NP working as RN?

Specialties NP

Published

Hey all,

I have been accepted to a NP program and am looking to start in this career path. I have come across 4-5 NPs recently and needless to say, these FNPs, PNP and ACNPs have all told me that they stopped practicing as an NP and are "working as a floor nurse because we aren't getting paid enough as an NP." Of course, I didn't have the audacity to actually ask them how much they get paid, but I could pretty much get a figure in my mind because they are working in the same facility as I am and we have concrete pay scales for RNs. This worries me because although I love nursing, I am looking to proverbially "move up the ladder" and work as a mid-level provider - I don't necessarily see myself still working as a "floor nurse" when I become an NP. Any thoughts/insights? I'm located in Maryland. Thanks.

Specializes in ICU.

I am a little thrown off by you lot's math. My hospital tends to give around $0.50 cent raises every year (one coworker with many years of experience stated he got $0.60 this time) so a base of $20.00/hr plus $0.50 times 30 years MIGHT equal $35/hr, if that for 30 years of experience, and that's only if they start at my rate. My experienced coworkers do remember starting under $15/hr. Being generous, $35/hr times 36 hours per week times 52 weeks per year is around $65k. Throw in a night diff of $2.75/hr times 36 times 52 and you can add another $5k or so to that, so say around $70k for 30 years of experience. It sounds to me like even a nurse with 30 years of experience could get a substantial pay raise by going to NP school if you can expect to earn around $85k per year as a new NP.

Specializes in Urology NP.
I would venture to say that most RNs with 10 years experience working rotating/nights making 111k per year are fairly close their career cap: and if they want to switch to days or more typical business hours than they would be forced to take a pay cut for the same job. I would also venture that many of those nurses would also like more independence.

For most NPs that 85-95k per year is a starting pay for more independence and (often) a weekday job without weekends or holidays. While salaries vary by practice area and location, most of my NP colleagues make 10-50% more than their base salary.

^This! I'm a new FNP and was started at $97k/year including salary and bonus. Not including other perks (CE, etc).

I work Mon-Thurs, no call, no nights, no weekends, and no holidays.

I will take a "cut" to have this schedule and the autonomy I enjoy in my role. This is a great gig!

Hi there,

I, too, am worried about the future of the NP. I have wanted to purse NP for quite some time. Family/financial obligations put me on the slow road, but now that I am in a program and ready to proceed...it seems so is everyone else! Wanting to have better hours is not, in my opinion, a good reason to become a provider. I get so annoyed at the for-profit institutions and other programs that are allowing students in with very low requirements, many of which have cohorts that are beginning every few months. How is that anything more than greed? This has been a cash cow for schools and there's no sign of it stopping. It seems the governing bodies are unconcerned about the impact all of this will have. Whatever happened to quality over quantity? I almost feel like attaining an MSN/FNP is not enough; like I have to do something else to stand out because the market will soon be so saturated. I'm considering a post-masters certificate for psych nurse practitioner, just to make myself more marketable. This, of course, means more debt. I didn't anticipate this years ago. It's worrisome and quite frankly an embarrassing stain on the profession.

Hi there,

I, too, am worried about the future of the NP. I have wanted to purse NP for quite some time. Family/financial obligations put me on the slow road, but now that I am in a program and ready to proceed...it seems so is everyone else! Wanting to have better hours is not, in my opinion, a good reason to become a provider. I get so annoyed at the for-profit institutions and other programs that are allowing students in with very low requirements, many of which have cohorts that are beginning every few months. How is that anything more than greed? This has been a cash cow for schools and there's no sign of it stopping. It seems the governing bodies are unconcerned about the impact all of this will have. Whatever happened to quality over quantity? I almost feel like attaining an MSN/FNP is not enough; like I have to do something else to stand out because the market will soon be so saturated. I'm considering a post-masters certificate for psych nurse practitioner, just to make myself more marketable. This, of course, means more debt. I didn't anticipate this years ago. It's worrisome and quite frankly an embarrassing stain on the profession.

Your views are right on point. Unfortunately, you will be met with hostility and told you are wrong, and that for profits are wonderful institutions. You will be told that they are very rigorous and have standards as high as an Ivy League school. You will be told that there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with the fact that they are set to graduate THOUSANDS of students per year and flood the market because they care about profit over quality.

Prepare yourself. I've got the popcorn.

Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
I am a little thrown off by you lot's math. My hospital tends to give around $0.50 cent raises every year (one coworker with many years of experience stated he got $0.60 this time) so a base of $20.00/hr plus $0.50 times 30 years MIGHT equal $35/hr, if that for 30 years of experience, and that's only if they start at my rate. My experienced coworkers do remember starting under $15/hr. Being generous, $35/hr times 36 hours per week times 52 weeks per year is around $65k. Throw in a night diff of $2.75/hr times 36 times 52 and you can add another $5k or so to that, so say around $70k for 30 years of experience.

It's not bad math. More that you have elected to work in an area where nurses aren't paid as much as they are in other areas. Starting wages for new grads in acute care in my area run $30-$35 an hour plus differentials and this in the Midwest with a reasonable to low cost of living.

Based on my observation over the years if one wished to have the best chance of being treated fairly and paid decently look for these things:

Union hospital

Publically owned (= more accountability) non profit hospital (county owned hospitals often seem to pay decently)

Avoid Magnet certified hospitals and religious affiliated hospitals.

Located in a place that gets a lot of snow

Obviously YMMV and I am only speaking generally and in my experience.

Specializes in FNP, ONP.

First of all, are people so damn lazy they cannot just say the words "Nurse Practitioner and Physicians Assistant?" If the answer is yes, then just say "Advanced Practice Providers." Do not ever say midlevel or physician extender to my face, you will get a serious earful. Everyone who has ever said that to me has gotten the same lecture, I've got it down pat.

Don't pursue any career for money. Go after something you are passionate about, that fits your other life goals (most of which are arguably more important). Money is just a tool, and once you have enough you don't need any more anyway. So forget about what the job pays. Do you want to do it? do you want to be a NP? Then be one. If you aren't sure, then be something else. don't over think it.

I am a little thrown off by you lot's math. My hospital tends to give around $0.50 cent raises every year (one coworker with many years of experience stated he got $0.60 this time) so a base of $20.00/hr plus $0.50 times 30 years MIGHT equal $35/hr, if that for 30 years of experience, and that's only if they start at my rate. My experienced coworkers do remember starting under $15/hr. Being generous, $35/hr times 36 hours per week times 52 weeks per year is around $65k. Throw in a night diff of $2.75/hr times 36 times 52 and you can add another $5k or so to that, so say around $70k for 30 years of experience. It sounds to me like even a nurse with 30 years of experience could get a substantial pay raise by going to NP school if you can expect to earn around $85k per year as a new NP.

You're in Georgia. Georgia pay for RNs is atrocious compared to most of the country.

Specializes in ICU.

Thanks for the responses. Yeah, I have got to get out of Georgia. It's ridiculous. This thread has been an eye-opener about whether NP school will be worth it from a money standpoint.

I'm about to start my first job as an FNP. I did an accelerated BSN to enter nursing as a second career and worked as an ER nurse for four years while pursuing my master's degree. Some thoughts as I read this thread:

How much you'll earn depends on where you are in the country. I had no trouble finding work. My base pay will be 90k, and I'll be eligible for up to 115k based on productivity. No weekends, nights, holiday or call unless I choose to work for overtime pay. That's pretty standard for new grads in the Northeast. And that's about 30k more than I started out at as an RN four years ago. There are experienced NPs in my neck of the woods who are making upwards of 150k. ER and derm pay the most.

Is there a bias against online programs? In my experience, yes. My preceptors commented that students from online programs did not have advanced assessment skills. That's not a slam on all online programs; there are some excellent programs out there. But the consensus among the NPs I worked with was that students suffered from learning in isolation.

Finally, not calling NPs "midlevels" is not about political correctness. It's about legalities. NPs are not midlevels, no matter what docs like to say. NPs don't take orders from physicians, and they don't "extend" the work of the physician. They are independent and have prescriptive authority. That's not the midlevel.

Specializes in Emergency Department.
Many nurses, especially those with experience, make more as RNs than as NPs.

Unfortunately, what a lot of people don't understand as they go rushing into an online NP program, is how there are just so many programs available now. Some accept a low percentage of applicants, but some (like for profits that have multiple start dates per year) are accepting almost anyone who applies. This is drastically saturating the market and will eventually lead to NP salaries and demand being lower than RN salaries.

Its supply and demand. Physicians keep their salary and demand high by making medical school almost impossible to get into. Nurses don't realize this and now the number of graduating nurse practitioners has more than doubled in just the last few years. I honestly don't know any RNs that aren't at least taking a few classes part time to become an NP...do you really think the market can handle that many nurses becoming midlevels?

Where are you getting this information? What facts or data is this based off of? I'm just curious to know what online np school will just accept anybody?

Don't work at the same hospital and negotiate your salary wherever you do work. FNPs are some of the lowest paid NPs around, so take that into consideration.

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