A Broad Guidance About Master’s Degree in Nursing (MSN) in the USA

We all know nurses are the backbone of the healthcare system. In the USA and all over the World, nurses play an important role even in an individual’s life when that individual is a patient and needs to be taken care of. With this article, I’ll try to give you a broad Guidance about master’s degree in nursing that what is the time period of completing the course, job opportunities, salary, etc. After reading this article, you’ll have all the information regarding this course, so read the complete article to know this course fully. Otherwise, you already knew that half Knowledge is way too dangerous. So make sure you read the whole article. Let’s get started. 

So, It requires 2 complete years to have your Master’s degree, in nursing, in hand, it is a two years course of higher education. 

The topics we’ll cover in this article are: 

1. What is a master’s degree in nursing, and how is it useful? 
2. Eligibility criteria for master’s degree. 
3. Fees of the course. 
4. Best colleges for master’s degree in nursing 
5. How many years it will take to complete this degree? 
6. Job opportunity after completing your master’s degree in nursing 
7. Salary 
8. Which master’s degree in nursing pays the most?

As you know, Nursing is a profession in the healthcare industry that deals with various aspects of patient care. She gets training to provide medical assistance to the patients and work as a helping hand of the Doctors. 

Now let’s understand the topics one by one; 

What is a master’s degree in nursing and how it is useful? 

You may have this question so let’s answer this first: 

• To master important practices needed for making a successful career as a nurse, you have to pursue an MSN(Master of Science in Nursing). 
• This course prepares you, gives you the experience of this field, and helps you excel in the skills needed in the field. 

The benefits or usefulness to earn your master’s degree, really adds value to your career in this field, look below to know how:

• As it is with every other profession, earning an advanced degree boosts your income, Same goes for this profession as well. 

*Higher degree higher salary*

• Generally, the working hours of nurses are very exhausting, but once you complete your master’s degree, you’ll be eligible to manage your working hours.
• After completing your master’s degree, you’ll have many other options so you can explore more and learn more, and probably you’ll be able to earn more. 
• Last but not least, when you study for higher education, you obviously gather knowledge of that field at another level which is great and will also make you a knowledgeable and more worthy person in that field. 

Eligibility Criteria for Master’s Degree

To apply for this Course in universities of the USA one needs to fulfill the following criteria: 

• You must have An average of Grade B or 3.0 GPA or 80% in bachelor’s degree
• Bachelors in nursing from the USA or any other country
• GRE test score (optional)
• You need Registered Nursing (RN) license

Fees of the Course 

Fee costs will be different for different institutions. It will vary depending on which school you decide to join, like in-state, out of state, online or private universities. And I would highly suggest you do some research on what scholarships and grants are available. It will be helpful. Well, Generally, The cost of an MSN runs from $35,000 to $60,000.

Best Colleges for Master’s Degree in Nursing 

There are numbers of some really good Universities in the USA that are offering Masters in Nursing with good quality of education and other facilities but I’ll share The top three universities with you and these are: 

• The University of Pennsylvania. 
• John Hopkins University and 
• The University of Washington.

How many years it will take to complete this degree? 

Well, you can earn your associate’s degree in Nursing in just 2 years. Now you may think, Why pursue higher degrees in any profession? 

• The main reason for doing so is that you will be able to earn more money and will have more responsibility with this degree. 
• And the one with more experience is always chosen First than that of the one who is a newbie or does not have much experience in the concerned field. 
• Therefore, nurses with a master’s will be chosen for administrative positions far quicker than lesser degrees. And administration positions pay much higher than floor nurses. 
• While working in an administrative position, They also help form policies and ensure the staff nurses on the floor follow those policies. 
• Achieving higher degrees in whatever profession you choose is always has its Benefits. Job satisfaction, professionalism, higher salaries are all good reasons to pursue MSN. 

Now, I hope this is enough to make you understand how important and valuable it is to pursue a Master’s degree in your nursing profession. Let’s move forward to our next topic.

Scope/Job Opportunity After Completing Your Master’s Degree in Nursing

A Masters of Nursing graduate can work as a: 

• Nursing-in-charge
• Anesthetist
• Nursing Supervisor
• Nursing Executive
• Occupational Health Nurse
• Nursing Tutor
• Clinical Instructor
• Assistant Nursing Superintendent
• Paramedic Nurse
• Nursing Consultant
• Tutor – Psychiatric Nursing
• Staff Nurse/Critical Care Nursing
• Clinical Nurse Specialist
• Advanced Nurse Practitioner
• Nurse Administrator
• Nurse Educator

Expected Salary After Completing Your Master’s Degree

As per my knowledge and data collection, the range is from 36,600 USD to 110,000 USD per year, of nurses’ salaries in the USA. An individual who works as a nurse in the USA can earn around 71,700 USD per year. And This is the average yearly salary which includes housing, transport, and some other benefits in. And no doubt, Nurse with a good amount of experience and skills will be paid Handsomely and another factor where salaries vary drastically besides experience, skills, are Generally based on gender or location. 

Which master’s degree in nursing pays the most?

Let’s See the Salary one by one according to the post or position of nurse 

• Designation –  Nursing-in-charge
  • Description – As the name suggests, here  the one who takes charge in the absence of the nurse
  • Salary – $73,200
    
    
• Designation –  Anaesthetist
  • Description –  The Anaesthetist is responsible for Performing the critical operation. 
  • Salary – $167,950
    
    
• Designation –  Nursing Supervisor
  • Description – They are needed during emergencies to provide their supervision. 
  • Salary – $86,800
    
    
• Designation –  Nursing Executive
  • Description –  The one who will be the head in charge of the entire institute of Nursing related works/activities.
  • Salary – $100,000
    
    
• Designation –  Occupational Health Nurse
  • Description – They basically work for Developing and implementing safety and health programs.
  • Salary – $82,070
    
    
• Designation –  Nursing Tutor
  • Description – They work as a tutor to teach about the facilities and other norms in this field or nursing. 
  • Salary – $69,130
    
    
• Designation –  Clinical Instructor
  • Description – Possibly, they teach students in a hospital, home care. They are essential to the nursing curriculum. 
  • Salary – $79,900
    
    
• Designation –  Assistant Nursing Superintendent
  • Description – They provide the Nursing facilities with their clear and deep knowledge of medicine and its specification. 
  • Salary – $100,000
    
    
• Designation –  Paramedic Nurse
  • Description – They work to provides facilities for moving vehicles or in ambulances. 
  • Salary – $71,900
    
    
• Designation – Nursing Consultant
  • Description – They are experts in their field. Their work is to consult with the patient as per the hospital’s order.
  • Salary – $125,000
    
    
• Designation –  Tutor – Psychiatric Nursing
  • Description – They educate the students about this field. 
  • Salary – $68,500
    
    
• Designation –  Staff Nurse/Critical Care Nursing
  • Description – They work on making strategies and remedies in the respective field. One can call it critical nursing. 
  • Salary – $58,383
    
    
• Designation –  Clinical Nurse Specialist
  • Description – They work as a mentor for the staffs and provide specialized care.
  • Salary – Between $96,038 and $116,350.
    
    
• Designation –  Advanced Nurse Practitioner
  • Description – They generally work in various aspects, like Community care, Long-term care in nursing homes, hospitals, outpatient clinics, emergency rooms, and other patient areas. 
  • Salary – Between $60,000 to $72,000.
    
    
• Designation –  Nurse Administrator
  • Description – The Nurse Administrator is basically responsible for managing the hiring process and scheduling the duties, and overall management of what administrators do. 
  • Salary – $60,000 to $200,000.
    
    
• Designation –  Nurse Educator
  • Description – Their work is to give lectures in different institutions as lecturers, professors, or instructors. Institutions where they lecture are from business schools to community colleges to major universities. They also work in hospitals to give or provide their instructions to the new nurses /intern nurses. 
  • Salary – $77,000

And here our article ends. I hope your queries regarding the topics I have mentioned at the very beginning of this article about a “master’s degree in nursing” are now clear. Team “how I got my job” will always there to guide you with their best efforts. Stay tuned for other updates. Thank you for spending your time reading my article. Have a good day ; ) And Good luck to your future dear reader.

Also read 5 Steps of ADPIE Nursing