starting salary to annual salary?

Published

I am highly considering getting my masters in nursing informatics after I obtain my BSN. What is the starting salary for an informatics nurse? What is the highest they can get paid?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Salaries will vary greatly by state, as well as even city. And the amount of experience that you have.

There is no ceiling as to the highest amount, it depends on what you are going to do with the degree. It certainly is not limited.

But the more experience that you actually have as an RN will make you more marketable to hospitals as well as companies. It is hard to being doing that job if you are not familiar with what would make your life easier as an RN. That is where the money is.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

if you had to estimate what would you say?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
if you had to estimate what would you say?

If you work for a company such as mckesson, cerner, epic...

starting salaries will start at around 57,000; however, you can negotiate from there. Cerner is known to pay the least.

With no experience---meaning no previous implementations---that might be your starting salary. Hospitals vary their pay based on their location; I can personally tell you that a hospital offered me a job in the low 50's; I later found out that their max salary was in the low 60's, or i should say their cap. This was a job for a hospital in the austin, texas area.

If you have experience and go to a consulting company---like Perot, or many of the other ones out there, your minimum salary will be in the high 70's all the way to the high 90's. And of course, varies by region. I'm sure if you worked in ny or boston salaries would be higher. I just know the ones in the midwest and south as I work over that area. Also, when I interview for a position in Boston 2 years ago, their starting offer started in the mid 80's. By the way, at that time I had 5 years of med surg nursing, 2 years of IT, 0 years of 'informatics' experience.

Now, there are the perks of working for the big companies cause you get to travel; surely as a nurse working on the floors I could have made more money cause of the overtime worked, but then again, I would have been using that money on full body massages. Now, I have a decent paying job, and i have collected so many air miles and hotel points that recently, I vacationed in scotland and belgium for free---all expenses were paid by my points, except for food of course :)

cheers!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Informatics, Education, and Oncology.
I am highly considering getting my masters in nursing informatics after I obtain my BSN. What is the starting salary for an informatics nurse? What is the highest they can get paid?

As I have written in previous post asking a similiar question:

"Nursing Informatics' salaries vary depending on the job title/responsibilities, geographic location, whether or not the position is with a vendor, private hospital, years of previous experience, etc. There are multiple variables."

I'd suggest you check out the results of the HIMSS Nursing Informatics 2007 Survey. It also compares the salary results from the 2004 Survey.

A Masters degree (especially without any informatics experience) will not guarantee a higher salary.

Good Luck!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

would they value a masters in computer information systems?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Informatics, Education, and Oncology.
would they value a masters in computer information systems?

It would depend on who "they" are and what the job and "they're" requirements are for the role. In general, yes a MS in CIS is valued in Informatics, IT, IS, Nursing, Medical and Healthcare Informatics. But a candidate with a MSCIS WITHOUT any other previous informatics, implementation, project management, information systems, systems testing/research/design or IT trainier experience next to a candate WITH informatics/IS/IT experience would be more valuable.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Hi, I am an RN and looking to get my bachelor's in informatics. are there any schools out there. I have an associate's degree now. any info appreciated.

thanks sherry

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Informatics, Education, and Oncology.

There aren't that many BS degree programs in informatics but there are a few.

Check out this link from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

They have summarized and detailed info on Medical, Nursing and Healthcare Informatics undergrad and graduate degree programs.

http://ils.unc.edu/informatics_programs/

AMIA - the American Medical Informatics Associate also as a page on degree programs.

Good Luck

Hi, I am an RN and looking to get my bachelor's in informatics. are there any schools out there. I have an associate's degree now. any info appreciated.

thanks sherry

Up Vote Up Vote ×

http://www.excelsior.edu has a distance learning degree in informatics.

I started at 40k which is fabulous money for here. I am in a village of 2400 people with a 15 bed CAH. Downstate in NYC I would have expected at LEAST 60 and would have asked 75 - but I probably wouldn't have gotten it (the job) because I don't (yet) have my RN.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I live in the Los Angeles area. My starting salary was 90K with previous implementation experience. Don't have my BSNyet.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Informatics, Med/Surg.

As mentioned before, the starting salary and annual salary depends on the position. People are not usually hired into positions called "Nursing Informatics". Some positions require one to be an informatics nurse. Others do not, but being an informatics nurses is extremely beneficial, both to the employee and the employer in these types of positions. The position also determines the requirements for education as well as experience. Some positions may accept less experience (either nursing or informatics). Some positions may accept the minimal level of education. Nursing informatics affects all types of areas from education, research, nursing practice, to software development. Obviously, the salary and educational requirements for a field like education is quite different than nursing practice. The survey from HIMSS is the best place to start. What you have as a background and what your interests are will determine what you need to obtain and what direction you want to go. Although many of the informatics nurses are involved in either hospital based system system selection/implementation/training or vendor system implementation/training, there are many that are not. So there are a wide variety of opportunities beyond these two well known roles.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion