The school nurse salary in California depends on a number of factors, but ultimately this is an attractive career that offers many benefits beyond the monetary compensation.
In California, the school nurse salary is quite good at $86,000 per year, but there are also other employment opportunities for people who complete a course in this field. If you want to advance your career, then you need to become licensed as a Registered Nurse (RN) or Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVN). The role of a registered nurse is very broad and can include working in hospitals and doctors’ offices, community clinics and public health agencies, medical and surgical facilities. On the other hand, vocational nurses are employed in hospitals and long-term health care facilities.
School Nurse Salary In California Overview
If you’re considering pursuing a career as a school nurse, you’ll want to know how much you can expect to make in California.
The average hourly pay for this job is $66, however, the salary will vary depending on the location.
Here are other factors that influence how much a school nurse makes:
-Experience level: The more experience you have, the higher your salary will be.
-Type of position: Nurses who work in schools earn more than those who work in hospitals or clinics.
-Work hours: Nurses who work full time tend to earn more than those who work fewer hours per week or only part time.
-Geographic area: Nurses who live in areas with higher costs of living will often have higher salaries than those working in less expensive areas.
Where Do School Nurses Work?
The majority of school nurses work in the primary and secondary educational systems. They’re employed by both private and public schools. Sixty-two percent are employed by elementary schools while 25 percent are employed by middle and high schools; the remaining 13 percent work simultaneously in both primary and secondary schools. School nurses also work in pre-schools, recreational camps, hospitals, county and state boards of education, and state and local health departments.
The requirements for school nurses differ from state to state. All states require school nurses to be registered nurses (RNs); licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) are functioning outside their scope of practice if they accept employment as a school nurse, and while some states employ them, these LVNs and LPNs must be supervised by an RN. Many states may also have additional certification requirements for school nurses. The best way to find out the requirements in your state is to check with the state branch of the National Association of School Nurses, which is the professional organization associated with the profession.
Technically, nurses who work at colleges and universities can be classified as school nurses. They’re typically categorized otherwise, however, because they work with a young adult cohort whose healthcare issues are significantly different from the healthcare issues most children and teens face.
What Is The Salary Per Hour Of A School Nurse?
What salary per hour of a school nurse in 2022? The average school nurse salary per hour in 2022 is $29.20. School nurses with two decades or more of experience make 45 percent more than the hourly average school nurse salary. Entry-level school nurses make 33 percent less than the average hourly salary while school nurses with one to four years of experience make 23 percent less and school nurses with five to nine years of experience, 6 percent less. School nurses generally begin making the average hourly amount at some point during their tenth year on their career track.
Hourly wages are usually a reflection of the demand for a specific service as well as the amount that other professionals engaged in similar lines of work are compensated for their services. As we have seen, however, in the case of school nurses, the high demand for their services is not an accurate gauge of school nurse salary. Very few school district administrators would argue with the fact that school nurses provide an immensely valuable service; however, if the funds aren’t available to pay for it, the demand for that service will continue to remain unmet.
The closest professional analogs to school nurses are probably teachers. True, school nurses perform a very different function, but they work in the same scholastic setting. Elementary school teachers average $18 an hour throughout all part of the U.S. while high school teachers earn $22.59. These figures are respectively 38 percent and 23 percent less than the average salary of a school nurse, which may indicate that in economic terms at least, school nurse salaries are on the high side. Note that on the whole, teachers employed by private schools make significantly less than teachers employed by public schools, and the same is likely true of school nurses in private school settings as well.
There are also similarities between the work school nurses do and the work public health nurses do. Public health nurses only make 1 percent more than school nurses ($61,379).
| Hourly School Nurse Salary | |
| Level of Experience | Hourly Earnings |
| Starting (Entry-Level) | $19.50 |
| 1-4 Years of Experience | $22.50 |
| 5-9 Years of Experience | $27.50 |
| 10-19 Years of Experience | $34.16 |
| 20 Years or More Experience | $42.42 |
| Average Hourly Earnings | $29.20 |
What Is The Starting Salary Of A School Nurse?
What is the starting salary of a school nurse in 2022? The starting salary of a school nurse in 2022 is $19.50 an hour, $811 a week, $3,380 a month, or $40,550 a year. This amount is 33 percent less than the average salary of a school nurse.
Public school districts have a system of salary steps in place; these steps determine when employees will receive raises. Seventeen states mandate entry-level salaries and subsequent salary increases for professional employees, although these figures represent the minimum amounts that these professionals have to be paid, and individual school districts are free to pay higher salaries. In most states, individual school districts determine entry-level and subsequent salaries, and this is why school professionals based in affluent districts tend to get paid more.
In states where school staff are unionized, school nurses belong to the Nurses and Health Professionals division of the American Federation of Teachers. Unionized school professionals periodically negotiate new contracts, and these often address revisions to entry-level salaries and subsequent salary steps. Entry-level school nurses with advanced practice credentials or a specified number of credit hours in professional development coursework may also be able to negotiate higher starting salaries.
| Starting School Nurse Salary | |
| Hourly | $19.50 |
| Weekly | $811 |
| Monthly | $3,380 |
| Annual | $40,550 |
What Is The Average Salary Of A School Nurse?
What is the average salary of a school nurse in 2022? The average school nurse salary in 2022 is $29.20 an hour, $1,168 a week, $5,060 a month, or $60,730 a year. This is only 7 percent higher than the average salary for all occupations throughout all parts of the U.S. ($56,310).
Average salaries typically correlate with cost of living indices for specific geographical regions: They tend to be higher in areas where the cost of living index is higher. The highest-paid school nurses work in California and Hawaii where the cost of living is respectively 50 percent higher and 77 percent higher than it is throughout the U.S. as a whole. Similarly, the lowest-paid school nurses work in Alabama, South Dakota and Mississippi where the cost of living respectively is 18 percent, 12 percent and 19 percent lower than it is throughout the U.S. as a whole.
To some degree, average salaries also reflect the laws of supply and demand. California has one of the lowest nurse-to-state-population ratios in the nation; there are only 9.25 nurses for every 1,000 California residents. This means schools are competing more aggressively with hospitals for nursing employees than they may be in a state like Alabama where there are 12.79 nurses for every 1,000 state residents. This increased competition will tend to drive average school nurse salaries in the Golden State higher.
| Average School Nurse Salary | |
| Hourly | $29.20 |
| Weekly | $1,168 |
| Monthly | $5,060 |
| Annual | $60,739 |
| (Source: Ziprecruiter.com) |
School Nurse Salary By Years Of Experience
As noted above, most public school districts use a seniority-based schedule to determine school nurse pay rates. School nurses with one to four years of experience make a school nurse salary that’s 15 percent higher than that of entry-level school nurses. School nurses with five to nine years of experience earn a school nurse salary that’s 22 percent more than that of school nurses with one to four years of experience. School nurses who’ve been working in the district for two decades or longer make more than twice as much as they did when they were just starting their careers.
Note, however, that seniority is usually counted as the number of years a school nurse has been working in a particular school district. If he or she decides to change school districts, their new salary will typically reset to reflect the starting salary in their new school district.
| Level of Experience | Hourly | Weekly | Monthly | Annual |
| Entry-Level | $19.50 | $780 | $3,380 | $40,550 |
| 1-4 Years of Experience | $22.50 | $900 | $3,900 | $46,790 |
| 5-9 Years of Experience | $27.50 | $1,100 | $4,770 | $57,190 |
| 10-19 Years of Experience | $34.16 | $1,366 | $5,920 | $71,050 |
| 20 Years or More Experience | $42.42 | $1,697 | $7,350 | $88,240 |
Average Annual Compensation (Salary + Benefits) For School Nurses
Most school nurses are public employees and receive benefits through either the State Employees Retirement System (SERS), or the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS). These benefits can make up a significant portion of a school nurse’s total compensation package. For school nurses working for the state or local government (and this includes all public school system employees), benefits can add up to $38,211 annually, which is 38 percent of their total compensation package. For school nurses working in the private sector, benefits can add up to $25,547 a year, which is 30 percent of their total compensation package.
The majority of school nurses working in the public school system are eligible for defined-benefit pension plans, which are post-retirement payouts determined by a formula rather than by investment returns. Most states require school nurses to pay a portion of their salary into the pension plan, but pension funds are managed by the state. School nurses must remain at their jobs a certain number of years—usually between 5 and 10—in order to become vested; if they leave their jobs before they are vested, they forfeit all or part of the benefit. The time at which a school nurse can retire and begin receiving pension benefits varies from state to state.
| Component | Private Industry | State and Local Government |
| Paid Leave | $6,365 | $7,622 |
| Supplemental Pay | $3,011 | $1,003 |
| Insurance | $6,709 | $11,734 |
| Retirement and Savings | $2,925 | $12,436 |
| Legally Required | $6,537 | $5,516 |
| Total Benefits | $25,547 | $38,211 |
| Average Annual Salary | $60,470 | $62,080 |
| Total Compensation | $86,017 | $100,291 |
