A vocational nurse, otherwise known as a licensed practical
nurse is the starting level for nursing. Having a general education diploma, or
just completing high school is the start to becoming a licensed practical
nurse. Schooling for a licensed practical nurse can be found at any community
college or vocational school. The teaching that you need to complete will only
take about one year if you study hard in a good nursing school. After finishing up
with the program for practical nursing you need to complete a state licensing
exam and pass it. For a year's education you make a decent entry level salary
which is around $35,000 a year. The training for a licensed practical nurse is
to help them be able to do simple task sot help patients.
Making more money and having more responsibility is part of
being a registered nurse. To be a registered nurse, you will need to have an
associate of nursing degree which you can get from a local community college.
If you study hard, it will only take two years to finish an associate of
nursing degree. A NCLEX test is required for a registered nurse to be able to
work in their state. You will have many work opportunities once you pass the
NCLEX and become an official registered nurse. Being a registered nurse will
have a yearly salary of $50,000, which is higher because of the increased
schooling. A registered nurse will be more involved with patients.
A Bachelor's of Science in Nursing degree is the next step
for a registered nurse. Many registered nurses receive aid from the hospitals
they work at to further their education. There are specific nursing programs that help nurses
get their bachelors degree. Two to four years is the typical amount of time it
will take for a nurse to get their bachelor's degree. Four years is how long it
will take for a person who has not done anything with nursing yet to complete
the bachelor's degree. With a bachelor's degree the nurse will have more
knowledge on nursing.
After a nurse has a bachelor's degree they can work to get
an advanced practice degree. A specialized nursing degree at a college of nursing, such as the
Master's of Science in Nursing, can be obtained by a nurse. An advanced
practice nurse is better trained, so they get a better income. If you attend
school full time you can complete a master's degree in two years. Nurses have
to work hard to achieve their degree. A person will have many decisions when
becoming a nurse.
