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Advanced Practice Nurses


Overview

Advanced Practice Nurses

Introduction

Advanced practice nurses (APNs) are a broad category of registered nurses (RNs) who have completed advanced clinical nurses' educational practice requirements beyond the two to four years of basic nursing education required for all RNs. Under the advanced practice nursing designation fall four categories of nursing specialties: clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), nurse practitioners (NPs), nurse-midwives (NMs), and nurse anesthetists (NAs). According to the U.S. Department of Labor, there ...

Quick Facts


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Median Salary

$113,930

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Employment Prospects

Excellent

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Minimum Education Level

Master's Degree


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Experience

Internships and clinical rotations


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Skills

Interpersonal
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Personality Traits

Helpful
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Earnings

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, nurse anesthetists, nurse midwives, and nurse practitioners earned a median annual salary of $113,930 in May 2018. The lowest 10 percent of nurses in these professions earned less than $80,670, while the highest 10 percent earned more than $182,750.

Nurses employed in private clinics of government facilities as well as those employed in hospital...

Work Environment

Most hospital environments are clean and well lit. Inner-city hospitals may be in less than desirable locations, and safety may be an issue. Nurses work eight-hour shifts. Those in hospitals generally work any of three shifts: 7:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.; 3:00 P.M. to 11:00 P.M.; or 11:00 P.M. to 7:00 A.M.

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Outlook

The U.S. Department of Labor predicts shortages of advanced practice nurses will continue over the next several years. APNs with the proper credentials and certification should have no trouble finding posts in a wide variety of health care facilities. The Department of Labor predicts much faster than average growth for both advanced practice nurses (28%) and registered nurses overall (12%) thro...