What Jobs can you get with a Nursing Degree?

This post shows you the jobs you can get after completing a nursing degree; it details the jobs for each degree level – Associate’s, Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate degree – and also provides the salary to expect on the jobs.

Are you thinking of having a nursing degree and want to have a detailed note of the jobs you can get with it?

If yes is your answer, then you are in luck today for finding this page.

About the Nursing Career

A nursing career is one of the few jobs with an unwavering demand in the society. According to the 2013 Global Burden of Disease Study, over 95% of the world’s population is ill and at the aid of the numerous ill ones around the globe are nurses.

Nurses bear the responsibility of assisting people in regaining their health; they provide care to the unwell usually in hospitals and also in various other areas such as in schools, military, prison, and corporations.

The nursing profession sometimes is perceived not just as a career but as a calling because it requires a level of passion for someone to dedicate his/her life to be a vital part of the treatment, welfare, and recuperation process of the ill, the near-ill, and the near-death patient.

Little wonder some to refer to it as the most trusted profession while some others label it a noble profession.

A nursing degree indeed holds a positive job outlook for prospective graduates as a nursing career is among the few jobs that are well-paying.

It offers good job security and provides a flexible working plan.

The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a whopping 16% job growth rate (439,300 jobs) for registered nurses with an annual median salary of up to $67,490.

That’s why it’s no surprise a nursing degree is one of the most popular courses among prospective undergraduates.
In the U.S, it ranks third most popular college major according to MatchCollege and USATodayCollege.

It also takes the seventh and eighth place as the most popular college degree in the U.K and Australia respectively as published by The Telegraph and Rediff.

As a step towards actualizing a nursing career dream, students enroll for a 2-year Associate’s degree program in nursing.

This exposes them to knowledge of patient care, helps them grow confidence with patient handling, as well as taking good clinical decisions.

What can you do with a Nursing Associate’s Degree?

Nurses with Associate’s degrees usually secure hospital jobs while some others work in health agencies, schools, insurance agencies, and social service.

Nurses with an Associate’s degree qualify for job positions as:

• Neonatal Nurse: They specialize in providing healthcare to newly born babies. They assist mothers in feeding and bathing their babies; they also take care of premature babies and those with defects or illnesses by fixing them up with oxygen and intravenous fluids. They also monitor infants to detect any abnormality and act accordingly. Part of the responsibilities of nurses includes communicating with infants’ parents in order to enlighten and assist them. See detailed neonatal nurse practitioner job description.
• Intensive Care Unit Nurse: They are responsible for closely observing and monitoring patients with life threatening issues; they administer anesthetics and analgesics in the appropriate dose; they provide ventilatory support and are quick in providing medical assistance to patients in critical health condition. Their duties also include updating patients/patient’s family on the current health status so they can take the best decisions.
• Emergency Room Nurses: They specialize in providing quick response care to patients in sudden life-threatening condition. They help stabilize patients, reduce pain, and figure out the cause of a medical condition so that treatment can commence. See detailed emergency room nurse practitioner job description.
• Telemetry Nurse: Their duties involve monitoring and providing care to patients in the telemetry unit who are placed under electrocardiogram, ventilator support or blood pressure monitors. They provide medications and assist patients recovering from either cardiac, neurological or lethargy issues.

Payscale pegs the annual median salary of registered nurses with Associate’s of Applied Science (AAS) at $50,000 while registered nurses with Associate’s Degree (ADN) earn as much as $58,087.

Although you can get a job with an Associate’s degree in nursing, some nursing career levels require at least a baccalaureate. This aids you in professional advancement to managerial roles and increases your earning power.

What can you do with a Nursing Bachelor’s Degree?

With a Bachelor’s degree in nursing, you secure job positions as:

• Mental Health Nurse: Their responsibilities include providing psychological care to patients, interacting with them to discover the source of their emotional upset, administering medications, and providing therapy sessions for them. See detailed mental health nurse job description.
• Paramedic: They are at the frontline of medical support and provide quick on-scene medical treatment, preparing a patient for further medical attention. They are tasked with the responsibility of keeping emergency patients alive and ready to receive proper medical treatment.
• Health Service Manager: Their duties involve overseeing the hiring, recruitment, and management of clinical and administrative staff. They ensure the implementation of health policies in an organization, as well as monitoring the quality of service rendered to patients.
• Midwife: The job specification of a midwife involves providing antenatal and postnatal care to mother and child, ensuring that both survive the periods before birth and after birth. They also counsel and give insights on conditions such as neonatal issues, miscarriage, and stillbirth. See detailed certified nurse midwife job description.
• Children’s Nurse: They administer medications, take vitals of patient, fix up intravenous fluids and explain treatment of wards to parents. They also offer advice on best ways to aid a child’s recovery process. See detailed pediatric nurse practitioner job description.

Payscale projects the annual median salary of registered nurses with a Bachelor’s degree to be $60,369.

The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics on the other hand predicts an annual median salary of $67,490 for nurses with Bachelor’s.

To cement your footing in a nursing career, a Master’s degree is very essential. With Master’s in nursing, you stand a chance of securing leadership positions, enjoying increased job prospects, as well as becoming an expert in the nursing field.

What can you do with a Nursing Master’s Degree?

Some of the positions you can occupy with a Master’s degree in nursing include:

• Nurse Practitioner: They specialize in the diagnosis, treatment and prescription of drugs to patients. They also provide medical care and guidance to patients, communicating effectively with them on how to improve their health. They earn as much as $86,735 on average annually.
• Nurse Administrator: They perform managerial duties of employee supervision, overseeing the welfare of patients, as well as taking decision as relates to business and workplace policies. They earn a median salary of up to $117,646 annually.

What can you do with a Nursing Doctorate Degree?

Nurses with a doctorate degree occupy top level positions as nurse executive, nurse researcher, and college instructor, or as a clinical nurse specialist.

Conclusion

Without a doubt, a nursing degree offers fantastic benefits ranging from good job security to attractive income and the personal satisfaction of saving lives.