Employing more than 2 million nurses in US alone, nursing is the largest single occupation in the health industry. With the expansion of health care industry, the prospects of this career are also very good. This article covers the basics of the career opportunities in nursing, from how to become a nurse to the best employment opportunities in it.

How to Become a Nurse

Different countries have different path to a becoming a nurse. Usually, a nursing degree or diploma is the first step, after which a nurse can go for a masters if they wish to specialize. In the US, you can become a Registered Nurse (RN) by any one of three career paths: by a bachelor’s degree, a diploma from an approved nursing program, or an associate degree. Advanced practice nurses, which include anesthetists, midwives, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners, require a master’s degree after their graduate degree.

Career Opportunities in Nursing

The US Government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, in its 2010 report, says that there were more than 2.6 million nurses employed in the US in year 2008. This makes nursing the largest occupation in health care industry. According to the report, the future prospects too are very good, with demand for RNs increasing by more than 550,000 over the 10 year period from 2008 to 2018. RNs are mostly employed by hospitals, which employ 60% of all nurses in the nation. RNs that specialize in a particular organ or body system are usually employed in specialty hospitals and clinics. With a median annual wage of about $62,450 in 2008, RNs earn a lot more than the national average per capita income. Most employers offer a lot of other facilities with the job, such as child care, bonuses, and educational benefits.

Search for Nursing Jobs

Online job portals such as monster.com are one of the best options to search for nursing jobs. Apart from other factors, you can search for jobs according to desired location, such as west coast or, in case you wish to work there, in Canada.

If you are in UK, the National Health Service (NHS) is the best option for you as an employer. As one of the largest employers, and the largest health care employer, NHS employs more than 350,000 qualified community and hospital nurses. This number does not include bank staff and practicing nurses (bank staff is the staff that is called on duty only when the hospital is otherwise short of manpower).

In the United States, the US military is one of the largest employers of nursing staff. The US Army Nurse Corps consists solely of nurses who serve in the army as commissioned officers. To join the corps, nurses need to have an unrestricted Registered Nurse (RN) license before they can join the corps. Similarly, the Navy and Air Force too have corresponding nursing corps.