NP salary too low?

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I have recently accepted a NP position in North Carlina for 77K. It is a federal job with 7 weeks leave, comfortable working hours, no call and excellent benefits. Still, I have one year of experience in neurology (the new position is in the same specialty) and three years as a RN. I can't help feeling I am being underpaid. The position is marginally more than I make now.

Thoughts?

Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Okay back to the topic at hand everyone!

For those that want to do to the age old debate of who is better - take it to another thread please.

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Specializes in critical care.

I'm curious. Can those of you who feel comfortable sharing your salaries go to salary.com and say how your actual pay compares to the reported pay? In my area, the range is $82k-$109k with the median being $95k. That's for the job title Nurse Practitioner.

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Specializes in Anesthesia, Pain, Emergency Medicine.

I can tell you that I'm in a rural facility. I am the only provider in our clinic except for a behavioral health PA. I cover the hospital ER 1 day per week by contract. I do inpatient medicine for my patients or any ER patients.

I see all ages and all types of patients. I do some pain procedures such as ESIs and the like. I am not overworked at all. I see anywhere from 6-15 patients a day.

My salary is less then what I was making doing just anesthesia but quite a bit more than 110k. I think the average NP salary will go up over the next 5 years with the projected shortages. Especially if the schools get their acts together and the perceived education/training goes up. I also wish the powers that be would make the NP profession start with a "base NP". A general medical education and then specialize. Do away with all the age groups and such. I'm not sure why they are choosing to go the path we are set upon with the consensus model.

When I was negotiating for this position, I had been here as locums for 3months. That helped greatly as they knew my capabilities. They offered 110k as the most they could pay, which I turned down. I actually got up and said thanks anyway and started to leave. They met my price. I know you can't always do this but you need to negotiate and get what you are worth.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.
Especially if the schools get their acts together and the perceived education/training goes up. I also wish the powers that be would make the NP profession start with a "base NP". A general medical education and then specialize. Do away with all the age groups and such. I'm not sure why they are choosing to go the path we are set upon with the consensus model.

Amen!

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Amen!

Add my Amen! to that. My "specialty" credential is already going away and I JUST graduated. Will I be marketable in the future? I think my experience will make me marketable, but it could be a concern for those who take some time off to have families, deal with illness, or care for elderly family members.

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Is there anyone here in the Northern/ Central NJ area that can help me out regarding a reasonable salary to ask a Pulmonology practice for a nurse with 11 years experience but a new NP?

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Well there isn't much debate they have more loans, but there school is indeed more intense. I don't necessarily buy into they work harder but maybe have more responsibility in most cases. Pay shouldn't be equal but when everyone is talking about NP being a doctorate soon with many nurses taking a paycut to take on 50-80k in debt where is the incentive to do it?

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extremely disheartening news. I've been contemplating a switch. I'm currently a traveler RN in the ICU making a little over 100k take home. I imagine these wage issues are due to poor salary negotiating, embellished need, poor lobbying for NP at the federal level, or something else? Either way, hard to justify shelling out the 40k to come out making less.

Are ya'll really getting paid so low. I value this job at 150k median.

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Why would anyone become a nurse practitioner with these low salaries? The hospitals are stealing from Nurse Practitioners. My experience in working with NPs is they do everything a physician does except prescribe narcotics. Maybe we should consider medical school instead.

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Most of the salaries reported here are 4-5 years old. At least in my area, NP salaries have trended up quite a bit in that time.

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Specializes in psych/medical-surgical.

I've been doing a lot of research on this because I'm looking at going NP.

But yes, there is a HUGE range being reported on this forum and for the most part it seems pretty accurate. Instead of relying on this forum you guys should check out the actual surveys done by the AANP: https://www.aanp.org/images/documents/research/2011AANPNationalNPCompensationSurveyPreliminary.pdf

Anyway you dice it, the avg salary for NPs in 2011 was anywhere between 90-110k/year, factoring in years exp, specialty, etc. It is really disappointing. With the massive inflation we are facing it should be AT LEAST 110k/year today not just in places like California where COL is so HIGH. IMO if I were an NP I would not take less than 100k, if you do you are being seriously taken advantage of. The salary ranges on USAjobs is roughly around there as well.

I agree though, considering there is this dumb movement to get rid of the masters programs and make it DNP only, the salary is pathetic for the demand, need, and responsibility you have as an NP. When you can make around 90k as just a regular RN. My current salary comes out to 80k not including benefits. The real reasons to do this are job quality/enjoyment/self improvement. Too bad from BSN it's 7~ years of poorness to become a doc...

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