If you’re looking into earning your Bachelor of Science in Nursing, you may be wondering what nursing career paths you can take.
The Accelerated 2nd Degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program at Notre Dame of Maryland University opens your nursing career options, making the possibilities almost endless.
Registered nurses are in high demand, and now more than ever, employers are seeking out nurses who hold their BSN. As a BSN-educated nurse, you’ll not only meet new people every day, you may even experience extra perks like traveling and career advancement opportunities. In short, your nursing career options with a BSN are much more expansive than without.
If you don’t want to wait to pursue an exciting career in nursing, our program could be for you.
Through the Notre Dame of Maryland University Accelerated 2nd Degree BSN program, you will complete 56 credit hours over four full-time semesters, so you’ll need to bring lots of commitment, motivation, and organization to the table to succeed.
While it is a rigorous path to take, committing to earning your BSN through our accelerated program is a bold move that can have a huge payoff
Nursing Career Paths
As far as job title goes, the choice is yours! With a BSN, you are in control of your nursing journey.
You can work in a typical hospital setting as an RN, or you can take a more unconventional nursing career path. No matter what your lifestyle may be, there’s a nursing career suited to you.
A BSN grants you a wide variety of nursing career options and allows you to use your unique talents and interests as an advantage on the job.
To give you an idea of the scope of where a BSN can take you, here are seven exciting nursing career paths:
Flight Nurse
Flight nurses, sometimes also called transport nurses, are registered nurses who work with paramedics and physicians to transport patients in critical condition to trauma centers via helicopter or airplane.
These nurses focus on emergency critical care either from the scene of an accident or while bringing patients to a different hospital.
Travel Nurse
A travel nurse works short-term assignments as a contract employee for health care staffing agencies.
The staffing company will usually supply housing and offer other perks. A travel nurse might fill a shortage at a hospital, come in to help for flu season, or fill a hospital’s specialty needs. As an added bonus, assignments usually last 12-13 weeks, giving plenty of time for sightseeing, hiking, and exploring the area.
Home Health Nurse
These nurses step in to care for folks in their own homes when they or their families are unable to do so.
Home health nurses are often performing duties they would otherwise do in a hospital and report to a facility that gives them a physician’s orders for the patient.
Legal Nurse Consultant
Legal nurse consultants lend their expertise to attorneys to deliver insights on cases regarding medical issues.
These nurses may work on medical malpractice cases, insurance fraud cases, personal injury cases, workers’ compensation cases, and even criminal cases.
Plastic Surgery Nurse
Preparing the operating room, monitoring patients, and educating patients on what to expect before, during, and after a procedure are just a few things plastic surgery nurses do.
These RNs also assist in cosmetic surgeries and help patients achieve their desired results.
Toxicology Nurse
These registered nurses don’t crack under pressure and are able to identify the symptoms of different kinds of poison and drugs.
Toxicology nurses will encounter patients suffering from accidental (and intentional) ingestion, venomous bites, and allergies.
Toxicology nurses can work in call centers and hospitals, often needing to act quickly to help patients.
Transplant Nurse
Transplant nurses guide patients through their entire experience, from monitoring organ transplant surgeries to overseeing patient progress.
These registered nurses also establish treatment plans for the patient and give them a comprehensive rundown of what to expect from the procedure.
But the list doesn’t end there. A BSN can open the door to many rewarding and fulfilling career paths in nursing.
Why a BSN Is Preferred
Health care employers prefer to hire BSN-educated nurses. Why?
A growing body of research shows that having more baccalaureate nurses on staff may lead to improved patient outcomes.
Additionally, nursing is one of the most in-demand professions in the country and is slated to remain so for much of the next decade.
In light of these projections, many health care providers no longer think of BSNs as a bonus, but rather as a requirement — and in some cases, a prerequisite for entry-level registered nurse positions as well.
A BSN is a Good Move for Your Future
Getting your BSN doesn’t just help you now, it will come in handy down the road, too. If you are interested in someday becoming a nurse practitioner or higher-level nurse, you’ll need your bachelor’s degree to be admitted to most graduate nursing programs.
Plus, if you have your BSN, it could cut down the time it would take you to earn your advanced nursing degree.
A BSN can also help with your plans later in life. After a busy career on your feet in the hospital, you may want to become a nurse educator or nurse manager. You can’t do either of those things without your BSN.
RNs with an associate degree generally learn the basics of clinical care. With a BSN, you’ll be well-versed in communication, critical thinking and leadership.
These skills are imperative if you hope to get higher-paying jobs with more responsibility. The opportunities and benefits are plentiful with a BSN, so start your journey to an exciting career in nursing today.
Are You Ready to Jumpstart Your Career in Nursing?
Now that you know a little more about all the career options available to BSN-educated nurses, are you ready to transform your non-nursing bachelor’s degree into a BSN? It all starts with a phone conversation with one of our admissions counselors, who can help you determine if you’ll be a good fit for our ABSN program. Complete the form to get started today!