Nursing


Nature of the Work

With 4.2 million Registered Nurses (RN’s) in the US today, nursing is the largest healthcare profession. The federal government projects that more than 203,000 new registered nurse positions will be created each year from 2021-2031. Nurses provide preventative and restorative health care to patients in a wide variety of settings. Associate Degree Nurses (A.D.N.’s) complete two-years of nursing course work at a community college. The Bachelors of Science in Nursing (BSN) is the preferred path of entry into registered nursing. BSN programs usually take 5 years to complete. While each of these programs lead to licensure as a RN, a BSN affords the opportunity to pursue leadership, management, and more independent nursing roles. BSN graduates can pursue advanced degrees or training in nursing and enjoy greater career advancement opportunities. Employers are expressing a strong preference for new nurses with a bachelor’s degree.

Earnings and Occupational Outlook

The median annual salary for Registered Nurses was $77,600 in 2021, salaries vary greatly with geographic loca- tion and health care setting. The lowest 10 percent of registered nurses earned less than $59,450 and the highest 10 percent earned over $120,250 (Occupational Outlook Handbook).

“Employment of registered nurses is expected to grow 6% from 2021 to 2031, about as fast as the average for all occupations.” According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the BSN nurse is prepared for a broader role - the BSN nurse is the only basic nursing graduate prepared to practice in all health care settings; critical care, ambulatory care, public health and mental health, and thus has the greatest employment flexibility of any entry-level RN.

There are many areas open to nursing graduates, including the traditional hospital nurse who may work in pediatrics, maternity, the operating room, surgical units, critical care, or trauma. Increasingly, nurses also work as nursing educators, quality assurance nurses, nurse managers, and in home health.

At the Master’s degree level there are increasing opportunities for study that include: nursing administration, nurse midwifery, clinical specialist, nurse anesthetist, case management, and nurse practitioner (family, adult, pediatric). Nurses holding Doctoral degrees often take positions in research or academic settings.

In 2021, the median annual wages for registered nurses in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:

Industry Annual Wages
Government $85,970
Hospitals (state, local, and private) $78,070
Ambulatory healthcare services    $76,700
Nursing and residential care facilities $72,420
Educational services (state, local, and private) $61,780

 

Pathways to Becoming a Baccalaureate Level Registered Nurse

  • Enter Traditional Bachelor of Science Nursing Program at a 4-year college or university (4-5 years)

  • Earn an Associate’s Degree in Nursing to become a registered nurse (2 years). Join a Bridge Program for an additional 2 summer intersessions while in the A.D.N. program, plus one year at the university upon completing a 2 year nursing program. Enter a RN to BSN program at a four-year university (1-2 years) after completing the 2 year nursing program.

  • Earn a Bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field (4 years). Enter an accelerated or traditional BSN program (2-3 years)

  • Earn a Bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field (4 years). Enter an Entry level MSN program, which awards the BSN and/or RN license along the way (3 years)

Nursing Program Prerequisite Courses:

Class Subject
Anatomy 025 Human Anatomy
Physiology 001 Human Physiology
Microbiology 002 Microbiology
Chem 002A Chemistry (general, inorganic, organic)
English 001A Reading & Composition
Critical Thinking course Ex:  English 001B, 001C, etc...
Stats 018 or 050 Statistics
Speech 001 or Speech 010 Public Speaking or Interperson
Psychology 001 Introduction to Psychology
Sociology 001 Introduction to Sociology
Nutrition 011 Human Nutrition

Local Universities with Nursing Departments:


Local Schools that offer Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) for Students with a Bachelor’s Degree in a Major Other Than Nursing:

  • Azusa Pacific University
  • California Baptist University
  • Charles Drew University
  • Mervyn Dymally School of Nursing
  • Samuel Merritt College
  • San Francisco State University
  • UC Davis
  • UCLA
  • UC Irvine
  • UC San Francisco
  • University of San Diego|
  • University of San Francisco
  • University of the Pacific Western
  • University of Health Sciences

Helpful Websites for Nursing Students: