For-profit, post-secondary institutions significantly increased in numbers within the last two decades. In the United States, many for-profit colleges and universities offer distance-learning-based and self-paced-based academic and vocational programs from certificate to doctoral degree level to non-traditional, returning, evening and adult students who cannot enrol at one of the on-campus, day-time programs for traditionally-aged and full-time students. A large number of for-profit colleges and universities employ different strategies to maintain effective numbers of student enrolment and collect enough budget for financial health. This literature paper explains the overview of for-profit colleges and universities in the United States including donation and income sources, enrolment management, employment management and customer-oriented service with the question of how for-profit colleges and universities can survive in the current, rapidly changing environment containing many different competitors. The literature review also provides a brief section about how nursing programs at the for-profit colleges and universities continue their operation in the current financial and educational environment.