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Acute Care Nurses

General Information

Description

Provide advanced nursing care for patients with acute conditions such as heart attacks, respiratory distress syndrome, or shock. May care for pre- and post-operative patients or perform advanced, invasive diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.

Business Breakdown

People in this career work in these sectors.

  1. Private, for profit58.73%
  2. Private, not for profit28.66%
  3. State and local government9.06%
  4. Federal government2.60%
  5. Self-employed0.94%

Workplace at a Glance

What you can expect to experience while on the job

  • Responsibility
  • Exposure to job hazards
  • Physical activity
  • Decision making
  • Repetitiveness
  • Level of competition
  • Time pressure

Industry areas

  • Health Science

Job Outlook

Employment of registered nurses is projected to grow 6 percent from 2021 to 2031, about as fast as the average for all occupations. About 203,200 openings for registered nurses are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

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Job Outlook

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Employment of registered nurses is projected to grow 6 percent from 2021 to 2031, about as fast as the average for all occupations. About 203,200 openings for registered nurses are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

Similar Careers

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Salary

Average Salary

Salary

$77,600

State-by-state Salary

Gray states indicate no data available

$125,340
$36,320
No Information for this section

Education

Most Common Education Levels

People in this career achieve this level of education.

  • Associate's degree 50%
  • Bachelor's degree 39%
  • Master's degree 7%
  • Post-secondary certificate 3%
  • High school 0%
  • Some college 0%
  • Doctoral degree 0%
  • Post baccalaureate 0%
  • Less than high school 0%
  • Post-doctoral training 0%
  • Post-master's certificate 0%
  • First professional degree 0%

Related College Majors

Select major to see colleges that offer it

Knowledge

  • Psychology
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Medicine and Dentistry
  • Education and Training
  • Therapy and Counseling

Skills at a Glance

Skills helpful in this career

  • Verbal skills
  • Critical thinking & problem solving
  • Equipment operation & maintenance
  • Math & science skills
  • Technology design & control
  • Leadership
No Information for this section

* Military pay may be higher based on specialty pays or bonuses. Learn more about Military benefits.

Data supplied by Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Center of Education Statistics, Defense Manpower Data Center (View our update schedule). Contact any business, college or military service branch to answer additional questions.