Thinking about a Career in Nursing

Each state has a Board of Nursing that sets the license requirements for that state. The most basic-level license is the LPN or Licensed Practical Nurse (or LVN, Licensed Vocational Nurse, depending on the state). To earn the license, you must complete an approved LPN program and then sit for a state-administered nursing exam known as the NCLEX-PN or the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses.As the U.S. population continues to grow and we live longer and more active lives, there is an increasing need for nurses, especially those with advanced education and skills. For your attention, study for nurses will 3 years, it isn't so long and isn't difficult. You can view example essays on the our service http://www.ibuyanessay.com/, which you will be need at the finishing studies. Health-care costs are increasing, doctors are becoming more specialized (and spending less time with patients), and nurses are providing more direct health care to patients. All this points to a profession that has one of the highest starting salaries of any field. Add to that the current shortage of nurses, which is expected to grow from more than 300,000 to more than 600,000 over the next 10 years, and you have a career path well worth considering.

Besides a good salary and job security, nursing has other benefits. It can be very flexible. You can work in a variety of places: hospitals, private-practice physician's offices, a federal nursing agency, schools or in the military. You can work part-time to accommodate your family demands. You can spend your days seeing to the general comfort of a patient or working as an administrator, manager or researcher. Nurses can specialize. Some of the most popular specializations are pediatric nursing, psychiatric nursing, critical-care nursing, neonatal nursing and working as a nurse anesthetist. Nowadays, nurses even form their own new businesses such as nursing informatics (combining nursing and computers), legal nurse consulting (combining nursing and law) and home health-care businesses. And men are starting to realize the potential that nursing presents for a challenging and rewarding career; approximately 5 percent of nurses are men, and the number is growing.

The most common or sought-after license is the RN, or registered nurse. There are a few different paths to becoming an RN. You can enter a two-year associate degree program, where you focus more on technical skills than theory, earn an associate's degree in Nursing (A.D.N.), and then sit for NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses), a state-administered, five-hour, multiple-choice exam. You can also take this route if you are planning to go on to earn your bachelor's degree in Nursing (B.S.N.), which is preferred in the job market, but wish to work and earn money as an RN while studying for your bachelor's degree.

Or you can go directly to a four-year college, take the standard bachelor's degree prerequisite courses, and apply to the college's nursing program. Each college has different requirements for entering their nursing programs, so you need to check the procedures carefully. You would then sit for the NCLEX-RN exam upon graduating.

CHECKLIST - ABC's of Nursing

Here are some common abbreviations used in the field of nursing.

• A.D.N. - Associate Degree in Nursing
• ACNP - Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
• ANP - Adult Nurse Practitioner
• APN - Advanced Practice Nurse
• B.S.N. - Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• CNP - Clinical Nurse Practitioner
• CNS - Clinical Nursing Specialist
• D.N.Sc. - Doctor of Nursing Science
• LPN - Licensed Practical Nurse
• M.S.N. - Master of Science in Nursing
• N.D. - Doctor of Nursing
• NCLEX-RN - National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses
• Ph.D. in Nursing - Doctor of Philosophy degree in nursing
• RN to B.S.N. - A program in which registered nurses study to obtain their B.S.N.
• RN - Registered Nurse
• RNA - Registered Nurse Anesthetist