Nursing Degrees

If you want to be a nurse, you have a wide variety of nursing degrees available to you. Although nursing is a skilled profession and one that carries with it considerable responsibility, it is possible to get into the career fairly quickly. What sort of degree you get depends on how much time and money you have to devote to your education, the type of nurse you want to be, and how much you want to get paid.

The quickest route to the nursing profession is to become a vocational nurse with an LPN (licensed practical nurse) degree. This requires approximately a year of courses and hands-on experience within the profession. Once you’ve acquired your license, you’ll be permitted to assist registered nurses and physicians. Though nursing degrees at this level will move you quickly into a rewarding position as a nurse, your career advancement will be limited.

A better option, if you can afford it and are willing to take the time, is to go to a two-year community college or technical school and earn an ADN (associate’s degree in nursing). This will provide you with a broader, more complete education and will increase your potential for salary and career advancement.

Your best choice, however, is to go to a four-year school and earn your BSN (bachelor’s of science in nursing). Such nursing degrees are prestigious and will provide you with an education that will not only make you a better nurse but broaden your general outlook on life, something that your patients will appreciate. This will give you the option of going on to graduate school and acquiring even more advanced degrees both for your personal improvement and to hone your nursing skills. Of course, you can do this while working as a nurse, which will give you practical experience to supplement the theoretical information you acquire at school.

Which of these nursing degrees is worth it to you? That depends on two things: time and money. The more advanced the degree that you acquire, the more time it will take you to earn it, and the more tuition money you will have to spend. This will also be a period in your life when you can at best work part time, devoting the remainder of your hours to classes and studies. However, the trade-off may be worth it. The higher the degree you earn, the more employable you will become, and the higher the salary that you will command.