Nursing Job & Career Types – Requirements
The nursing professions offer a dynamic range of career options. There are positions across the country and around the globe. If you have a knack for helping others, nursing could be the right choice for you. Start your nursing degree today, and get on your way to one of the most rewarding careers around.
Types of Nursing Jobs & Careers
Nursing jobs continue to thrive. An estimated shortage of 800,000 nurses is predicted worldwide by the year 2020. Few professions offer the flexibility and stability that come with nursing. With jobs thriving beyond the standard positions in hospitals, clinics, and physicians’ offices, there’s no limit to where you might end up after earning your degree. Nurses work in education, research, and healthcare management-to name only a few, non-standard fields. Many graduates of nursing degree programs can choose when and where they wish to work and, with ongoing training, can advance into diverse specializations.
Graduates of nursing degree programs have a host of career options available to them, including:
• Certified Nurse Midwife
• Clinical Nursing Specialist
• Flight Nurse
• Forensic Nurse
• Holistic Medicine Nurse
• Managed Care Nurse
• Medical Office Manager
• Military Nurse
• Nursing Consultant
• Nursing Informatics Specialist
• Nursing Manager
• Healthcare Administrator
• Nurse Anesthetist
• Nurse Educator
• Nurse Practitioner
• Occupational Health Nurse
• Orthopedic Nurse
• Parish Nurse
• Pharmaceutical/Medical Sales Representative
• Research Nurse
• Pediatric Nurse
• Respiratory Nurse
• School Nurse
• Staff Nurse
• Telephone Triage Nurse
• Trauma Nurse
• Travel Nurse
Pursuing Your Nursing Degree
Students complete comprehensive medical training in their nursing degree programs. Students learn about patient care, medical procedures, current healthcare technology, and medical ethics. In a typical degree program, coursework includes:
• Chemistry
• Biology
• Anatomy
• Physiology
• Microbiology
• Psychology
• Diet and Nutrition
• Medical Terminology
• Research techniques
Depending on your program and career goals, you may choose to specialize in a field, qualifying yourself for a wider range of nursing professions. You’ll learn how to assist physicians in comprehensive patient care, from triage to emergency procedures, extended care to acute and chronic care-and how to treat a variety of patient populations based on ailment, disability, age, or gender.
Nurses can also focus on body symptom care, studying the treatment of cardiovascular, dermatological, ophthalmic, neuromuscular, gastric, orthopedic, obstetric, or HIV conditions. If a smaller, private-sector operation appeals to you, you can take advantage of nursing’s opportunity to work in various occupational, educational, and industrial environments.
Putting Your Nursing Degree to Work
Nearly 60 percent of graduates of nursing degree programs take jobs in hospitals, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), with registered nurses making up the largest group of healthcare professionals, holding 2.5 million jobs. Nursing, the BLS reports, is projected to be one of the fastest growing occupations during the 2006-2016 decade, with the largest number of new jobs predicted in physicians’ offices, home healthcare service companies, outpatient care centers, medical and surgical hospitals, and nursing care facilities.
For those who want to move around, travel nursing is a great option. Nursing degree program graduates can work in locations around the world or within the Unities States on temporary assignments with travel benefits and hiring bonuses. Nurses also take jobs with pharmaceutical or medical device research laboratories, helping gather data from patients. If you want to prosper where you are, ongoing training to supplement your nursing degree-which lets you qualify for supervisory roles in clinics, hospitals, and research facilities-is available online and on-campus across the country. Many nurses choose to go into nurse education or nursing administration.
No matter which specialization you choose, the first step is earning your degree. Make helping others a way of life, and start working towards your nursing career today.
Woodrow Aames
Woodrow Aames has written articles and profiles for Yahoo, Microsoft Network, Microsoft Encarta, and other websites and print magazines around the world. He holds an MFA degree and has taught English abroad.
