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Nursing Practice Major

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Nursing Practice

1,122 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
336 Master's Degrees Annually
#29 in Popularity
$110,030 Median Salary

Types of Degrees Nursing Practice Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many nursing practice graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Doctor’s Degree 6,164
Bachelor’s Degree 1,122
Master’s Degree 336
Graduate Certificate 239
Associate Degree 80
Undergraduate Certificate 26
Basic Certificate 25

What Nursing Practice Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, nursing practice majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Nursing Practice Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in nursing practice should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

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  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
  • Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Skills for Nursing Practice Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to nursing practice:

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  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Abilities for Nursing Practice Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a nursing practice student include the following:

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  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
  • Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

What Can You Do With a Nursing Practice Major?

People with a nursing practice degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Medical and Health Services Managers 20.5% $99,730
Nurse Practitioners 36.1% $107,030
Registered Nurses 14.8% $71,730

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing Practice?

1,122 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
87% Percent Women
29% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
The major attracts more women than men. About 87% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of nursing practice majors is as follows:

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 78
Black or African American 93
Hispanic or Latino 101
White 755
International Students 7
Other Races/Ethnicities 88

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Nursing Practice, too. About 0.6% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Nursing Practice Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $75,510 to $113,730 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to nursing practice. This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Median Salary for a Nursing Practice Major  ( 75510 to 113730 )
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250K
Median Salary for a High School Graduate  ( 30000 to 57900 )
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250K
Median Salary for a Bachelor's Degree Holder  ( 45600 to 99000 )
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250K
Median Salary for an Advanced Degree Holder  ( 55600 to 125400 )
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250K

Some degrees associated with nursing practice may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for nursing practice careers below.

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Education Level Percentage of Workers
Some College Courses 4.4%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 32.7%
Bachelor’s Degree 28.0%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. 2.2%
Master’s Degree 30.4%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level. 1.1%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession. 1.1%
Doctoral Degree 2.2%

Online Nursing Practice Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 340 schools offered some type of nursing practice program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level Colleges Offering Programs Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) 0 0
Certificate (1-2 years) 10 0
Certificate (2-4 Years) 0 0
Associate’s Degree 5 1
Bachelor’s Degree 14 5
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 26 12
Post-Master’s 27 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 56 18
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 231 95
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 22 12

Is a Degree in Nursing Practice Worth It?

The median salary for a nursing practice grad is $110,030 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 176% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,402,600 after 20 years!

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You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to nursing practice.

Major Number of Grads
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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