When you choose a career in nursing, you'll find jobs that are both diverse and rewarding. As of now there are over 100,000 open healthcare positions across the country and experts predict that by the year 2020 there will be over 800,000 nursing position to fill. Because of this always-increasing need for nurses, some hospitals have offered experienced nurses up to $14,000 in signing bonuses. The high demand for nurses also makes it easier for recent nursing school graduates to break into their nursing careers.
There are also great opportunities for personal rewards with a nursing as a career. For instance, when you choose nursing as a career, every day you have the opportunity to make a real difference in somebody's life. Whether it's as simple as making an ill patient's day a little brighter or as profound as helping save someone's life, nursing as a career can provide immense satisfaction.
Nursing Offers Diverse Career Paths
Today's nurse is no longer confined to bedsides or operating rooms. Nurses today are making their presence felt in areas as diverse as legislation, changes in health care delivery systems, writing and publishing, disease prevention education and health promotion, and boards of directors. The following are just a few of the career paths nurses have taken:
Private ventures, Collaborative practice, Alternative care, Teaching, Community care, Journalism, Business, Sales and marketing and Law
Nursing Careers Offer Great Salaries
Contrary to popular belief, nurses earn highly respectable salaries. According to the US Department of Labor, the "median annual earnings of a registered nurse was $52,330 in May 2004," with the middle 50 percent earning between $43,370 and $63,360. And the numbers for Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Anesthetists are even better. On average, Nurse Practitioners earn $71,000 while Nurse Anesthetists earn $113,000. When you choose nursing as a career, you can get these salary benefits as well.
Nursing Careers Offer Flexibility
Choosing nursing as a career also allows for flexibility on several levels. You're able to work any time of day, and choose whether to work 4, 8, 10, or 12 hour shifts. This flexible schedule allows you to work just weekends, or just week days, or a combination of week days and weekends. Plus, many employers offer child care to help you manage work and family hours.
Nursing as a career also offers flexibility in terms of location. From downtown urban hospitals to more relaxed suburbs and quiet rural locations, a nursing career can bring you to the area of your choice. You can even work on Indian Reservations or remote outposts in Alaska. Not to mention that many employers offer educational benefits to help advance your career as a nurse for even more choices about where you work later in your career.
From earning advanced degrees that allow for career advancement to trying different fields of nursing, a nursing career is always challenging, and provides opportunities for continual growth.
Related Nursing Articles
Entry-Level Nursing Programs
Become a Registered Nurse (RN)
Bachelor's Degrees in Nursing
|
Information/Possibilities
