FNP Oversaturation

Specialties NP

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I am in school for FNP. I keep hearing that it will be hard to find a job because of how many people are doing FNP. This has got me thinking I should maybe switch specialites. Is this gonna be a real problem? I live in a rural area and don't mind working here.

Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
djmatte said:
I got a job an hour north of me as a new grad where I countered with 10k more than the initial offer plus more time off and they jumped on it.

Comparing how much you are actually making to what other NPs in your city have been making would be a better determination of the value and whether it is increasing or declining. I'm sure this isn't the case but what if their initial offer was $30,000 less than your predecessors? That extra 10k would be chump change. I know it sounds incredulous but I have seen it happen.

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Jules A said:
Comparing how much you are actually making to what other NPs in your city have been making would be a better determination of the value and whether it is increasing or declining. I'm sure this isn't the case but what if their initial offer was $30,000 less than your predecessors? That extra 10k would be chump change. I know it sounds incredulous but I have seen it happen.

I don't disagree. But I went into school when the estimated average for my area was sitting around 85k which in 2013 was more than I made 60kish. I'm making 15k more than the 2013 average and about 5-8k more than what the current estimated average is state wide. While that's a step down for some, it's huge for a new NP. CRNAs and other mid levels are feeling similar crunches as health systems realize there's a glut of new providers. But tbh, did you or anyone else expect 200k salaries to last forever? If you had the luxury of getting in when census was low then great. But it'll never keep up given the current climate.

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Honestly I don't feel the wages have changed too much positively or negatively even from 2010.

http://www.odellsearch.com/Documents/NP%20Salary%20Report%202010.pdf

I'm sure there are people on extremes of pay scales who are taking a hit. But the average is somehow staying about the same.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
djmatte said:
I don't disagree. But I went into school when the estimated average for my area was sitting around 85k which in 2013 was more than I made 60kish. I'm making 15k more than the 2013 average and about 5-8k more than what the current estimated average is state wide. While that's a step down for some, it's huge for a new NP. CRNAs and other mid levels are feeling similar crunches as health systems realize there's a glut of new providers. But tbh, did you or anyone else expect 200k salaries to last forever? If you had the luxury of getting in when census was low then great. But it'll never keep up given the current climate.

If the average is what you know seasoned NPs in your area are making and you are at or above that then you are in excellent shape. If however your data is from the national reports very possibly way out of range.

When my psychiatrist counter parts are making $300,000-$350,000 yes I actually feel my $200,000 for the exact same job is reasonable compensation. Or was until the glut in supply which I seriously did not see coming. Everyone, even those who are not even competent RNs are now in NP school. It is rather disturbing on many levels.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
djmatte said:
Honestly I don't feel the wages have changed too much positively or negatively even from 2010.

http://www.odellsearch.com/Documents/NP%20Salary%20Report%202010.pdf

I'm sure there are people on extremes of pay scales who are taking a hit. But the average is somehow staying about the same.

The rate included in this survey for my specialty in my area at that time was low, off by $50,000.

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I am not sure if I agree completely with this comment. I applied for FNP school for an online program and have 2 yrs of tele pcu experience, I was accepted with a phone interview and my trascripts. I do not mean to be snarky, but my comments lie in my concerns as well. I am concerned as I am supposed to start FNP school in 3 weeks if this is right for me. I want to know I will make a significantly better salary and have a job.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
Nelliy1 said:
. I am concerned as I am supposed to start FNP school in 3 weeks if this is right for me. I want to know I will make a significantly better salary and have a job.

I'm not trying to be snarky either but it would have been prudent to consider these questions before investing in school.

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Specializes in Rheumatology/Emergency Medicine.

From my limited experience, I had a friend that was working for the county health dept in TN as an FNP, she was making $60,000 yr full-time. I get emails from recruiters, wanting to hire NP's for positions, the job expectations listed was to see 40-45 patients per day, mid $80,000's.

In my current work environment, I'm working 6 days per week, my main job, I only make a little more than many of the nurses and less than some other nurses. On the weekends, I work in our ER, the charge nurse (RN) is getting ready to graduate from NP school, but at his current RN position, he makes $13,000 more per year than I do as an FNP. For RN's the field is wide open across the nation, recruitment incentives galore, but not for NP's. I feel bad for the NP's that take on a load of debt to go to school, it often doesn't pencil out. My schooling didn't cost me anything, so I'm good to go as far as bang for the education buck :-)

One last example, I have another NP that I had worked with in an urgent care, she was let go, w/o any notice, the reason, cost cutting, they are expecting the NP's in the urgent care to see at least 3 per hour, 36-40 per shift, and since census was low, they let one of the NP's go, and the remaining NP's are expected to work crazy schedules, where you may work days in a row and still not have 40 hours in a week. This is one of the reasons, I went back into the Federal system, stability, at least for now.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
FNP2B1 said:
You are correct there are jobs out West in rural areas. Unfortunately the glut of new graduates has pushed salaries down. Five years ago working in rural California you could easily make close to $200k. These days the salaries are $70,000 to $80,000 less. Its all about supply and demand. There are plenty of clinics willing to pay you a low salary and they always will be around looking for fresh meat. Seasoned NPs are the ones who are taking it in the orifice salary wise.

I'm a new grad NP and will make $125K my first year, with good benefits and a reasonable patient load. This is in a very low cost of living area in California where I am renting an actual little single family home for $750. We are now successfully recruiting NPs and MDs from the SE and the East Coast. i do know experienced FNPs who make around $200K a year in California. There is still a real shortage of NPs in California outside of the coastal cities, and pretty much all rural areas in the Western US.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
Goldenfox said:
Yes, the pay will continue to decline. I once made a post about this and it made some people angry, but its true. I saw it happening a while back and it is much more obvious in many places now. It really is a supply and demand issue. They can offer lower pay because no matter how low the pay is there is somebody out there who will take it---even if for no other reason than to get experience. I have seen this a lot in my home state....salary ranges starting around 60k/70k a year. No one would offer an NP that pay several years ago because no NP would have accepted it. But in an increasing number of situations now its no longer a matter of finding a job that pays better, its about finding a job at all.

And those NPs who have a lot of experience and now have very high paying jobs are not insulated from this. Eventually, they will be let go and replaced with people who are willing to do the work for less money. I see this happening too. It is frustrating to read the untruths in the nursing journals about the shortage or NPs. The people who write and publish this stuff do not serve the profession at all.

Supply and demand of NPs varies by location. I am really tired of all the gloom and doom here. I am practicing in rural California and we have a real need for MDs, DOs, NPs, and PAs. There are far more job openings than there are candidates. The pay is good and the cost of living is low. Yes, the job market is competitive in SF, LA, and San Diego. The rest of the California, and this is a huge state, still needs a lot of providers.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
FNP2B1 said:
I can only use my own personal experience as NP wages declining. I was working at a multi-physician dermatology practice. I was making over $200k a year but knew the gross revenue I produced via cosmetic procedures was close to $900,000. I did lots and lots of botox, fillers and laser resurfacing. The owner of the practice asked me to take a cut in pay of over $60,000 because in her words " The average new NP salary for our area was $115k" This was in Southern California. I said no thank you, I know my worth and what revenues I bring in. They did bring in a new NP and tried to train her. Trust me, you don't want a brand new graduate trying to inject Botox and fillers in clients who have high demands. She lasted two weeks. The next one last 3 weeks. I got called a few weeks ago asking me to come back. I declined. So yes, wages are going down because of the glut of new graduates. I have a dozen NP colleagues who can tell you the same story. It's not isolated in any geography. If it hasn't happened to you yet it will. Over supply of NPs = lower salaries. I'm now doing locums and even that is being affected.

Your story is surprising and interesting, but it is a sample size of 1. However, you are working in a speciality area, not as a general primary care FNP. The NP job market in coastal SoCal is competitive. However, there is a real shortage of all types of providers in rural Calif and the pay is good, even more than in SoCal, with a far lower cost of living. This is not a simple matter of supply and demand. It is a matter of distribution.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
Nelliy1 said:
I am not sure if I agree completely with this comment. I applied for FNP school for an online program and have 2 yrs of tele pcu experience, I was accepted with a phone interview and my trascripts. I do not mean to be snarky, but my comments lie in my concerns as well. I am concerned as I am supposed to start FNP school in 3 weeks if this is right for me. I want to know I will make a significantly better salary and have a job.

A new grad FNP will likely make less than an experienced RN. I would not advise any RN to become and NP solely to make more money, because that may or may not happen.

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