Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants programs in South Dakota
7 schools in South Dakota teach this, at certificate or associate level. 3 of them report what graduates earn two years out; the highest is $37,856 at Lake Area Technical College.
What this work pays in South Dakota
Nursing Assistants in South Dakota earn a median of $38,800 a year across 6,860 jobs. That is what the occupation pays everyone in it — not what graduates of any one program below earned.
| Also leads to | Median | Jobs in South Dakota |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses | $52,750 | 2,050 |
Occupation wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.
Schools
| School | Credential | Median debt | Graduate earnings, 2 yrs | Graduates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Area Technical College Watertown | Undergraduate certificate | $9,500 | $37,856 (27 grads) | 77 |
| Western Dakota Technical College Rapid City | Undergraduate certificate | $12,720 | $36,042 (13 grads) | 52 |
| Southeast Technical College Sioux Falls | Undergraduate certificate | $11,000 | $34,485 (36 grads) | 88 |
| Mitchell Technical College Mitchell | Undergraduate certificate | $10,454 | not published | 25 |
| National American University-Rapid City Rapid City | Undergraduate certificate | $16,625 | not published | — |
| Sinte Gleska University Mission | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 0 |
| Sinte Gleska University Mission | Associate's degree | — | not published | 0 |
A dash under earnings or debt means the U.S. Department of Education has not published a figure for that program — it withholds any median computed from too few graduates, which covers about four of every five programs. It never means zero, and it says nothing about whether the program is any good. Where a figure is shown, the number of graduates behind it is shown with it.
Email me when these figures change
The U.S. Department of Education publishes new cost, debt and earnings figures once a year, and every number on this page changes at once. One email when that happens for Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants — nothing else, and nothing in between.
Program and outcome figures: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, released 2026-06-10.