY and RI. Certain programs have additional state restrictions. Check with Walden for details.
GCU's College of Nursing and Health Care Professions has a nearly 35-year tradition of preparing students to fill evolving healthcare roles as highly qualified professionals.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
For more than 15 years, American Sentinel College of Nursing & Health Sciences at Post University has been educating registered nurses and healthcare professionals like you online. We offer a number of advanced online nursing degrees designed to give you the advanced education needed to achieve your personal and professional goals.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Natiowide except AZ, CA, DC, LA, NY, OR, TN, WA, PR
WGU's award-winning online programs are created to help you succeed while graduating faster and with less debt. WGU is a CCNE accredited, nonprofit university offering nursing bachelor's and master's degrees.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
As a pioneer in distance learning since 1985, Liberty University’s online nursing programs are designed to prepare practicing nurses to serve with integrity by teaching advanced skills from an ethical perspective. Liberty's programs are based on industry best practices and up-to-date research – so you can get the tools you need to stay on the cutting edge of nursing care and innovation.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
CCNE
Duke University offers an MSN in health informatics that emphasizes “clinical informatics, leadership, and real-world application.” Ranked in the top 3 nursing informatics programs in the country by U.S News & World Report, Duke graduates consistently earn high-paying positions at top healthcare institutions.
The university also reports that, although most MSN students attend the program full-time, students say that they can still work as they complete their coursework. Students in this program take 4 MSN courses, 7 informatics courses, and 2 DNP courses.
Faculty report using personalized instruction with a combination of online and on-campus learning. In addition, the university reports having multi-disciplinary faculty with nationally recognized expert experience in biomedical information and the nursing profession
Types of nursing informatics programs:
- MSN in Nursing Informatics
- Post-Graduate Certificate
- Health Informatics Certificate
- Application deadlines:
- Fall: December 1st
- Spring: May 1st
Contact info:
- Email: SONAdmissions@dm.duke.edu
- Phone number: (919) 684-3786
- In-state: $3,963.36 per credit hour
- Out-of-state: $7,322.27 per credit hour
CCNE
The University of Utah is one of the first nursing informatics programs in the U.S. They report that they help nurses bridge the gap between technology and patient care outcomes. Nationally recognized nursing informatics leaders teach the courses at this program, tailoring each experience to the needs and interests of the students.
Their MSN in nursing informatics program offers an online and on-campus option. They also offer full-time and part-time coursework to help students manage their coursework and be successful in the program. Additionally, most informatics courses are co-offered with the Biomedical Informatics Department, allowing students to build interdisciplinary skills and broaden their horizons.
- Types of nursing informatics programs:
- On-campus and online MSN in Nursing Informatics
- Application deadline: March 1st
- Contact info:
- Email: chris.macintosh@nurs.utah.edu
- Phone number: (801) 581-3414
$725 per credit hour
CCNE
Ranked as one of the best online MSN programs in the country by U.S. News & World Report, the nursing informatics program at the University of Colorado is entirely online, with the exception of an in-person clinical requirement.
Students can complete the program in as little as two years, if full-time, but have up to seven years.
Contact info:
- Email: Nursing.Admissions@ucdenver.edu
- Phone number: (303) 724-7223
$588 per credit
CCNE
Nebraska Methodist College has a two-year MSN program with an informatics track, which helps nurses develop competencies as healthcare informaticists.
As the only healthcare informatics degree in the region, this program gives nursing students essential insight into managing information systems to promote better health systems and improve patient outcomes.
The benefits of Nebraska Methodist College’s informatics program include faster courses (either five or ten weeks each) and the ability to complete coursework from anywhere with internet access. Students in the program also receive national and chapter membership to the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
Application deadline: Rolling
Contact info:
Email: admissions@methodistcollege.edu
Phone number: (402) 354-7000
>> Show Me Nursing Informatics Programs
- In-state: $7,398 per semester
- Out-of-state: $13,124 per semester
- Full-Time: 4 Semesters
- Part-Time: 7 Semesters
CCNE
Nursing informatics MSN students at the University of South Carolina apply computer science and nursing practice to improve healthcare technology.
The program is online and can be paired with fieldwork from the student's workplace. The school emphasizes that the program allows flexibility to manage school and work simultaneously.
Application deadlines
- Fall: June 30th
- Spring: October 31st
Contact info:
- Email: NURSGRAD@mailbox.sc.edu
- Phone number: (803) 777-9080
- In-state: $272.43 per credit hour
- Out-of-state: $682.43 per credit hour
39 credit hours
CCNE
The MSN nursing informatics program at Texas Tech was the first nursing informatics master's offered by a Texas-based university. This program fills a critical gap in advanced nursing education and prepares nurses for the many existing and emerging informatics roles.
Of note, Texas Tech is unable to accept students from the following states: Arizona, California, Louisiana, New York, Oregon, and Washington.
- Types of nursing informatics programs:
- Online Nursing Informatics MSN
- Post-Master’s Nursing Informatics Certificate
- Application deadline:
- Fall: February 15th
- Spring: August 31st
- Contact info:
- Email: applynursing@ttuhsc.edu
- Phone number: (806) 743-1000
- In-state: $873 per credit hour
- Out-of-state: $1,549 per credit hour
2 Years
CCNE
Nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report, Maryland's MSN Nursing Informatics program is entirely online but still provides a top-quality education in bridging the gap between technology and patient care.
They recently revamped the entire curriculum to focus more on the role of a nursing informaticist, big data, and artificial intelligence. Additionally, students must complete 500 clinical hours (significantly more than other programs), making graduates leaders in the field of nursing technology.
- Types of nursing informatics programs:
- MSN with a combination of online and onsite clinical requirements
- Application deadline: August 5th
- Contact info:
- Email: admissions.nursing@umaryland.edu
- Phone number: (410) 706-0501
$16,200 per year
12-15 months
CCNE
National University offers two types of nursing informatics programs for nursing students:
- An MSN with a Specialization in Nursing Informatics, and
- An MS in Health Informatics Degree
The university also offers graduate students flexibility not commonly seen in many programs, such as:
- Degree completion in as little as 13 months
- Few on-campus requirements
- Online monthly meetings
But what makes the university unique is that many courses are complete in just four weeks. Additionally, students receive one-on-one faculty advising and consultation with industry experts.
- Types of nursing informatics programs:
- MSN with a Specialization in Nursing Informatics
- Master of Science in Health Informatics Degree
- Post-Master’s Certificate Informatics
- Application deadline: Rolling
- Contact info:
- Email: admissions@nu.edu
- Phone number: (855) 355-6288
>> Show Me Nursing Informatics Programs
$594 per credit unit
2-3 Years
CCNE
The University of South Alabama offers students online courses along with clinicals located in the student's town.
The program takes about two years to complete if attending as a full-time student, and the program website reports that 100% of students are employed when they enroll in the program.
- Types of nursing informatics programs:
- Online MSN in Nursing Informatics
- Application deadline: February 15th
- Contact info:
- Email: tharlan@southalabama.edu
- Phone number: (251) 460-6101
Nursing Informatics Career Overview
Nursing Informatics Salary
According to ZipRecruiter, as of January 2025, informatics nurses in the U.S. earn a median annual income of $98,409 or $47.00/hr. That is about $8,200 per month!
ZipRecruiter adds that nurse informatics salaries can range from as high as $166,500 per year to as low as $42,500.
Highest Paying Cities for Informatics Nurses
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the annual median income for nurses of all specialties is about $86,070 or $41.38 per hour. Based on those numbers, informatics nurses have more earning potential than most nursing specialties!
Nursing Informatics Program Overview
Average Nursing Informatics Program Length
Most nursing informatics programs take about two years to complete. However, some can take as little as three semesters, while others can take up to three years. Timing will also vary depending if you are attending the program on a full-time or part-time basis.
Your program length will likely be determined by the type of advanced degree you want to achieve. Generally speaking, an MSN will take less time than a DNP.
Nursing Informatics Program Requirements
Because nursing informatics programs don’t require bedside nursing care, most classroom work can be completed almost or entirely 100% online. However, you will also be required to complete clinical hours at a local healthcare facility. This will vary based on the program. It’s important to consider the number of clinical hours required and also if the program will assist in setting up the clinical experience. Some programs require the students to find their own clinical experiences and submit all necessary paperwork.
Classes taught in nursing informatics programs often include topics such as:
- Classes taught in nursing informatics programs often include topics such as:
- Informatics systems design and analysis
- Data analytics and science
- Database management systems
- Nursing informatics capstone
- Nursing informatics in the healthcare environment
- Professional informatics influence
- Informatics for transforming nursing care
- Leadership and management in nursing informatics
- Advancing evidence-based practice through technology
- Quality outcomes with value-based nursing care
Popular Online Nursing Informatics Programs
Earn your nursing degree from one of the largest nursing education providers in the U.S. Walden University’s BSN, MSN, post-master’s APRN certificate, and DNP programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Get enhanced practicum support with our Practicum Pledge.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide, excluding CT, ND, NY and RI. Certain programs have additional state restrictions. Check with Walden for details.
GCU's College of Nursing and Health Care Professions has a nearly 35-year tradition of preparing students to fill evolving healthcare roles as highly qualified professionals.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
For more than 15 years, American Sentinel College of Nursing & Health Sciences at Post University has been educating registered nurses and healthcare professionals like you online. We offer a number of advanced online nursing degrees designed to give you the advanced education needed to achieve your personal and professional goals.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Natiowide except AZ, CA, DC, LA, NY, OR, TN, WA, PR
WGU's award-winning online programs are created to help you succeed while graduating faster and with less debt. WGU is a CCNE accredited, nonprofit university offering nursing bachelor's and master's degrees.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
As a pioneer in distance learning since 1985, Liberty University’s online nursing programs are designed to prepare practicing nurses to serve with integrity by teaching advanced skills from an ethical perspective. Liberty's programs are based on industry best practices and up-to-date research – so you can get the tools you need to stay on the cutting edge of nursing care and innovation.
CCNE
Online
RN Required
Enrollment: Nationwide
FAQs
