If you are looking for a career that has a high percentage of employment after graduation (84%) and has one of the lowest unemployment rates (2%), nursing could be your ticket to job security and further career advancement. Numbering over 4 million, nurses make up the nation’s largest health care profession.
Following are six reasons why it makes sense to get a nursing degree, and get it online:
- Nurses are in demand
- Nurses can choose where they want to work
- Nurses have numerous opportunities for advancement
- Nursing enables you to easily relocate
- Nursing pays well
- Online nursing degrees offer various levels of study
Nurses are currently in high demand now, and will be even more in demand by 2020. The Health Resources and Services Administration has projected a shortfall of 800,000 nurses by 2020. Employers in some parts of the country and in certain settings report difficulty in attracting and retaining an adequate number of nurses, primarily because of an aging workforce and a lack of younger workers to fill positions. To attract and retain qualified nurses, hospitals are offering signing bonuses, family-friendly work schedules, or subsidized training. In addition, all four advanced practice specialties—clinical nurse specialists, nurse practitioners, nurse-midwives, and nurse anesthetists—will be in high demand, particularly in medically underserved areas such as inner cities and rural areas.
There are numerous opportunities for those with nursing degrees. You can work in hospitals, schools, government agencies, home healthcare facilities, physicians offices and even outpatient care facilities. You can even work as a traveling nurse, giving you the flexibility to take an assignment close to home or thousands of miles away.
Nurses can add additional training to their degrees and advance into management, or even change specialities, such as trauma nursing or neonatal care. Many times the hospitals will pay for additional training and once training is completed, a promotion and increase in pay follows.
Since nurses are in high demand and nursing skills can be applied almost anywhere, you can live where you want and still find employment. If you face relocation due to family responsibilities, your spouse is transferred, or you need to move due to rising costs where you are living, you can always find a job as a nurse in any healthcare facility located throughout the country.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wages of registered nurses were $62,450 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $51,640 and $76, 570. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $43,410 and the highest 10 percent earned more than $92,240. Many employers offer flexible work schedules, child care, educational benefits, and bonuses.
Online degree programs offer convenience and accessibility, especially if you are currently employed full time and need to work the classes around your schedule. You can pursue a degree plan in the three general types of nursing: registered nurses (RNs), license practical nurses (LPNs), and advanced practice nurses (which include numerous types of advanced degrees in healthcare education).
If you already have a Bachelor of Science or Arts degree in another field, you may want to consider numerous academic programs specially geared toward college graduates. These programs are called post-baccalaureate, second degree or accelerated degrees. Post-baccalaureate programs (BA to BSN, or BS to BSN) recognize your previous education and build on it, without repeating it. There are many online programs available for professionals wanting to switch careers and pursue nursing.
Get free information about online nursing degrees, this site can provide you with additional information and connect you with accredited programs offering nursing specialties.
There has been a good bit of discussion lately on the blogs, online newspapers, and educational websites about Georgetown University’s study: What’s it Worth? The Economic Value of College Majors. The study outlines college majors, their popularity, and their earning potential after graduation. If you are trying to decide on a specific career path and online education’s flexibility and convenience appeals to you, it might be good to examine the results of the study before choosing a specific course of study.
In this article, we will examine the most popular major (Business), the major who a high number of graduates end up working in that occupation (Health), and one of the highest paying majors (Computers and Mathematics). All of these majors can be completed online with online degree-granting accredited institutions.
Business
Business is the most popular major group; it accounts for 25% of all majors. Median earnings are $60,000 for those with a Bachelor’s who majored in Business. Business Management and Administration is the most popular major; Bachelor’s degree holders with this major earn $58,000 at the median range. General Business is the second most popular major with median earnings of $60,000. Accounting is the third most popular major and earns $63,000 at the median range.
There is also great variation within these majors; the major with the lowest median earnings is Hospitality Management, while the major with the highest median earnings is Business Economics. Earnings in Business can vary widely from $40,000 all the way up to $90,000 — a difference of $50,000. About 21 percent of people with these majors obtain a graduate degree and, as a result, get an average earnings boost of 40 percent.
Of people who received an undergraduate major in business, 25 percent work in management occupations, 18 percent work in sales occupations, 18 percent work in finance occupations, 12 percent work in office occupations, and 6 percent work in business occupations. By industry, 17 percent work in financial services, 12 percent work in professional and business services, 10 percent work in retail trade, 8 percent work in manufacturing, and 7 percent work in public administration. Of people who obtained an undergraduate major in Business that are in the labor force and employed, 90 percent work full-time. About 5 percent are unemployed.
Health
Frequently, knowledge is used widely across industrial sectors, but in limited cases majors have a tight relationship with an industrial sector. This is especially the case in the health services sector. For instance: Nursing majors lead to employment in the health services industry 84 percent of the time. Of Bachelor’s degree holders who majored in Medical Assisting Services, 77 percent work in the health services industry. 82 percent of Nursing majors end up in health practice occupations, but 6 percent are found in management occupations. About 31 percent of people with these majors obtain a graduate degree and, as a result, get an average earnings boost of 50 percent. Of people who majored in Health, 69 percent work in health practice, 8 percent in managerial, and 4 percent in office occupations. By industry, 72 percent work in health services, 6 percent in retail, and 4 percent in education services. Of Health majors who are in the labor force and employed, 77 percent work full-time. About 2 percent are unemployed.
Computers and Mathematics
This group includes the following majors: Applied Mathematics, Communication Technologies, Computer Administration Management and Security, Computer and Information Systems, Computer Engineering, Computer Networking and Telecommunications, Computer Programming and Data Processing, Computer Science, Information Sciences, Mathematics, Mathematics and Computer Science. Mathematics and Computer Science have median earnings of $98,000. Computers and Mathematics account for 5.1 percent of all majors. Median earnings for those with only a Bachelor’s degree who majored in Computers and Mathematics are $70,000. Earnings in Computers and Mathematics can vary widely, from $48,000 to $100,000 — a difference of $52,000. The major with the highest median earnings is Mathematics and Computer Science, and the major with the lowest median is Communication Technologies. About 32 percent of people with these majors obtain a graduate degree and, as a result, get an average earnings boost of 31 percent.
Of people who majored in Computers and Mathematics, 46 percent work in computers,16 percent in management, 7 percent in office jobs, 6 percent in sales, and 4 percent in business occupations. By industry, 26 percent work in professional and business services, 12 percent in financial services, 11 percent in manufacturing, 7 percent in information services, and 7 percent in education services. Of those with a Bachelor’s in Computers and Mathematics who are in the labor force and employed, 91 percent of those people work full-time. About 6 percent are unemployed.
If you are interested in researching other majors covered in the study, The Chronicle of Higher Education created an interactive tool that lets you look at all the degrees and their median earnings. Get free information from a list of online schools at Classesandcareers.com.
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While our three (ring circus) branches of government try to figure what to do with health care, life for us down here in the trenches continues to march on. This means accidents happen, people get sick, and at some point every one of us ends up (at one time or another) in a doctor’s examination room wrapped in a paper gown. For this reason, you need to consider all your health insurance options whether you’re employed or not. Unfortunately, when your job status changes, so does your coverage. Here are the three most important times you need to re-examine your health care benefits.
When You Start a New Job
The sad truth is most employers can’t afford to cover their employees with 100% health care. In most cases, an employer pays for part or most of an employee’s plan, but then the employee has to also kick in to make up the difference. When you hire on with a new company, be sure to read the company’s health insurance policy from cover to cover. If you don’t understand something, ask your employer to spell it out for you. Typically, an employer health care plan DOES cover general doctor visits and catastrophic care, but usually DOESN’T include extras like dental, vision, chiropractic care, etc. If these things are important to you then often you can include them as extras on your policy, but you’ll have to pay for them.
Also if you or someone in your family has a pre-existing condition, you need to make sure that condition will be covered under your new plan. In fact, check on this BEFORE you quit your old job. And if you like the doctors you’ve been seeing make sure those doctors are covered under your new plan. If not, you may be paying for your doctor visits 100% out of your own pocket.
If You Quit or Are Fired From Your Existing Job
Regardless of the reason you leave a job the COBRA Act of 1985 ensures that you can take your company’s health insurance benefits with you for up to 18 months. Unfortunately, you’ll have to pay 100% of those monthly premiums yourself, but at least you’re covered. This is especially important if you’re going through specific treatment at the time you leave a job, or you want to retain your same health insurance while you look for a new job.
Whatever you do, DO NOT roll the dice and go without health insurance. That’s never a gamble worth taking.
If You’re In Between Jobs
If your employer’s health plan is too expensive for you to continue with on your own, then you need to get some sort of health insurance while you look for work. If you’re married, check to see if your spouse’s plan will cover you, at least for catastrophic care. You may have to pay a little extra, but it probably won’t add up to what you’d pay for your own policy.
If you have to purchase your own health insurance you basically have two options; A PPO (expensive, but covers a lot) or catastrophic care (cheaper, but with less coverage). The one you choose depends upon A) How much money you have to spend on health care, and B) How long you anticipate being unemployed.
A PPO is the closest thing your employer provided you with in terms of health care. Typically, a PPO has a family deductible of anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000 annually and also offers co-pays for doctor office visits and prescription drugs. This means you pay your doctor office co-pay of, for example, $25 per visit, every time you go to your doctor. But after you’ve paid enough medical bills (in a calendar year) to meet your deductible, then the insurance company pays anywhere from 80% to 100% of your remaining medical bills, but only for the rest of the calendar year. After January 1 the slate is wiped clean and you start paying toward your deductible all over again.
A PPO plan is pretty expensive because it covers everything from a cold to cancer. If you know you’re going to be out of work only for a short time, then a PPO may be overkill. Instead, you can go with a catastrophic care plan, which has a very high deductible (usually $5,000 to $10,000), and only covers you for major medical expenses, such as accidents or long term severe illness (like cancer). If you’re healthy, and left without health benefits for a month or less, then a catastrophic care plan may make more sense. It’s way cheaper than a PPO, but still guarantees you won’t lose everything if you happen to have an accident that requires expensive treatment while you’re without employer benefits.
Regardless of your employment status you should NEVER go without health insurance. It only takes something as simple as a hernia surgery or a broken leg to wipe out everything you’ve ever worked for. True, you don’t know if you’ll ever need to go to the doctor while in between jobs, but that’s why they call it insurance – because then you won’t have to worry if you do.
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