Nursing

The baccalaureate degree in nursing prepares women and men as liberally educated, beginning level professional practitioners of nursing who are prepared to provide culturally competent primary health care nursing in partnership with clients and interdisciplinary colleagues.  They fulfill professional and social responsibilities through active participation in professional, social, political and cultural arenas, and advocate for and promote optimum health through empowerment of individuals, families, groups and diverse populations in the community. 

Today's BSN-prepared nurse must possess a wide range of knowledge, skills and competencies that go far beyond knowledge of nursing theory and practice.  Graduates of the BSN program must be able to participate as partners with other health care professionals and clients in meeting the health care needs of the community; to synthesize and apply information gleaned from the sciences, humanities and technology; to assess client needs and provide appropriate nursing interventions. 

Professional nursing practice occurs wherever clients needing healthcare are found: hospitals, private homes, clinics and schools, community settings and long-term/chronic care centers.  Professional nursing is a self-directed and interdisciplinary practice with shared responsibility for achieving the goal of empowering clients to assume responsibility for giving directions and making decisions that promote, restore and maintain optimum health.  

The BSN-prepared nurse possesses the personal and professional characteristics of empathy and compassion, a well developed value system, the ability to communicate and work in partnership with others of diverse values and cultures under challenging and difficult circumstances, and the emotional stability to perform in a professional manner under pressure.  Nursing is also a physically demanding profession and calls for considerable strength and stamina. 

Among the competencies demanded by a career in nursing are interpersonal and communication skills, maturity and self-direction, ability to be comfortable with ambiguity and change, understanding of human behavior, respect for individual differences, skills in teaching, ability to analyze and synthesize complex and sophisticated data, a commitment to life-long learning and a sense of humor.

OCCUPATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
Case managers 
Community health
Critical care/intensive care nursing 
Emergency nursing
Flight nursing 
Geriatric/Gerontological nursing
Health insurance evaluator 
Home health nursing
Hospice nursing 
Hospital in-service educator
Hospital nursing
Industrial/occupational health
Infection control International nursing
Maternal newborn nursing 
Military nursing
Nurse consultant 
Nurse manager/administrator
Occupational health 
Oncology nursing
Parish nursing 
Pediatric nursing
Psychiatric nursing
Rehabilitation nursing
Research 
Rural nursing
School nursing 

EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK
Demand for nursing graduates with a bachelor’s degree between 2006 and 2016 is expected to increase 23%.  However, employment of RNs will not grow at the same rate in every industry. Projected growth rates are highest for Offices of Physicians and Home Health Care Services at 39% and lowest in Nursing Care Facilities at 20%.  (http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos083.htm)

POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS
Business/industry 
Colleges and universities
Community health agencies 
Government agencies
Health maintenance organizations 
Hospitals
Long term/chronic care facilities 
Military services
National Institutes of Health 
Nurse managed clinics
Peace Corps 
Physicians' offices
Retirement homes 
Schools
Wellness centers 
World Health Organization