The difference between registered nurse and nurse practitioner jobs

As a travel nurse, you’re aware that nursing has various levels of positions. Titles depend on experience and education, which is true for nurse practitioner jobs. Registered nurses have similar backgrounds to nurse practitioners, but there are a few key differences that set them and their responsibilities apart.

Education for nursing jobs
The training paths to becoming a registered nurse and nurse practitioner yield the key differences between the two jobs. The route is the same, but the one to an NP job extends a bit farther. Specifically, you can become an RN with either an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in nursing, or in other words, an undergraduate education. The former route takes about two years, while nurses can complete the latter in four. Either way, students must pass the National Council Licensure Exam for Registered Nurses to officially enter the field.

NPs, on the other hand, must continue on to graduate school and secure at least a Master’s of Science in Nursing, though some NPs get a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, too. Before entering into these advanced programs, NPs must pass a licensure exam like any other RN.

Responsibilities in registered nurse vs nurse practitioner jobs
Registered nurses often act as liaisons between the patient and doctor. They take a personal approach to care, as they spend a lot of one-on-one time with individuals in medical facilities. According to the American Nurses Association, regular RN duties include the following:

• Counseling and educating patients on their well-being.
• Giving physical exams.
• Delivering wound care and medicine.
• Researching ways to improve patient outcomes.
• Making care decisions based on patient health information.
• Coordinating care with other healthcare professionals.

Nurse practitioners, with their higher education, have greater responsibilities. Most notably, NPs can make diagnoses, write prescriptions and develop treatment plans for patients. They still take that same holistic approach as RNs in caring for patients, analyzing the individual’s health history and determining the best lifestyle and treatment routes, performing physical exams and delivering personal interventions.

Work environment
Nurses have a wealth of opportunity when it comes to where they work. RNs might be interested in medical facilities like hospitals, nursing homes, retail clinics and doctor’s offices. Although they may also find jobs in schools, camps and homeless shelters.

As far as geographic locations go, states with the highest employment rates for RNs include California, Texas, New York, Florida and Pennsylvania, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Nurse practitioners have many of these same opportunities, though they tend to focus their careers in medical facilities as opposed to locales like schools. Beyond working in hospitals, NPs may also have their own private practices depending on the state in which they practice.

The geographic picture for NPs is similar to that of RNs. The BLS highlighted New York, California, Florida, Texas and Ohio as the top five states with the highest employment rates for nurses in these positions.

As such, NPs or RNs interested in travel nursing who are also looking to work in high-demand areas for more pay may benefit from venturing to these locales.

Salaries
Another key difference between these two nursing jobs is income. Because of their higher education level and job responsibilities, nurse practitioners make more on average than registered nurses. According to the BLS, the 2015 median salary for NPs was $98,190, though some earned as much as $135,830. Meanwhile, the median salary for RNs in that same year was $67,490, and those in the 90th percentile earned $101,630.

Both nursing paths engage the compassion and technical components of working in the healthcare industry. RNs looking to advance their careers should evaluate whether NP job responsibilities would be a good fit for them and review their schooling options.