Brea, California has 5 accredited schools offering nursing programs, with tuition ranging from $7,470 to $28,170 per year for indexed programs. Brea has a population of about 47,337. Median household income is $124,837 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 50.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area, the top-earning nursing-related role is Nurse Anesthetist at a median $282,930 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Nursing Schools to Brea
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer nursing programs near Brea, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Brea city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
- Graduation rate 30%
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
- Average net price (lower is better) 20%
- Retention rate 15%
- Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Brea.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Acceptance rate
91%
Graduation rate
70%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$62,951
Avg net price
$6,555/yr
TuitionIn‑state$7,470
Out‑of‑state$20,070
Key stats
- Retention rate: 84%
- Programs offered: 78
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
63%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$40,669
Avg net price
$22,678/yr
TuitionIn‑state$14,922
Out‑of‑state$14,922
Source:Accreditor: Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
77%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$102,672
Avg net price
$32,879/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 93%
- Programs offered: 12
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
70%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$56,778
Avg net price
$31,495/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 85%
- Programs offered: 67
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
30%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$43,533
Avg net price
$4,606/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
31%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$43,552
Avg net price
$3,133/yr
TuitionIn‑state$1,180
Out‑of‑state$10,756
Key stats
- Retention rate: 100%
- Programs offered: 88
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
26%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$44,950
Avg net price
$14,379/yr
TuitionIn‑state$1,388
Out‑of‑state$9,884
Key stats
- Retention rate: 100%
- Programs offered: 90
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all California schools on the California nursing page.
Nursing Wages Near Brea
Brea is part of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area (BLS area code 31080). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to California statewide.
| Occupation |
Median Wage |
Source |
COL-Adjusted (US=100) |
| Registered Nurse |
$135,560 |
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
$119,331 |
| Licensed Practical Nurse |
$79,310 |
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
$69,815 |
| Nurse Anesthetist |
$282,930 |
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
$249,058 |
| Nurse Midwife |
$202,850 |
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
$178,565 |
| Nurse Practitioner |
$161,470 |
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
$142,139 |
| Nursing Assistant |
$47,380 |
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
$41,708 |
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Brea at a Glance
| Metric |
Value |
Source |
| Population |
47,337 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income |
$124,837 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ |
50.2% |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) |
113.6 (above U.S. average) |
BEA RPP 2024 |
| Nursing-related employment in Orange County |
63,561 workers, 1,084 establishments |
BLS QCEW 2024 annual |
Other Brea-Area Cities With Nursing Programs
- Placentia, CA – 3.1 mi away (52,228 pop)
- Fullerton, CA – 4.6 mi away (140,721 pop)
- La Habra, CA – 4.9 mi away (61,664 pop)
- Diamond Bar, CA – 5.8 mi away (56,793 pop)
- Yorba Linda, CA – 6.0 mi away (68,235 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited nursing schools are near Brea, CA?
Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering nursing programs near Brea. The closest is California State University-Fullerton in Fullerton, CA (3.2 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Platt College-Anaheim (8.1 miles). 2 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying nursing roles near Brea?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying nursing-related roles near Brea are: Nurse Anesthetist ($282,930), Nurse Midwife ($202,850), Nurse Practitioner ($161,470). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with California statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Placentia instead of Brea?
Placentia, CA is 3.1 miles from Brea and has its own set of local nursing programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Brea an affordable place to study nursing?
Brea’s median household income of $124,837 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Brea while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and California public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Learn More About Nursing Programs
Other Programs Available in Brea
Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Brea:
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- Innovation programs in Brea, CA
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- Social Work programs in Brea, CA
- Counseling programs in Brea, CA
Data verified: September 6, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
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