Originally Posted by
Ccg1003
How long does it take to be a registered nurse through a community college? What are the average starting wages for a RN? How much do they usually make a month or an hour?
Thanks
Quite a few good questions, but none with an easy direct answer in the current medical climate. But I will try...
- There are two forms of the 'registered nurse'. There is the associates degree which typically takes 2 years at a community college and there is the bachelors degree which typically takes 4 years. Both degrees are considered 'registered nurses (RNs). That being said, if an RN decides to further her education, she would need a bachelors level degree (ie. The 4-year BSN degree), and there are courses to bridge from an associates degree to a BSN.
- There are accelerated programs for both of the degrees mentioned above. Whether they are good or bad is a discussion from a different topic.
- On the job, there is a minor differential in the pay scale of $3-5 depending on location and demand. But hospitals are slowly trying to phase out the associate-level degree, but this will probably take a while since there is a national nursing shortage that doesn't seem to be going away any time soon.
- The starting wages for an RN vary. It would depend on where in the US you work. Whether you are an employee of the hospital or a staffing agency? Do you work per-diem (part-time) and/or are you full-time. There is a decent range that you can earn (and I hesitate to quote numbers), but $15 - $45/hr is about average. You earn more working for an agency, working as a travelling nurse, over-time pay, working in medical areas of need, and/or you earn more the more experience you have.
- The hours are typically fairly flexible with typical shifts being 8 - 12 hours. About 36-hour weeks (3 x 12 hr shifts). This enables a nurse to technically be able to have a full-time and a part-time job to make up 48 - 60 hours weeks.
- Staff nurses are typically paid by the hour, though there are salaried positions, and administrative nursing positions are typically salaried.
Hope this helps.