Getting Your Associate Degree in Nursing Online:
Why an Associate Degree is a Good Choice
Earning an associate degree in nursing online can put you on track for a great career. Registered nurses (RNs) are arguably the most diverse professionals within the health care community. On a daily basis, RNs are responsible for evaluating patients' symptoms, performing diagnostic tests, administering treatment and medications, and more. Perhaps most important, they offer simultaneous medical expertise and emotional support to patients and their families in times of crisis.
For these reasons and many others, RNs constitute the largest employment sector of the fastest growing industry in our nation—the health care industry. In fact, through the year 2016, there will be 587,000 new job openings generated for nurses. This will be one of the largest sector growths among all occupations.1
Thanks to this extensive growth, current demand for nurses exceeds the supply of professionals. In the midst of a national nurse shortage, career opportunities are excellent for newly minted RNs. The quickest way to dive into this expansive field is through an online associate degree in nursing program.
Associate Degree in Nursing Online: The Faster, Less Expensive Way to Start Your Career
Aspiring nurses agree that one of the biggest hurdles to becoming an RN is paying for education. Many students simply can't afford to pay for a four-year bachelor in nursing degree. However, shorter, less expensive programs do exist, and some hospitals and health care facilities even offer to pay part or all of their RN recruits' student loans.
Earning a two-year associate degree in nursing online is an alternative that saves you time and money. Regardless of whether you graduate with a bachelor or an associate degree, all students must pass the same licensure exam before becoming an RN. Studies have found that there is very little difference in the success rates of first-time test takers, despite their degree differences. In fact, roughly 60 percent of RNs nationwide are graduates of associate degree programs.2
Use Your Online Associate Degree in Nursing as a Stepping Stone
Earning a two-year associate degree in nursing online allows you to enter the job market a full two years before your bachelor-earning counterparts. In addition, enrolling in an associate degree program doesn't impose a ceiling on your potential job growth. Your online associate degree in nursing is the first step to a successful career in nursing, but by no means does it have to be your last step.
Once you're working as an RN, you can capitalize on tuition reimbursement programs for continuing-education that many employers offer.2 Many nurses who want to take the next logical step after receiving their online associate degree in nursing enroll in RN-to-BSN nursing programs with the financial support of their employers. From there, you have the option of earning a specialized master degree in nursing for even better pay and benefits.
Get on the Fast Track to Earning a Good Salary
While BSN degree-holding nurses might experience greater career opportunities, most RNs report executing the same duties regardless of whether they have an associate or bachelor degree in nursing.
RNs fulfilling the same duties also report making comparable salaries despite education disparities; experience often affects nursing salaries more than education3. In this respect, earning an associate degree in nursing online will give you a two-year advantage in experience, which will translate to more immediate salary growth.
Take the First Step
Earning an online associate degree in nursing is a smart first step in a long, lucrative nursing career, but by no means must it be your last. Earning your associate degree online will jumpstart your nursing career and also open the door to continuing education nursing programs. Make an educated decision about your future: enroll in an online associate degree in nursing program.
