Get Your Nursing Career Started With an Associate Nursing Degree

Health care industry is projected to be one of the major growing businesses in 10 years down the road. The demand for health care professionals will always be there. This is good news for those who are interested in starting their career in health care sector because their career future is brighter and secured. Nursing field is key area of health care industry where the major growth will take place. Registered nurses constitute the largest health care occupation with 2.6 million jobs. If you are interested to start your career in nursing field, an associate nursing degree can be your jump start education option.



You have choices to earn your associate nursing degree through campus-based college or through online education. Online associate nursing degree program provides you with a flexible and convenient learning environment and without disturbing your normal life if you manage your time properly. Through online education, you can complete your associate nursing degree program in the shortest period of time depends entirely on your self-motivation and discipline to schedule your learning pace.



Generally, online school will give you a number of options that you can choose from while undertaking your online nursing degree program. The biggest advantage of online nursing degree programs is flexibility that allows you to plan for your study time that fit into your busy working schedule or time spend with your family members. In additional to that, online degree program allows you to login to online classes from any place as long as the place offer internet connection. That's why online associate nursing degree program quickly become one of the most viable option for working adults to start or make a career switch to nursing field.



The associate nursing degree is your career ladder that enables you to get started your nursing career by preparing you for the National Council of Licensure Examination for registered nurses (NCLEX-RN). There are two types of associate nursing degree program, associate degree program for individuals with no previous nursing education or Licensed Practical Nurses who have nursing experience. The courses for these two types of nursing degree programs have differences; make sure you are selecting the right category when choosing the nursing program.



The associate nursing degree earned by you will enable you to start your nursing career as entry position in most hospitals and health care centers. Average earnings of a registered nurse with an associate nursing degree range from $40,000 to $45,000 annually. Once you become a Registered Nurse with an associate degree in nursing, you can always take advantage of tuition reimbursement benefits offered by the hospital or company you work with to work toward a BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) by completing an RN-to-BSN program. A BSN will prepare you for a broader scope of nursing practice and move your nursing career to a higher level with higher annual earnings.



Summary



Starting or switching your career to nursing field is a wise choice as the industry is growing rapidly which generate a great number of job opportunities. And, an associate nursing degree is a good stepping stone for you to bridge your career into the nursing sector.