LPN SCHOOLS IN WISCONSIN — Federal Data, September 2026
LPN Schools in Wisconsin, Ranked On What Graduates Owe And Earn
18 accredited institutions in Wisconsin report enough federal data on this program to be compared. They are ranked here on a single measure: how many months of gross pay it takes a graduate to cover the median debt.
See The RankingU.S. Department of Education data. No school paid to be listed.
Across the 18 ranked programs in Wisconsin, the median graduate needs 4.2 months of gross pay to cover a median federal debt of $10,800, against median earnings of $36,984 one year after completion.
That is faster than the national median of 4.3 months for this field, measured across the 650 institutions in our national LPN schools ranking. The best performer in the state is Lakeshore Technical College in Cleveland, at 2.1 months.
Every figure on this page is recalculated on Wisconsin institutions only. Nothing is carried over from the national page.
At A Glance
What the federal data says about LPN schools in Wisconsin
The Ranking
18 LPN schools in Wisconsin, ranked by months of gross pay to cover the debt
Lower is better.
| # | School | Type | Award | Months | Debt | Earnings | Completion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeshore Technical CollegeCleveland, WI | Public | Certificate | 2.1 | $7,000 | $39,553 | 50% |
| 2 | Moraine Park Technical CollegeFond du Lac, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.4 | $7,000 | $24,954 | 58% |
| 3 | Southwest Wisconsin Technical CollegeFennimore, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.4 | $6,562 | $22,853 | 66% |
| 4 | Western Technical CollegeLa Crosse, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.8 | $8,816 | $27,571 | 34% |
| 5 | Northwood Technical CollegeRice Lake, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.8 | $8,312 | $26,492 | 56% |
| 6 | Northcentral Technical CollegeWausau, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.9 | $9,554 | $29,626 | 45% |
| 7 | Northeast Wisconsin Technical CollegeGreen Bay, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.9 | $13,954 | $42,721 | 51% |
| 8 | Chippewa Valley Technical CollegeEau Claire, WI | Public | Certificate | 3.9 | $12,000 | $37,386 | 50% |
| 9 | Blackhawk Technical CollegeJanesville, WI | Public | Certificate | 4.0 | $7,209 | $21,748 | 34% |
| 10 | Fox Valley Technical CollegeAppleton, WI | Public | Certificate | 4.5 | $14,500 | $38,540 | 65% |
| 11 | Mid-State Technical CollegeWisconsin Rapids, WI | Public | Certificate | 4.6 | $9,599 | $25,277 | 52% |
| 12 | Nicolet Area Technical CollegeRhinelander, WI | Public | Certificate | 5.3 | $9,114 | $20,526 | 44% |
| 13 | Rasmussen University-WisconsinGreen Bay, WI | for-profit | Certificate | 5.6 | $21,274 | $45,271 | 57% |
| 14 | Herzing University-MadisonMadison, WI | nonprofit | Certificate | 5.7 | $22,586 | $47,310 | 28% |
| 15 | Herzing University-KenoshaKenosha, WI | nonprofit | Certificate | 5.7 | $22,586 | $47,310 | 72% |
| 16 | Herzing University-BrookfieldBrookfield, WI | nonprofit | Certificate | 5.7 | $22,586 | $47,310 | 42% |
| 17 | Milwaukee Area Technical CollegeMilwaukee, WI | Public | Certificate | 6.5 | $19,709 | $36,583 | 25% |
| 18 | Bryant & Stratton College-WauwatosaWauwatosa, WI | nonprofit | Certificate | 6.9 | $25,967 | $45,098 | 20% |
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, Most Recent Cohorts by Field of Study and by Institution (published 9 June 2026). Debt is the median federal Stafford and Grad PLUS loan debt of completers in this program; earnings are median earnings one year after completion. Where a school offers the program at both certificate and associate level, the shorter payback is shown. Completion is the institution’s published rate, not the program’s.
The Top Five, In Detail
The five fastest payback programs in Wisconsin, one by one
Lakeshore Technical College
Cleveland, WI
Lakeshore Technical College is a public institution in Cleveland. Its practical nursing graduates leave with a median federal debt of $7,000 and report median earnings of $39,553 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 2.1 months of gross pay: the fastest payback in the state, and 2.1 months faster than the Wisconsin state median of 4.2. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 50% completion rate.
Moraine Park Technical College
Fond du Lac, WI
Moraine Park Technical College is a public institution in Fond du Lac. Its practical nursing graduates leave with a median federal debt of $7,000 and report median earnings of $24,954 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.4 months of gross pay: the second fastest in the state, and 0.8 months faster than the Wisconsin state median of 4.2. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 58% completion rate.
Southwest Wisconsin Technical College
Fennimore, WI
Southwest Wisconsin Technical College is a public institution in Fennimore. Its practical nursing graduates leave with a median federal debt of $6,562 and report median earnings of $22,853 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.4 months of gross pay: the third fastest in the state, and 0.8 months faster than the Wisconsin state median of 4.2. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 66% completion rate.
Western Technical College
La Crosse, WI
Western Technical College is a public institution in La Crosse. Its practical nursing graduates leave with a median federal debt of $8,816 and report median earnings of $27,571 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.8 months of gross pay: fourth in the state, and 0.4 months faster than the Wisconsin state median of 4.2. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 34% completion rate.
Northwood Technical College
Rice Lake, WI
Northwood Technical College is a public institution in Rice Lake. Its practical nursing graduates leave with a median federal debt of $8,312 and report median earnings of $26,492 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.8 months of gross pay: fifth in the state, and 0.4 months faster than the Wisconsin state median of 4.2. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 56% completion rate.
Read It Carefully
What this ranking does not measure
Absence from this page is not a verdict. The Department of Education suppresses figures for programs with small cohorts, so a small, excellent school will often have no publishable data at all. Schools that enroll no students on federal aid are outside this dataset entirely.
The measure is a ratio, not a repayment plan, and it counts federal loan debt only. Cash payments, private loans and employer sponsorship are invisible here. Local wages shape earnings as much as the school does, which is exactly why comparing inside one state, as this page does, is more informative than comparing across the country.
Other States
The same program, another state
Other Programs in Wisconsin
Comparing a different trade in Wisconsin
For WISCONSIN School Operators
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