It’s easily understandable if you would like to pursue a full-time career as a nurse practitioner mostly for the higher salary which is offered. For most people though, being a nurse practitioner means more than just the generous paycheck that you can receive. It’s the chance of being able to help people with their medical problems that lures most people into taking this kind of employment.

In the same way that the nurse practitioner salary varies from State to State, the duties and tasks which are needing to be performed can vary from State to State also. Both the salary and the duties and tasks which can be performed depend on the person’s specialty area. As you may have already discerned, a nurse practitioner belongs to the advanced practice nurse category, meaning they have received a Master’s degree which includes detailed training beyond what is normally required for Registered Nurse licensure. Nurse practitioners receive advanced training in the diagnosis and management of common and complex medical conditions. Depending on State laws, a practitioner can prescribe medications and perform other tasks and duties that regular registered nurses are restricted from performing.

According to government data released in September 2010, the median nurse practitioner salary in the United States was about $87,618 a year. If you add in the other benefits and bonuses, a practitioner can earn as much as $120,000 a year. These benefits and bonuses may consist of healthcare plans such as a 401k at $6,100, and 403b at $3,335. Practitioners that specialize in areas vary in the salary they can receive also. A neonatal nurse salary, for instance, is around $65,000 to $95,000 a year. Psychiatric nurses, on the other hand, get paid around $40,000 to $50,000, but this figure can increase significantly once you’ve gained enough experience and have received the additional training that is necessary. Generally, the Pediatric nurse salary is in the range of $75,000 to $100,000 a year. There can be a wide salary gap just between nurse practitioner specialties simply because of factors like geographical location, years of experience, and additional training and education acquired.

Of course, a stable source of income like that received on a nurse practitioner’s salary means a lot. This is especially true in this time period when people are still losing their jobs and there are no new jobs being created for them to readily take on. It’s such a comforting thought to have a job that features excellent job security, as the need for nurse practitioners into the future, along with almost all healthcare-related workers, will see significant increases in demand over the coming decade at least. (more…)