The field of nursing attracts people who have a heart for helping others and an interest in health care. Nurses fill a variety of roles and have an array of skills spanning the areas of patient care, advocacy and even education. If you want to pursue a career in nursing, there are numerous career paths you can follow.
In this article, we’ll explore eight common nursing career paths, including how these professionals spend their days, the typical salary for each career and the minimum education required.
What Is Nursing?
While doctors spend their days diagnosing and treating illnesses and other conditions, nurses administer treatments, procedures and medications. Nurses handle their responsibilities while considering the patient’s physical, mental and behavioral health. This allows nurses to provide care that goes beyond strictly medicine.
While patient care is at the heart of any nursing profession, nurses’ actual day-to-day tasks can vary widely. Those with advanced degrees can handle many of the same things as doctors, including making diagnoses and prescribing medication. Nursing professionals with only a high school diploma may perform smaller tasks like monitoring vitals or turning bedridden patients to prevent bed sores.
Required Skills for Nursing Professionals
While education requirements vary widely, most nursing professions require many of the same skills, such as those discussed below.
- Attention to detail. From prescribing medication to carefully monitoring a patient’s vital signs, nurses of all types should possess a high level of attention to detail.
- Communication. Nurses must be able to communicate effectively with each other, patients, doctors and patients’ families.
- Critical thinking. Patient care works best when medical staff members are alert and attentive to patients’ needs, which requires critical thinking skills.
- Empathy. Whether dealing with a sick or injured patient or explaining a diagnosis to a distraught family, nurses must be able to empathize with others.
- Organization. Nurses must update and maintain patient charts, deal with medications and other treatments and keep lower-level staff informed. Nurses often must multitask as well. All of this requires organization skills.
- Physical fitness. Nurses spend their shifts on their feet and often must lift or physically manipulate patients. They must be physically fit to perform these daily tasks.
Nursing Career Paths to Consider
Licensed Practical or Licensed Vocational Nurse
Median Annual Salary: $48,070
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +6%
Job Description: Licensed practical nurses (LPNs) provide basic medical care to patients in a variety of settings, including doctor’s offices, health clinics, hospitals and nursing homes. LPNs and licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) must earn a high school diploma and complete a certification or licensing program that prepares them to perform basic patient care.
LPNs and LVNs may take patients’ blood pressure, maintain patient records and provide assistance with activities of daily living, such as using the toilet or getting dressed. Licensing regulations differ among states and determine how much responsibility these nursing professionals have, along with how much supervision they require.
Nurse Anesthetist
Median Annual Salary: $195,610
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +12%
Job Description: Nurse anesthetists have the important job of providing and monitoring anesthesia during medical procedures. This critically sensitive position requires a strong attention to detail when calibrating the sleep-inducing medication.
Nurse anesthetists often work in hospitals or offices under the supervision of surgeons, dentists or anesthesiologists. These professionals must be registered nurses and hold a master of science in nursing (MSN).
Nurse Educator
Median Annual Salary: $77,440
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +22%
Job Description: Nursing instructors educate nursing students on the art and science of being a nurse. They teach the nursing profession to students at the college level and are often involved in research as well.
A nurse educator must become an RN and earn an MSN. Aspiring nurse educators should specialize in nursing education during graduate school or seek a postgraduate nurse educator certification. These professionals should typically be clinical nurse specialists as well.
Nurse Midwife
Median Annual Salary: $112,830
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +7%
Job Description: Nurse midwives are involved with every part of the birthing process, often providing care from the very early stages of pregnancy through childbirth and beyond.
Nurse midwives may work independently or as part of a patient’s healthcare team. They can work in clinics, hospitals or doctors offices, or they may run their own business. Nurse midwives can also provide regular gynecological care, and they can prescribe certain medications as well. For more information, see our guide on how to become a midwife.
Nurse Practitioner
Median Annual Salary: $120,680
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +46%
Job Description: What is a nurse practitioner? Nurse practitioners (NPs) are advanced-level nurses who can perform a full scope of medical care. Similar to medical doctors and physician assistants, nurse practitioners can diagnose and treat illnesses, injuries and other conditions. NPs work to keep patients healthy by providing routine screenings and well-checks.
NPs are registered nurses who also have advanced degrees like an MSN or a doctor of nursing practice (DNP). Nurse practitioners can work in just about any medical setting, including clinics, offices, hospitals and nursing homes.
Nursing Assistant
Median Annual Salary: $30,310
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +5%
Job Description: Nursing assistants, often referred to as certified nursing assistants (CNAs), provide the most basic type of patient care. But what is a CNA?
CNAs assist nurses with patient care including activities of daily living, transporting patients, administering medication, updating records and monitoring health status and vital signs. A high school diploma and the completion of a CNA program are the only education requirements you must meet to become a CNA.
Orderly
Median Annual Salary: $29,990
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +5%
Job Description: Orderlies rarely provide care directly to patients. Instead, they maintain equipment stock, organize items and use wheelchairs and other means to transport patients to and from places like operating rooms and X-ray rooms.
Orderlies typically work in hospitals or large health centers and only need a high school diploma to qualify for employment.
Registered Nurse
Median Annual Salary: $77,600
Projected Job Growth (2021-2031): +6%
Job Description: RNs perform a variety of duties, which may differ depending on their facility, specialty and team. Most RNs perform patient care by recording vital signs, managing care plans, administering medication, drawing and submitting bloodwork and monitoring and recording patient progress.
Registered nurses may hold either an associate degree in nursing (ADN) or a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN), and they must pass the NCLEX-RN, the national standardized exam for prospective RNs. RNs can be found in just about any medical setting, including doctor’s offices, hospitals and care clinics, along with some non-medical settings, like schools and even airplanes (as flight nurses).
What Degree Do You Need for a Nursing Career?
Your nursing career’s educational requirements depend on the nursing career path you choose. To break into the field of nursing without earning a college degree, you might become an LPN or a CNA. These career paths require only a high school diploma and certification.
To become a registered nurse, you can obtain either an ADN or a BSN. Many RNs even pursue a BSN degree or a DNP degree to advance their nursing careers. With a graduate-level nursing education, you can become an advanced practice nurse practitioner or a nurse educator.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Nursing Career Paths
What is the highest-paying nursing career?
Of the nursing careers listed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nurse anesthetists make the highest median salary at $195,610 per year.
What else can I do with a nursing degree?
If you have a nursing degree but are looking for a non-nursing career path, there are plenty of non-bedside options to consider. Nurses often perform consulting work after they move on from clinical practice. They can also work as medical billers, health writers, health researchers or nutritionists; they can even enter the field of medical equipment sales.
