In my first civic life blog, I explained the differences between a bachelor’s and diploma in nursing. Additionally, I listed some pros and cons of either path into nursing. I delved into the validity of general education requirements for 4-year nursing students and the effects (positive and negative) of those points. While I believe that a 4-year program is not necessary for all nurses, if one wants to receive higher education possibilities, it is the smartest path.
Especially with personal experience, I want to become a nurse practitioner(NP), which takes another 2 years of schooling with a bachelor’s degree. Roles of a NP include but are not limited to “prescrib[ing] medication, examin[ing] patients, diagnos[ing] illnesses, and provid[ing] treatment, much like physicians do” (“Nurse Practitioner Programs.”). NPs have much more responsibilities than a diploma or even a bachelor’s nurse; with this increase in responsibility is an increase in salary, higher job security, more independence, and specialization in a specific field. Nurse Practitioners can specialize in family care, psychiatry, anthesticist, gerontological, forensics, and education. These are the most popular master’s programs, with other options available (“Nurse Practitioner Programs”).
With the option of specializing in a field is a strong benefit of a master’s program. Personally, I am thinking of going into psychiatry and becoming a Psych NP enables me (among other nurses/future nurses) to assess and help treat patients more readily than a diploma nurse could. An NP is able to prescribe medication and work semi-independently of a physician. While in some instances, NPs still need approval from physicians, diploma nurses and even bachelor’s nurses are more dependent on doctors and other health professionals for treatment of patients.
A diploma nurse can get higher education, but it is more time consuming as a diploma nurse tends to move into the workforce quicker due to the shortened program and is oriented to the hospital floor. Bachelor Nurses usually work in a hospital right after graduation instead of going right into a master’s program because it is looked down upon in the nursing community to go right into a master’s program without any time in a hospital setting. Also, nurses who complete a 4-year program are more oriented to an academic environment than a diploma nurse, and might adapt to a graduate program more readily than a diploma nurse. I do not mean anything against diplomas, it is just since the program is accelerated, there is less time in a classroom setting.
Another pro mentioned previously was an increased salary option for a bachelor’s and master’s degree versus a diploma/associate’s degree. “Associate or diploma level RNs in a Northeast state may earn an average starting salary of $35,838.40 per year as reported by the State of Maine website.” Additionally, “Northeast RN’s with bachelor’s degrees may earn an average starting salary of $41,080 as reported by the state of Maine.” Lastly, “ According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the average salary for an RN with a master’s degree is $87,363 per year… certified registered nurse anesthesiologist can pay an average salary of $154,221 per year, reports the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services” (Collins).
These are significant jumps in salaries for higher education opportunities. Obviously, these salaries change depending on the location, with west coast salaries being significantly higher due to inflation. With 6 years of schooling versus 2 years, a nurse can make over double the average salary of an associate’s degree, disregarding an CRNA (which is a highly competitive field). Also, if a nurse is unhappy or in need of a switch in setting, they can receive a master’s in nursing education and become a nursing professor. This allows for an academic setting instead of a high-stress hospital job, where a nurse can benefit with teaching future nurses.
As stated previously, I do not want to “bash” diploma/associate’s nursing, but just want to distinguish the benefits and drawbacks of any path into nursing. Some paths are more traditional, but there are unorthodox paths in nursing that have been made available due to the increase in nursing education options. Now, there are programs for diploma to master’s or even to doctorate. These programs are rarer and less traditional, but there is such a need for quality nurses due to the high nursing retirement rates recently.