Alternative Nursing Careers
Completed your nursing education? Explore more career opportunities available to you with the nursing degree you earned.
Generally, the meaning of nursing is care taking of the sick. The role of the nurse is to provide care to patients with illness, injuries or and other healthcare issues. They are professional expertise in assisting the patients who work in hospitals, clinics or wards.
There are certain specific qualifications required to become a nurse which in turn depends on what career path in nursing do you want to choose. It includes educational requirements and career requirements to become successful and meet your dream job with clarity.
Obtaining a nursing degree can open doors of career opportunities to other potential career alternatives based on your experience, education, interests, certification and other criteria.
Becoming a nurse through a simple and straight path is what every student looks for. A nurse can typically earn about $77,460 annually and the average job growth is 12 percent and is high in this field. The various traditional and non-traditional career paths for other high paying jobs are listed below.
Nursing informatics
Median salary: $102,230
Nursing informatics is a field of profession where the healthcare providers use the information technology to access patients data to manage and communicate with patients. The roles mainly include usage of the latest technologies to analyze the clinical data for interpretation of workflow with healthcare. This profession requires candidates with a minimum qualification of bachelor’s degree in nursing, few years of experience and certification accredited by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.
Home health nurse
Median salary: $79,405
In the profession of nursing, home health nursing is a budding field which deals with providing assistance to patients who went through surgeries or medical procedures or at a recovering stage and need nursing facilities at their location. Hence home health nurses provide extensive care for those patients by performing tasks such as wound care, medication administration, patient assessment and other special duties. A bachelor’s degree, experience and certification is required to land on this profession.
Nurse educator
Median salary: $74,848
As you know that the demand for certified nurses has increased significantly, there is a need for nurse educators who are qualified in this field and can work at universities and colleges to educate the nursing students. They indulge in teaching students about the medical practices and classroom knowledge and this gives an upper hand to the students learning from then as they are already specialised in the related concepts. The education required for a nurse educator is a master’s degree in nursing.
The average salary for this job profile varies between $71,344 to $81,228 per year.
Public health nurse
Median salary: $58,227
A public health nurse is a professional who works for the country or the health departments, non-profit organizations to look after the public safety and health issues by screening and monitoring the immunizations. They also work on creating awareness about medical conditions and educating people about healthy lifestyles. The average earning of a public health nurse varies between $50,273 to $63,432 per year depending on different factors. To land on this profession, you’ll need a nursing diploma or Associate’s degree in nursing (ADN) or a bachelor’s degree.To advance your career, you could also complete an advanced degree and clear an exam
School nurse
Median salary: $50,589
A school nurse responsible for educating the children of various ages about health topics, dispensing medication, treating minor injuries such as sprains and cuts and providing preventative screening services. A bachelor’s degree is required for this job and this job is preferred by nurses who will work in a traditional schedule. The salary may vary between $40,415 and $63,863 depending on your education, certifications and additional skills.
Telemedicine nurse
Median salary: $36 per hour
A combination of nursing and telecommunication technologies gives rise to this field to connect with patients through video conferencing and use of computers. This is very helpful for patients who live in remote places and enables them to connect with the healthcare providers instantly with coming to meet them personally.
The average earnings are on an hourly basis and can range between $33 to $41. Aspiring students can take up this as a part-time job to support personal finance and use their education to treat people while still studying. The good news is, more than 70 percent of the healthcare providers are using the telemedicine tools and relevant technology to help patients as a part of their advancement.
Conclusion
Your nursing degree holds more value and helps you get any job in the healthcare field easily within 6 months after completion of training period. Ensure you meet the requirements and up-to-date about the latest technology as the healthcare industry is continuously evolving with the usage of latest technologies. Career-oriented students can also take up the Online nursing degree offered by top colleges to help you manage your responsibilities and complete education simultaneously. Exploring and spending time to research on what you can do with your nursing degree from an early stage helps you shape your career according to your interests and strengths.
