Nurse Practitioners
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Speciality
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Overview
Diagnose and treat acute, episodic, or chronic illness, independently or as part of a healthcare team. May focus on health promotion and disease prevention. May order, perform, or interpret diagnostic tests such as lab work and x rays. May prescribe medication. Must be registered nurses who have specialized graduate education.
This career appears to require experience.
Highlights
Undergraduate program resulting in the highest median salary ($91K): Nursing
Largest undergraduate program (71.0% of workers): Nursing
Explore Pathways
Titles for this career often contain these words
NursePractitionerCertifiedFamilyCarePracticeRegisteredAdultAdvancedPediatricMedicineHealthNPAcuteAPRNCardiologyDermatologyElectrophysiologyEmergencyFNPGastroenterologyGerontologicalInternalLicensedLNPMedicalSurgeryNeonatalNNPNeurosurgicalPhysician'sAssistantPAObstetricsGynecologyOrthopedicPalliativePNPPsychiatricSurgicalWomen's
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Responsibilities and activities

Advanced practice registered nurses typically do the following:

  • Take and record patients' medical histories and symptoms
  • Perform physical exams and observe patients
  • Create patient care plans or contribute to existing plans
  • Perform and order diagnostic tests
  • Operate and monitor medical equipment
  • Diagnose various health problems
  • Analyze test results or changes in a patient’s condition and alter treatment plans, as needed
  • Give patients medicines and treatments
  • Evaluate a patient’s response to medicines and treatments
  • Consult with doctors and other healthcare professionals, as needed
  • Counsel and teach patients and their families how to stay healthy or manage their illnesses or injuries
  • Conduct research

APRNs work independently or in collaboration with physicians. In most states, they can prescribe medications, order medical tests, and diagnose health problems. APRNs may provide primary and preventive care and may specialize in care for certain groups of people, such as children, pregnant women, or patients with mental health disorders.

APRNs have some of the same duties as registered nurses, including gathering information about a patient’s condition and taking action to treat or manage the patient’s health. However, APRNs are trained to do other tasks, including ordering and evaluating test results, referring patients to specialists, and diagnosing and treating ailments. APRNs focus on patient-centered care, which means understanding a patient’s concerns and lifestyle before choosing a course of action.

Some APRNs also conduct research or teach staff about new policies or procedures. Others may provide consultation services based on a specific field of knowledge, such as oncology, which is the study of cancer.

The following are types of APRNs:

Nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) administer anesthesia and provide care before, during, and after surgical, therapeutic, diagnostic, and obstetrical procedures. They also provide pain management and some emergency services. Before a procedure begins, nurse anesthetists discuss with a patient any medications the patient is taking as well as any allergies or illnesses the patient may have, so that anesthesia can be safely administered. Nurse anesthetists then give a patient general anesthesia to put the patient to sleep so they feel no pain during surgery or administer a regional or local anesthesia to numb an area of the body. During the procedure, they monitor the patient’s vital signs and adjust the anesthesia as necessary.

Nurse midwives (CNMs) provide care to women, including gynecological exams, family planning services, and prenatal care. They deliver babies, manage emergency situations during labor, repair lacerations, and may provide surgical assistance to physicians during cesarean births. Nurse midwives may act as primary maternity care providers for women. They also provide wellness care, educating their patients on how to lead healthy lives by discussing topics such as nutrition and disease prevention. Nurse midwives also provide care to their patients’ partners for sexual or reproductive health issues.

Nurse practitioners (NPs) serve as primary and specialty care providers, delivering advanced nursing services to patients and their families. They assess patients, determine how to improve or manage a patient’s health, and discuss ways to integrate health promotion strategies into a patient’s life. Nurse practitioners typically care for a certain population of people. For instance, NPs may work in adult and geriatric health, pediatric health, or psychiatric and mental health.

Although the scope of their duties varies by state, many nurse practitioners work independently, prescribe medications, and order laboratory tests. Nurse practitioners consult with physicians and other health professionals when needed.

See the profile on registered nurses for more information about clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), also considered to be a type of APRN.

Salary
Median salary: $111,680 annually
Half of those employed in this career earn between $94,890 and $130,240.
$112K$0$50K$100K$150K$200K
Context: Median Salary
How do salaries for this career compare to other jobs' salaries?
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Salary growth for nurse practitioners and nurse midwives
Is this job likely to reward you for sticking with it through pay raises and promotions? The higher a job’s “experience quotient,” the more you are likely to get as you stay there.
Experience quotient percentile
Take a minute to look at how much you might expect your salary to increase with each five years' experience, as well as how the numbers working at each age change. Does this seem to be a job for the young or the old, or could it be a career offering steady salary growth for many years?
Salary distribution
$104K$108K$96K$107K$106K$85K$102K$100K$0$50K$100K$150K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
Number employed
05K10K15K20K25K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
About Nurse Practitioners
How do benefits for this career compare to other jobs? The availability of health care, especially employer provided health care, and pension plans can add significantly to the value of compensation you receive in a career. These charts compare how this career compares to other careers with regard to health care and pension plans.
Employee has health insurance
Employer is providing health insurance
Employer-provided pension plan is available
Worker concerns
Some jobs are more stressful than others, and some are just plain dangerous. The following list gives the percentages of nurse practitioners who report hazardous or difficult situations typically occurring at least once a week.
  • Consequence of Error (93%)
  • Exposed to Disease or Infections (86%)
  • Unpleasant or Angry People (68%)
  • High Conflict Frequency (66%)
  • Time Pressure (63%)
  • Responsible for Others' Health (62%)
  • Exposed to Contaminants (31%)
SOURCES:
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Personality and skills
Can you see yourself in the ranks of Nurse Practitioners? Here are the skills and traits that could lead to success.
Communication skills
Advanced practice registered nurses have to be able to communicate with patients and other healthcare professionals to ensure the appropriate course of action.
Critical-thinking skills
APRNs must be able to assess changes in a patient’s health, quickly determine the most appropriate course of action, and decide if a consultation with another healthcare professional is needed.
Compassion
APRNs should be caring and sympathetic when treating patients.
Detail oriented
APRNs need to be thorough in providing treatments and medications that affect their patients’ health. During an evaluation, they must notice even small changes in a patient’s condition.
Interpersonal skills
APRNs must work with patients and families as well as with other healthcare providers and staff. They work as part of a team to determine and execute healthcare options for the patients they treat.
Leadership skills
APRNs often work in positions of seniority. They must effectively direct and sometimes manage other nurses on staff when providing patient care.
Resourcefulness
APRNs should know where to find the answers that they need.
Injury and Illness
About 15 nurse practitioners become injured or ill for every 10,000 workers, making this job more dangerous than 50% of other careers. The most common specific illnesses or injuries are detailed following.
All cuts, lacerations, punctures
Bruises and contusions
Fractures
Education pathways to this career
Education attained by nurse practitioners
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nurse practitioners typically hold a master's degree.
Sometimes the typical education identified by the BLS differs a bit from the reality of the how much education current workers actually have. The donut shows the education level held by people currently working as nurse practitioners and nurse midwives as reported in responses to the American Community Survey.
Details: Education and training recommended for nurse practitioners

Nurse anesthetists, nurse midwives, and nurse practitioners must have at least a master’s degree from an accredited program. These programs include classroom education and clinical experience. Courses in subjects such as advanced health assessment, pathophysiology, and pharmacology are common as well as coursework specific to the chosen APRN role.

An APRN must have a registered nursing (RN) license before pursuing education in one of the advanced practice roles, and a strong background in science is helpful.

Most APRN programs prefer candidates who have a bachelor’s degree in nursing. However, some schools offer bridge programs for registered nurses with an associate’s degree or diploma in nursing. Graduate-level programs are also available for individuals who did not obtain a bachelor’s degree in nursing but in a related health science field. These programs prepare the student for the RN licensure exam in addition to offering the APRN curriculum.

Although a master’s degree is the most common form of entry-level education, APRNs may choose to earn a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) or a Ph.D. The specific educational requirements and qualifications for each of the roles are available on professional organizations’ websites.

Prospective nurse anesthetists must have 1 year of experience working as registered nurse in a critical care setting as a prerequisite for admission to an accredited nurse anesthetist program.

Details: Licensing and certification recommended for nurse practitioners

States’ requirements for APRNs vary. In general, APRNs must have a registered nursing license, complete an accredited graduate-level program, pass a national certification exam, and have an APRN license. Details are available from each state’s board of nursing.

To become licensed and use an APRN title, most states require national certification.

The National Board of Certification and Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA) offers the National Certification Examination (NCE). Certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) must maintain their certification through the Continued Professional Certification (CPC) Program.

The American Midwifery Certification Board offers the Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM). Individuals with this designation must recertify via the Certificate Maintenance Program.

There are several different certifications for nurse practitioners, including those available from the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB), the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), and the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board (PNCB). Each of these certifications requires periodic renewal.

In addition, APRN positions may require cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), basic life support (BLS), or advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) certification.

Education level of Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Midwives
About 91% of nurse practitioners and nurse midwives have a graduate-level education, and 98% have at least a bachelor's degree.
Education attained by nurse practitioners and nurse midwives
None
High School
Some College
Associate's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Master's Degree
Professional Degree
Doctorate
Top college degrees
Here are the top college degrees held by the 89% of people in this job who have at least a bachelor's degree. Some of degrees may link to multiple programs due to the way Census classifies college majors. Click on a program to learn more about career opportunities for people who major in that field.
  1. Nursing
  2. Biology
  3. Psychology
  4. Multidisciplinary or General Science
  5. Physical Fitness, Parks, Recreation, and Leisure
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College majors held by nurse practitioners and nurse midwives
This table shows the college majors held by people working as nurse practitioners and nurse midwives. If you see "**" before the name of a degree/program, that means this field is one that the Department of Education believes is preparatory for this career. However, you can see from this list that those recommendations are far from your only path to this job!
Salary comparison for bachelor's only
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Career salary (tail) versus Career/Major salary (dot)
Does the bachelor's-only salary rise or fall with this major?
$74K$96K
Salary for bachelor's-only
For people with this career and major
Median
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Salary for all workers
For people with this career and major
Median
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Middle 80%
Education for Career and Major
Bachelor's
Master's
Professional
Doctorate
Workers with this career/major
Percentage in this career with this major
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The link between degrees and this career
With the following sankey diagram, you can follow the top ten bachelor's degrees held by people working as nurse practitioners and nurse midwives, and then, in turn, you can see the 10 occupations that hire the most of each degree's graduates. We hope this provides ideas for similar jobs and similar fields of study.
Expand degrees
NursingBiologyPsychologyMultidisciplinary or...Physical Fitness, Pa...Business Management ...English Language and...General Medical and ...General BusinessGeneral EducationAll other degreesThis jobTop 10 majors
Where are the jobs
State-by-state employment numbers
Some careers tend to be centered in specific parts of the country. For example, most jobs in fashion are in New York or California. Let's see if your dream job is easy to find in your dream location! We have a few choices for viewing the data that can help you get a full employment picture.
Select a state to see local area details
Number of Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Midwives per 1,000 workers (ACS)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
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Job density versus job count
Which states hire the most nurse practitioners? We wonder if that's a fair question since states come in all sizes, so instead let's start with the question of which states have the highest density of people working as nurse practitioners. You can choose to view the number of jobs per state if you prefer.
Salaries by state
Let's get a feel for where nurse practitioners earn the highest salaries. There are several choices for which data we consider and how we view that data, and each can lead to different conclusions, so please read on...
Median salary versus state ratio
We use two methods to compare salaries across states:
  • In-state comparisons: the ratio of median (middle) salaries for nurse practitioners and nurse midwives compared to the median salary for all people working in each state, or
  • Median salary: the unaltered median salaries for nurse practitioners and nurse midwives.
We hope the ratio allows perspective about how salaries may compare to the regional cost-of-living.
The darkest shading corresponds to states in which nurse practitioners and nurse midwives earn the highest salary when compared to other jobs in the state. We think this figure might be a better indicator than the actual salary for your buying power as a state resident.
Select a state to see local area details
Location-adjusted median salary for Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Midwives (ACS for all specialties)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
Employment
17% of Nurse practitioners and nurse midwives are working part time.
We’ve found that some jobs have a huge number of part-time workers, and typically that is because they are unable to find full-time work or the job itself can’t provide full-time hours. With 17% part-time workers, this occupation has a higher percentage of part-time workers than 61% of careers.
17%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Employer types
This donut shares the break-down of workers by employer type, giving us a picture of what employers most typically hire for this career.
Employers of undefined (ACS)
Private for-profit
Private not-for-profit
Local government
State government
Federal government
Self-employed incorporated
Self-employed not incorporated
Working without pay
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Distribution: Salaries of nurse practitioners and nurse midwives by type of employer
Here are the salary distributions based on employer type.
$101K$76K$102K$100K$106K$115K$103K$101K$0$50,000$100,000$150,000$200,000Self-employed not incorporatedSelf-employed incorporatedFederal governmentState governmentLocal governmentPrivate not-for-profitPrivate for-profitAll
Gender
Nurse practitioners and nurse midwives and gender
With 89% women, this occupation has a higher percentage of women than 97% of careers.
Gender of Nurse practitioners and nurse midwives
Men (11%)
Women (89%)
Distribution: salaries by gender
Does gender greatly influence your salary in this career? The closer the bars are, the less discrepancy there is.
$101K$106K$0$100K$200K$300KWomenMen
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.
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Context: Women in the workforce
How does this career compare to other careers with regard to the percentage of women in the career.
89%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Context: Salary inequity
The median salary for all full-time male workers in the US exceeds the full-time median salary for women by 19%. The situation is a little better for nurse practitioners and nurse midwives, with the median salary for men 5% higher than the median salary for women.
5%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Race/Origin
Race and origin of Nurse practitioners and nurse midwives
This donut shows the distribution of race and origin among those employed as Nurse practitioners and nurse midwives.
Race/origin of nurse practitioners and nurse midwives
White (82% )
Black (8% )
Asian (6% )
Multiracial (2% )
Other (1% )
Hispanic (0% )
American Indian (0% )
Pacific Islander (0% )
Distribution: salaries by race/origin
Some careers might have a pay disparity based on race or origin, the closer the below bars are the less of a discrepancy is present.
$93K$96K$98K$101K$101K$104K$0$50K$100K$150K$200KOtherHispanicMultiracialBlackWhiteAsian
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.