A career in nursing is incredibly rewarding and can provide you with stability and a competitive salary, but it’s important to understand what jobs are available with a nursing degree before making a decision to study. Doctor, nurse practitioner, nurse anesthetist, nurse midwife, there are many different types of nurses which each have different entry criteria. A job as a registered nurse (RN) requires the longest qualification time and gives you the broadest range of opportunities for the future.
There are many jobs you can do with a nursing degree. Below, we’ve listed some of the most common careers for nurses.
Nurse Practitioner
Nurse Practitioners (NP) are registered nurses who have completed a Master of Science in Nursing degree and have passed their licensing exam. They manage patient care, diagnose and treat illnesses, prescribe medication, and order diagnostic tests. This position is often called a “physician extender” because it allows nurses to practice medicine without being a doctor. The average salary for this position is $95,000 per year.
Registered Nurse (RN)
Registered Nurses are licensed practical nurses who have received their degree from an accredited program and passed their licensing exam. They provide basic clinical care to patients in hospitals or other clinical settings under the supervision of doctors and other medical professionals. The average salary for this position is $70,000 per year.
What jobs can you do with a nursing degree
Introduction
Nurses provide vital health care services in all parts of the world. If you’re considering a career in nursing, you’re choosing an occupation with plenty of opportunity for growth and success. Here are some important facts to know about nursing jobs:
Nursing is a vital profession that provides health care to populations across the globe.
Nursing is a vital profession that provides health care to populations across the globe. Nurses are the backbone of the health care system, and they’re also the most trusted profession in the U.S., according to Gallup’s 2018 poll on public trust in professions.1
In fact, nursing is one of only four professions that are consistently ranked among America’s most trusted professions: nurses, pharmacists, medical doctors with specialty training and scientists who work for universities or research institutes (although only pharmacists and nurses consistently placed among the top five).2
Trust levels have risen steadily over time due to improvements in technology and treatments as well as increased media coverage of major diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s disease—all areas where nurse practitioners play an important role by providing frontline care or educating patients on ways they can manage symptoms at home without seeing an MD first (although some people still seem unaware of these changes).
The number of registered nurse jobs is growing faster than other jobs.
- The number of registered nurse jobs is growing faster than other jobs.
- Nursing jobs are in high demand—and they’re more stable than other occupations, which means that there are fewer job openings and more people competing for them, so it’s harder to get hired as a nurse than as some other professions like teaching or computer programming.
- Nursing is one of the few fields where automation has not made significant inroads because it requires human interaction (like taking vitals), making it difficult for robots to replace humans entirely
A career in nursing opens the door to many specialized areas.
- Nursing provides you with the opportunity to work in different settings, such as hospitals, long-term care facilities, community health centers and schools.
- Your career choice can also be specialized; if you’re interested in neonatal nursing or pediatrics, for example, there are options for this type of position.
- You could work in any field that requires patient care—this includes cardiology (heart), neurology (brain), oncology (cancer) and orthopedics (bones). There are also specialties within each field: pediatric nurses focus on children while geriatric nurses focus on older people.
- If you don’t want to specialize or limit yourself geographically or by language barriers, consider becoming an educator so that others may learn from your experience as a nurse.
Nurses can work in a variety of settings, from hospitals and clinics to schools, research facilities and medical businesses.
Nurses can work in a variety of settings, from hospitals and clinics to schools, research facilities and medical businesses.
The specific position you take will depend on your individual skills and interests. For instance, if you enjoy working with children or the elderly, you might want to consider becoming an elementary school nurse or geriatric nurse. If the idea of handling lab samples appeals to you more than human patients do, consider applying for jobs as a clinical laboratory technician or phlebotomist (a person who collects blood samples).
Nursing can open up doors to other careers.
The skills you learn in nursing school can prepare you for many careers. A nursing degree opens doors to many other careers, including:
- Clinical research
- Management
- Information technology
With a nursing degree, you can find a job you love that lets you help people every day.
A nursing degree can open the door to a fulfilling career that allows you to help people every day. Nurses are in high demand, and there are many different nursing specialties that can be pursued once you’ve earned your degree. Nursing is also a good career choice for people looking for ways to advance their careers or make more money than they might make with other jobs.
It’s true that, as one of the most popular majors at colleges and universities across America, there may be too many nurses for all of them to find employment right away after graduation. But overall, this is a great time to enter the field because so many opportunities will be available throughout your career as well as during periods when there aren’t enough nurses around yet.*
- In fact, we’d like it if you could help us answer some questions about this topic! If so then please take our survey here: https://www2bsurvey123bSurvey123dwfbeefa3e1d-0814a45c8a9eef1293fce24dee052640c29bb6f049ccdb89cda
Conclusion
The world of nursing is constantly evolving, and nurses are needed more than ever. While some nurses may start out as registered nurses, if you have a passion for helping others and enjoy working with people, you can advance your career by becoming a nurse practitioner or physician assistant. You’ll have the skills and knowledge to help patients get well or improve their quality of life through preventative care, education and advice.
