This article contains information about what a master’s degree in nursing educator is. It details why this is a good degree for many nursing professionals to earn, as well as the typical topics and courses involved in the program. There also is information about several good nursing educator degree options.
What Is a Master’s in Nurse Educator Degree?
A popular career path for experienced nurses is to earn their Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and become a nurse educator. These teaching professionals use their knowledge, experience and education in nursing to train the new generation of nurses.
With a master’s degree in this highly in demand field, you will:
- Grasp the developmental processes from infancy to old age, in relation to learning and teaching.
- Evaluate tools and measurement and tasks so to plan appropriate instruction
- Leverage technology to foster more success in a healthcare organization
- Learn how to create functional objectives and the most effective instructional methods
- Implement appropriate clinical teaching, evaluate educational resources and measure educational outcomes.
Most MSN nursing programs in nursing education are appropriate for a registered nurse with an associate’s degree, diploma, or bachelor’s degree in nursing.
Nurse educators are faculty members in both nursing schools and hospitals. They share their extensive clinical and educational knowledge with their nursing students. They come up with lesson plans, teach nursing classes, oversee their students’ clinical practice, and are generally role models for their nursing students.
A nursing educator might teach general nursing classes, or focus on a specialty, such as geriatric nursing, nursing informatics or pediatric nursing.
A nurse educator can work at a nursing school at a major university, at a community college, at a technical school, or at a hospital.
The curriculum for an MSN with a nurse educator focus typically includes these types of courses:
- Policy and advocacy to improve population health
- Transforming nursing and healthcare through technology
- Essentials of evidence-based practice
- Teaching learning strategies – integrating technology into nursing education
- Specialty in clinical nursing
- Role of the nurse educator
Why Earn a Master’s in Nurse Educator Degree?
With the strong demand for nurses – which will cause a 16% increase in nursing jobs by 2024 – there will be an equally strong need for good nursing educators. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nurses, nursing schools turned away more than 75,000 qualified BSN and MSN nursing students in 2011 because of a lack of faculty. About ⅔ of nursing schools in a survey stated that faculty shortage is the major reason they were not accepting more nursing students.
According to a Special Survey on Vacant Faculty Positions that was done by AACN in 2012, 1,181 faculty vacancies were found in a survey of more than 600 nursing schools. That survey also found that US nursing schools were forced to turn away almost 65,000 potential nursing school students for both BSN and MSN programs in 2016 due to lack of nurse educators.
Also, ⅔ of responding nursing schools in the survey stated that a faculty shortage was a major reason for not accepting qualified nursing school applicants.
The strong demand for nurse educators means that you will be able to find good work opportunities in most parts of the US. With your MSN in Nursing Education, you will be able to select from many exciting and rewarding professions in both the education and clinical spaces, including:
- Professor
- Adjunct professor
- Nursing faculty instructor
- Clinical nurse educator
- Staff development officer
- Continuing education specialist
- Patient education manager
- System education specialist
Not only is the job demand strong in this field; salaries also are quite high. The median salary in the field according to Indeed.com is $33.82 per hour. However, this will vary considerably depending upon where you live. In New York City, the average salary for a nursing educator is $103,840. In Washington D.C., the average salary is $91.250.
Another major factor to consider in where to work is which cities are seeing the most demand for nurse educators.
Which Cities Need the Most Nurse Educators?
According to Forbes magazine, these cities in the US need nurse educators now:
- New York City: This megapolis has 25 hospitals and more than 8 million residents. There are many other hospitals and healthcare facilities in the metro area as well.
- San Francisco: Currently has close to 1 million residents and 17 hospitals. The greater metro area is much bigger and has many jobs for nurse educators.
- San Diego: This is the home of many medical device companies. There should be plenty of work opportunities for nurse educators at these organizations.
- Boston: Features 22 hospitals and a population of 600,000. It is a major healthcare hub of the world today and there is a strong need for nurses here.
- Chicago: With 45 hospitals and a population of 2.7 million, this city is a major source of employment for anyone in healthcare.
Best States for Nurses
When it comes to the best parts of the US for nurses and nurse educators, there are certain states that are better than others. Some states pay more, have higher job demand, and more patients in need of healthcare services. States, for example, with a higher elderly population usually require more healthcare services. This drives demand for healthcare, for nurses and for educators to teach them.
A recent survey found that these states were ranked as the best in terms of job opportunities for new nurses:
- Wisconsin
- New Mexico
- Iowa
- Texas
- Colorado
- North Dakota
- Delaware
- Utah
- Arizona
- Washington
For nurses who are interested in the highest salary, adjusted for cost of living, consider:
- Wyoming
- Nevada
- Michigan
- Texas
- Arizona
4 No GRE Options for Master’s of Science in Nursing – Nursing Educator
Some of the quality master’s programs for nurse educators include the following:
Loyola University – New Orleans
Loyola University – New Orleans helps you to advance your career in nursing education and to increase your earnings with its online MSN program. This is a nationally ranked and distinguished program that will help you to increase your professional nursing education prospects.
The exceptional curriculum featured online allows students to take their courses on their schedule. Graduates of this nurse educator program will meet all of the eligibility requirements to take the National League for Nursing Certified Nurse Educator Examination.
Courses will cover advanced nursing teaching methods, effective curriculum design, and learning outcomes assessment. This curriculum will provide you with the nursing skills and knowledge for nurse educators to work effectively in both an academic setting and in a professional healthcare facility.
The program has a total of 39 credit hours and a 180 hour practicum that may be completed in your workplace or in another suitable facility in your area. You can expect to graduate in two years if attending full time.
Required courses include:
- Informatics
- Health Care Quality and Safety
- Population Health Management
- Advanced Research Methods
- Advanced Pathophysiology
- Advanced Health Assessment
- Scientific Writing
- Advanced Pharmacotherapeutics
More Info
- Campus: Online
- Type: Non Profit
- Accreditation: Middle States Commission on Higher Education
- Per Credit Hour: $818
- GRE Required: No
- Minimum Time Commitment: 24 months
- On Campus Requirements: No
- Program: MSN – Nurse Educator
- Request Info: Loyola University – New Orleans
University of Saint Mary
Do you want to prepare the new generation of nurses? Then you may want to earn your Master of Science in Nursing Education from the University of Saint Mary. This is a CCNE-accredited program that offers you the most up to date education to help you develop the skills to advance the teaching of nursing to the next level.
With your degree in nursing education, you will help nursing students and experienced nurses to improve their skills and acquire new ones. No matter if you want to head a continuing nursing education program, run a faculty development department or teach at a university, you will have the skills to educate the new generation of nursing professionals. Skills developed include:
- Master teaching individuals and groups with advanced communication skills
- Develop effective and dynamic lesson plans and assessment tools
- Understand all of the legal, ethical and cultural issues that affect nursing education
- Integrate modern learning technologies to boost learning and teaching
- Work with different departments and teams to develop new education opportunities in healthcare
Your required courses include:
- Advanced Patho-Pharm for the Nurse Educator
- Foundations of Learning and Teaching
- Curriculum Design and Evaluation
- Teaching with Technology
- Quality and Safety
- Human and Fiscal Resource Management
- Delivery of Care in the Healthcare Environment
More Info
- Campus: Online
- Type: Non Profit
- Accreditation: CCNE
- Per Credit Hour: $615
- GRE Required: No
- Minimum Time Commitment: 24 months
- On Campus Requirements: No
- Program: MSN – Nurse Educator
- Request Info: University of Saint Mary
Southern New Hampshire University
Southern New Hampshire University allows you to combine your clinical expertise and teaching passion with this online MSN in nursing education. This program will prepare you as an experienced nurse to teach future RNs as an academic or clinical nurse educator in colleges or universities. Some nurse educators who graduate from this two year program also teach at healthcare organizations and hospitals.
This program has been designed for nurses by nurses who are currently in the field, so you know that you will obtain the skills and knowledge needed to become a successful nursing educator. This is a 39 credit hour program that may be completed in eight terms. You may complete your teaching practicum either online or face to face, depending upon the requirements of your state.
Learning outcomes in this nurse educator program are:
- Propose initiatives for informatics systems and technologies that encourage good decision making and deliver and enhance patient care
- Employ modern research practices and methodologies to motivate change in healthcare and nursing, to drive improvement in healthcare delivery
- Create data driven healthcare solutions for various operational challenges that ensure excellent healthcare delivery
- Be a model for professional and leadership practices in healthcare
Students must have an active RN license and have at least a 3.0 GPA from their BSN program.
Required courses in this nurse educator program are:
- Biostatistics
- Advanced Nursing Concepts
- Global Health and Diversity
- Evidence Based Practice
- Advanced Health Assessment
- Teaching and Learning for Nurse Educator
- Assessment and Evaluation in Nursing Education
- Advanced Pharmacology Across the Lifespan
More Info
- Campus: Online
- Type: Non Profit
- Accreditation: New England Association of Colleges and Schools
- Per Credit Hour: $320
- GRE Required: No
- Minimum Time Commitment: 24 months
- On Campus Requirements: No
- Program: MSN – Nurse Educator
- Request Info: Southern New Hampshire University
Summary
Obtaining your MSN degree in nursing education is a good way to further your nursing career. Salaries and job demand for nurse educators are both robust. You also will have the chance to influence and shape the next generation of nursing professionals.
Additional Resources
- Things You Can Do with a MSN Degree
- Guide to MSN Nurse Practitioner Degree
- Why Get a Masters in Nursing Degree?
- MSN Direct Entry Nursing Programs + No BSN or GRE
- Nursing PhD Degree Salary + Best Jobs to Get!
- Different Types of Nursing Degrees
- 20 Facts About Chamberlain’s Nurse Practitioner Programs
- Different Types of Healthcare Degrees
References
- Registered Nurses. (2015, Dec. 17). Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/registered-nurses.htm#tab-6
- 2017’s Best and Worst States for Nurses. (2017, May 3). Retrieved from https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-for-nurses/4041/
- Best Cities for Nurse Educators. (2010, Jan. 21). Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/2010/01/21/nurse-educator-jobs-leadership-careers-employment.html
