At the top of the educational ladder is the doctoral-prepared nurse. Nurses may gain the PhD or another doctoral degree such as Doctor of Nursing Science (DNSc) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), specializing in research, clinical nursing, etc. These nurses practice nursing, teach nursing and carry out nursing research. As the science and art of nursing has advanced, so has the demand for doctoral-prepared nurses.

Shift Work

Long Work Hours

helping children or the elderly

outpaces the 14.3 percent average gain for all jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

midwifery or psychiatric health.

Employment of registered nurses will increase 26 percent through 2020,

emergency room or in a school

oil and gas extraction averaged $80,700 a year

at least a bachelor’s degree, as well as advanced practice nurses, will be in the highest demand, especially in underserved urban cores and rural areas.

pays above-average wages

median annual income for a registered nurse was $65,950 as of May 2011, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

nearly 48 percent higher than the median salary of $34,465 for all U.S. jobs.

personal-care services averaged $85,940, according to BLS figures.

medical equipment and supplies manufacturing took home $80,290.

be in demand for years to come

nurses based in California making the most, at an average of $90,860.

Massachusetts, at $86,810, and Hawaii, at $83,950

flexible scheduling

operate around the clock

Many nurses prefer to work overnight and have free time during the day, while others want to work weekends and take weekdays off.

variety of shifts.

flexible scheduling as a perk.

work part-time or return to school for advanced training.

9.      There are four times as many nurses as doctors.

Today's intensified hiring of RNs is being spurred by: the mounting health care needs of increasing numbers of elderly; a growing population of hospitalized patients who are older, more acutely ill, and in need of more skilled RNs per patient; the rapid expansion of front-line primary care to many sites throughout the community; technological advances requiring more highly skilled nursing care; and an aging RN workforce. The average age of working RNs in 2008 was 47.0 up from 40 in 1980.

The average annual earnings of registered nurses employed in nursing was $60,970 in 2007, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Related Job Salaries

hese hours do not include any voluntary/required overtime, which may be common in some health care facilities.