Is Becoming A NP Worth It?

Do I or don't I go for a Nurse Practioner degree? My thought process may help make you in your nursing journey.

My reasons why I question going for a Nurse Practitioner license.

  1. Working with some seasoned nurses in the ER over the last couple of years, they make more than starting NP's do.
  2. Two doctors and a nurse who did recruit and hiring for a couple of years all stated that it was not worth it.
  3. If I don't jump on the bandwagon right away...the rumors of the dreaded 2015 DNP may come true

The Drawbacks:

  • Increased liability without enough pay
  • Overworked and underpaid for their work. In our ER, the PA's do most of the work while the physicians kick back
  • PA's are preferred in hospital settings (which is my major interest...though I'm sure an office setting will be great later in life)
  • Again...financial. They did not agree that 2.5 years of schooling was worth a mediocre increase in salary (even long term). They collectively felt that working a 4th 12hr shift each week was better than spending another 2.5 years an lots of money for an NP degree.

The Positives:

  • Increased autonomy
  • I can do a full time NP program and still work
  • There are 2 great NP programs near me (TWU and UTA)
  • I believe I can get in without to much hassle
  • In state tuition is affordable
  • Self satisfaction

I understand that financial compensation is not all there is to a job though it is a necessity. Increased autonomy is very important to me and the main reason I would like an advanced practice degree. Med school would be great, but being hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt and taking 4 years off is not appealing to me.

So to the current NP's...

Would you NOT get your degree if you had to do it again?

Was it worth it more than just personal satisfaction?

Do you enjoy your setting?

It is hit or miss and depends on a lot. While employers cannot state it directly, being a male greatly increases your chance of getting a job in my area. It is very sexist but that is how it is where I live. It also depends where you go to school and the connections you have. i got my job from being friends with a guy that did clinicals with a group of doctors and he put a good word in for me. We both have jobs paying about 155k at this time for 45 hours per week and we don't have to kill ourselves continually (some nights are crazy but that is anywhere). We work inpatient hospital nightshift and also do independent contracting for the psych center providing medical care to inpatient psych patients.

A few girls in the ER who graduated from a not so reputable school or at least our group will not hire from anybody from that school, I have no personal experience from there so I am just stating what the biggest medical group in town states, and a few of those students are still looking for jobs. It was an online school, I won't name it but it is mentioned on this forum a lot and starts with F and ends in rontier. This is just what the docs say, they have had a bad experience with many students from this fully online school.

So there are many factors that come into play. you just have to make sure most of them are in your favor.

holls2013 said:
I am currently finishing my BSN at Missouri State University and plan to continue on to the DNP program. It is good to hear that it is well worth it. Any of you out there doing the DNP currently? I would love to hear your opinions.....

I'm not sure if you meant this post to show up in this string or not. But in regards to "is it worth it?" ...then I don't know of anyone who got a DNP who got a substantial raise. I know for a fact I make more than at least two DNPs in my area.

I'm researching programs for my Masters in midwifery and I'm curious what you've heard in the professional community about Frontier. What don't the docs like about the NP's that come from there? (you may be saving me from a huge mistake, so please don't hold back!)

synaptic said:
A few girls in the ER who graduated from a not so reputable school or at least our group will not hire from anybody from that school, I have no personal experience from there so I am just stating what the biggest medical group in town states, and a few of those students are still looking for jobs. It was an online school, I won't name it but it is mentioned on this forum a lot and starts with F and ends in rontier. This is just what the docs say, they have had a bad experience with many students from this fully online school.

I'm researching midwifery/NP programs and am looking at Frontier. What exactly have you heard that is negative about the program/graduates? You may be saving me from a huge mistake, so please don't hesitate to be frank.

I personally don't know myself, but the docs that own our group won't hire them due to previously poor experience.How true that may or may not be it still is important since they do the hiring. We are a small group though also.

synaptic said:
I personally don't know myself, but the docs that own our group won't hire them due to previously poor experience.How true that may or may not be it still is important since they do the hiring. We are a small group though also.

Hmmm... difficult to make any real assessments without anything more specific to consider. Thank you for the info, though!

Can anyone speak to their experience as a NP that works in a community clinic? How different is this from working in the hospital?

Do NPs work their way up the leadership ladder by advanced education or experience and time at a clinic? Maybe a combination of both?

Specializes in Mental Health; Medical-Surgical/Trauma.
Goldenfox said:
Several years ago when this thread was started the market for FNPs and NPs in general was good. It isn't so good today, and in some areas it's actually pretty bad. You have to get busy networking and start looking for your first job before you graduate. It is still worth it as long as you don't go to a school that's going to lead to ridiculous student loan debt, if you're prepared to relocate to where job opportunities are, and if you're prepared to accept that what you will be earning as a new grad NP may not be a whole lot more than what you currently earn as an RN. Unless you can meet all three of these then I wouldn't bother with FNP or ACNP. Don't fall for the hype that the college recruiters will spin on you about the awesome opportunities out there and that you will get a high paying job real quick. Unless you are lucky or know people it takes time to find an NP job, and sometimes, quite a while.

I see people posting some high salaries here, but these are exceptions. The average NP pay is somewhere in the low to mid $80s. An issue of NP Perspective that I read last year claimed that NP salaries have gone up and they were pitching the average as being mid $90s, but I have reasons for doubting that. NP pay is trending down, not up. You can get very good pay as an NP if you are experienced and can negotiate a good deal, but it has gotten harder to negotiate pay these days because there aren't as many jobs as there used to be and there are a LOT of new grad NPs out there looking for work. When I started out as an NP I was offered quite a bit over $100k as a new grad. But, depending on where one is, one can make this money even as an RN. Many new grad NPs are not being offered $100k now. Most jobs will pay between $80 and $90. A few will pay more. In one of my recent posts I mentioned an NP job that I saw (just weeks ago) being advertised by the State of Florida that is paying $65k and for that they want somebody with experience, LOL. Ok, I admit that the Florida example is an extreme outlier. I've honestly never seen worse. But just out of curiosity, I called about that Florida job after the position had closed, and I was told that there were many applicants. Now that is what I call sad!

Today, for people who want to do advance practice, CRNA and psych are better options because there are more opportunities in those areas (for now, anyway) and they pay much better.

Thank for the information. I think a good amount of aspiring NPs know this if they are actually serious about becoming one or are in an actual program like I am now.

I'm working on networking switched from a smaller hospital to one in the Texas Medical Center 😊. I hope my social aptitude benefits me between now and completing my FNP program.

Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.

It will be interesting to see what the 2015 salary survey data shows, as the 2014 data still shows salary growth. I am (for many reasons) worried about the "mill" programs churning out novice NPs that are willing to take jobs at $65k because they have been job-searching for a year or more after graduating from a program that graduates more NPs than the market needs and does nothing to help new grads.

Specializes in Mental Health; Medical-Surgical/Trauma.

I think one should be ashamed of taking a $65K position as any sort of nurse practitioner. It is not congruent with the education and skills a nurse would possess in that role.

I too have seen salary growth, but someone not being able to grab the higher salary in a saturated area is not a surprise for logical reasons.

Thats a lot of information!

Specializes in Family Practice.

I think the problem is not being able to make the transition from bedside wage to NP wage!!! As a RN on the floor you know you earn every penny stomping that pavement, only to come home tired and wishing for a better night shift. I have been doing nursing for 16 years and I am done! I started my nursing career late and I have no intentions pounding more pavement in my 60s. As I see it you work smarter not harder. I do not live above my means nor am I strapped down with an over the top mortgage. I always felt living is far superior than existing. I think for some it is worth it. You cannot put a price on a piece of mind!

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