SOC 29-1141.00Bright outlook

    Registered Nurses

    Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records.

    Median pay
    $97,550
    Growth
    +5.6%
    Faster than average
    Openings a year
    180,800
    Typical education
    Bachelor's degree

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

    See the pathway

    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $68,940
    Median
    $97,550
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $137,470
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    3,379,720 people work in this occupation.

    In short

    Registered Nurses evaluate patient health, design and carry out care plans, and keep detailed medical records. This career offers a median annual pay of $97,550, with opportunities for steady employment across the healthcare sector.

    Written with AI from the BLS, O*NET and CareerOneStop data on this page. Every figure is checked against that data before it is published.

    What registered nurses do

    Job Zone 4: Considerable preparation

    Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records. Administer nursing care to ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled patients. May advise patients on health maintenance and disease prevention or provide case management. Licensing or registration required.

    Most need a bachelor's degree and several years of related experience.

    What the work is like

    Registered Nurses focus heavily on assisting and caring for others by administering medical treatments to ill, injured, or disabled patients. On a daily basis, these professionals gather patient information, identify medical events, and make critical decisions to solve health problems. They must document and record information accurately while communicating clearly with supervisors, peers, and subordinates. Keeping up with medical standards and updating their clinical knowledge are also essential parts of the job.

    Success in this field requires strong skills in active listening, social perceptiveness, critical thinking, and coordination. Nurses must understand psychology, medicine, therapy, and customer service to support patients effectively. Because they work directly with people in stressful situations, their primary interest area is social. They must demonstrate work styles such as empathy, dependability, attention to detail, self-control, and high stress tolerance to manage their daily responsibilities safely.

    How to get there

    Entering this career typically requires a bachelor's degree, and most professionals need several years of related on-the-job experience. Students prepare for this field by majoring in registered nursing, nursing administration, or nursing research and clinical nursing. Because licensing or registration is required to practice, individuals must meet their state's specific guidelines, as some states list a license for this work.

    In addition to formal college education, nurses can earn professional certifications to show specialized expertise. Examples of these credentials include the Associate - Infection Prevention and Control, Certified Correctional Health Professional, and Critical Care Registered Nurse (Adult). Other options include the Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator, Assistant at Surgery - Certified, and Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant.

    Pay and outlook explained

    In 2025, the median annual pay for registered nurses was $97,550. Earnings vary based on experience and location, with the lowest 10% earning less than $68,940 and the highest 10% earning more than $137,470.

    With 3,379,720 people employed in this field, the profession is projected to grow by 5.6% from 2025 to 2035, which is faster than average. This growth is expected to result in 180,800 job openings each year.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R)
    41 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    62 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    6 / 100
    Social (S) · strongest
    76 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    23 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    63 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code SCI. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Assisting and Caring for Others
    99
    Documenting/Recording Information
    97
    Getting Information
    94
    Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
    91
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    90
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    89
    Performing General Physical Activities
    89
    Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    89
    Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
    88
    Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
    88
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Social Perceptiveness
    • Active Listening
    • Coordination
    • Critical Thinking
    • Service Orientation
    • Speaking
    • Judgment and Decision Making
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Monitoring
    • Writing

    Knowledge

    • Psychology
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Medicine and Dentistry
    • English Language
    • Administrative
    • Mathematics
    • Therapy and Counseling
    • Administration and Management
    • Education and Training
    • Public Safety and Security

    Abilities

    • Deductive Reasoning
    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Inductive Reasoning
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Oral Expression
    • Written Comprehension
    • Information Ordering
    • Near Vision
    • Speech Clarity
    • Speech Recognition

    Work styles

    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cooperation
    • Integrity
    • Cautiousness
    • Empathy
    • Adaptability
    • Social Orientation
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Self-Control

    Also called

    Cardiac Care Unit Nurse (CCU Nurse) · Cardiac Nurse Specialist · Central Supply Nurse · Certified Operating Room Nurse (CNOR) · Charge Nurse · Circulating Nurse · Community Health Nurse · Consultant Nurse · Consulting Nurse · Coronary Care Unit Nurse (CCU Nurse)

    Career pathway

    From your interests to registered nurses

    Interests that fit the work, the career, majors that lead there and colleges whose graduates in those majors earn the most. Hover or focus a step to follow one path.

    1. Interests

    2. This career

      • Registered Nurses$97,550 median pay

    3. Majors

    4. Colleges

    College Scorecard program outcomes

    Colleges with strong outcomes

    Programs that lead to this career, ranked by what their graduates earn four years after finishing. Earnings are for graduates who received federal aid.

    1. 1
      California State University-East Bay

      Hayward, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $139,123
      4 yrs after
      $150,921
      Median debt
      $18,751
    2. 2
      San Francisco State University

      San Francisco, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $145,008
      4 yrs after
      $150,102
      Median debt
      $13,331
    3. 3Dominican University of California logo
      Dominican University of California

      San Rafael, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $128,516
      4 yrs after
      $149,622
      Median debt
      $26,243
    4. 4Sonoma State University logo
      Sonoma State University

      Rohnert Park, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $134,423
      4 yrs after
      $143,886
      Median debt
      $12,500
    5. 5University of San Francisco USF logo
      University of San Francisco USF

      San Francisco, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $120,438
      4 yrs after
      $143,356
      Median debt
      $25,000
    6. 6Pacific Union College logo
      Pacific Union College

      Angwin, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $126,952
      4 yrs after
      $140,542
      Median debt
      $29,584
    7. 7California State University-Monterey Bay logo
      California State University-Monterey Bay

      Seaside, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $127,203
      4 yrs after
      $134,489
      Median debt
      $6,375
    8. 8Pacific College-California logo
      Pacific College-California

      Costa Mesa, CA · Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      Not reported
      4 yrs after
      $132,148
      Median debt
      $32,611

    Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data, 2025. Programs with few graduates are not listed.

    NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk

    Majors that lead here

    Related programs by four-digit CIP code. They are common routes in, not the only ones.

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What registered nurses may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Certifications

    Core certifications employers recognise for this work.

    Search all certifications on CareerOneStop

    Training

    Programs of study that prepare people for this work. Showing 12 of 21.

    • Adult Health Nurse/Nursing
    • Clinical Nurse Leader
    • Clinical Nurse Specialist
    • Critical Care Nursing
    • Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing
    • Family Practice Nurse/Nursing
    • Forensic Nursing
    • Geriatric Nurse/Nursing
    • Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing
    • Nursing Administration
    • Nursing Practice
    • Nursing Science

    Find training near you on CareerOneStop

    Licenses by state

    53 states list a license for this work. Open your state for the license and the agency that issues it.

    Federal

    Check license requirements on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Your plan

    Build my pathway plan

    Courses, majors, colleges, scholarships and a timeline for this career, built from your profile.

    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

    All careers

    Questions about registered nurses

    Written with AI from the BLS, O*NET and CareerOneStop data on this page. Every figure is checked against that data before it is published.

    What are some common job titles for registered nurses?

    People in this profession are known by many names, including Charge Nurse, Circulating Nurse, and Community Health Nurse. They may also work under specialized titles like Cardiac Care Unit Nurse, Certified Operating Room Nurse, or Consulting Nurse.

    What licensing is required for this career?

    Licensing or registration is required to work as a registered nurse. Some states list a specific license for this work, which candidates must obtain after completing their educational preparation.

    What are some related careers in the nursing field?

    Individuals interested in this path might also consider becoming Acute Care Nurses, Critical Care Nurses, or Clinical Nurse Specialists. Other related options include Nurse Practitioners, Nurse Midwives, and Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses.

    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.