In the world of medicine, even if you don’t have a medical degree, a whole range of careers are available. Many of these careers belong to nurses and their allied professions. If you’re a natural people person with a knack for science and math, nursing could be the career for you. Nurses can expect strong job prospects over the coming years with excellent opportunities for career advancement in almost every geographic area.

What Is Nursing?

Nurses provide health care for both individuals and communities, working alongside doctors, surgeons, and other health professionals. While nurses are commonly thought of as ‘assistants’ to physicians, the practice of nursing is largely independent of physician practice. In a hospital, nurses and nursing assistants will provide general health care support while doctors will perform more specific tasks. Many nurses go on to become nurse practitioners, nurses who fulfill many of the same functions as physicians but who don’t have medical degrees. And many other nurses specialize over the course of their careers, and focus on high-paying specialties such as surgical nursing, critical care nursing, and obstetric nursing.

Nursing Degrees

In the United States, nurses are certified by state nursing boards, and are classed as registered nurse’s (RNs). In the past, nurses were mostly trained on the job, but since the 19th Century, nursing schools have been established as a way to train professional, science-literate health care providers. Nurses possess a wide range of degrees, ranging from post-high school certificate programs to advanced doctorate nursing programs. Top nursing schools are operated by four year universities, but accredited nursing programs are also provided by community colleges, and individual hospitals, with different types of degree being offered by different schools.

Nursing Diplomas

Traditionally, the nursing diploma program was the principal training mechanism for nurses. Most diploma programs are housed within hospitals rather than within colleges or universities. While the number of schools offering diplomas is much lower than it once was, diploma grantees are considered qualified by the nursing boards of all 50 states to become registered nurses. Diploma programs are usually only two years in length, and often incorporate online coursework.

Associate’s Degrees

The Associate’s of Science in Nursing (ASN) is an option that is increasingly replacing the diploma program. A two year course offered primarily by hospital schools and community colleges, the ASN is a popular option for students wanting to begin their careers quickly. As with diploma graduates, ASN graduates generally lack the scientific training to become specialty nurses or nurse practitioners, but often become established in leadership positions in hospitals. Much like the diploma, modern ASNs often make heavy use of online work.

Bachelor’s Degrees

For students interested in more professional roles in nursing, the Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (BSN) provides greater opportunities. BSN students, in addition to the pragmatic, day-to-day work of nursing, study the life sciences, informatics, and principles of evidence-based nursing. Many ASN graduates go on to attain their BSN, and fast-track programs at many colleges and universities allow ASN recipients to complete their bachelor’s degree within two years.

Master’s Degrees

Beyond the bachelor’s degree, students can attain a Master’s of Science in Nursing (MSN). This is the preferred degree for aspiring nurse managers and nurse educators. Many master’s programs focus on one specialty area of nursing. The requirements for pediatric nurses, neonatal nurses, and gynecology nurses, for instance, are very different from those for general practice nurses.

Doctorate Degrees

Doctorate degrees for nurses come in two varieties. The Doctor of Nursing Practice (DPN) prepares practicing nurses for advanced varieties of practice. Registered nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetists, and nurse midwives all fulfill many of the same functions as physicians, and all possess DPNs. DPN programs are almost entirely located within the nursing departments of major colleges and universities, and focus far more on scientific research than day-to-day practice.

The PhD in nursing is preferred for those more interested in academic nursing. Nursing educators frequently possess a PhD in nursing. Researchers in nursing practice and informatics generally have a PhD, and rarely are involved in more conventional nursing.

Nursing Job Prospects

In May 2010, the Bureau of Labor Statistics identified over 2.6 million registered nurses working in the United States. Despite the recession, job prospects for nurses remained sunny. Regardless of economic conditions, people still get sick, and nurses are still needed. Furthermore, the US has faced a nursing shortage for over a decade now, and as the baby boomer population ages, demand for quality nursing will increase. America has rarely needed so many nurses in peacetime.

Nurses are primarily employed at hospitals, with over 1.5 million nurses working at general medical and surgical hospitals in 2010. An additional 232,000 found employment in private doctor’s offices. Other common locations for employment were home health care services (146,000 employed nurses), care facilities (134,000), and outpatient care centers (89,000). The states with the greatest number of employed nurses are California (240,000 nurses), Texas (176,000), New York (170,000), Florida (158,000) and Pennsylvania (131,000). Especially high numbers of nurses as a percentage of the general population can be found in Rhode Island, South Dakota, Massachusetts, Mississippi, and Kentucky. The metropolitan area with the highest percentage of nurses is Rochester, Minnesota, mostly due to its being home of the world-famous Mayo Clinic.

RNs make a median hourly wage of $31.10 per hour and an annual salary of $64,490. 75% of registered nurses earn more than $25.47 per hour and $52,980 per year. The highest wages for RNs can be found in California (median salary of $87,480 per year), Massachusetts ($84,990), Hawaii ($82,130), Alaska ($79,350), and Maryland ($76,450). Particularly high wages are to be found in the San Francisco Bay Area, with median incomes in the vicinities of San Jose and Oakland exceeding $100,000 per year. Variations in income also occur between different types of place of employment. Nurses at specialty hospitals (eye hospitals, children’s hospitals, etc.) have a median income of $73,280 per year nationwide as compared to $63,580 per year for nurses at home health care services.