BSN-prepared nurses are most desirable in the job market for registered nurses. Registered nurse positions are expected to grow 7 percent through 2029, adding more than 200,000 new jobs.

Additionally, as more new nurses join the workforce, healthcare organizations must rely on skilled and experienced nursing leaders to guide them in achieving the highest quality of care. For many BSN nurses, this opens up the opportunity to move into leadership positions or specialized roles, including becoming a pediatric nurse, traveling nurse, surgical/perioperative nurse, oncology nurse or advance to a master’s degree program to grow into higher paying specialties.

As a medical records technician, you can build your career in a variety of healthcare settings. Most medical records technicians in 2019 worked in hospitals according to the BLS. You can also work in general practice, physicians’ offices, administrative support or technical services. Long-term care facilities also offer many employment opportunities as the elderly population in the U.S. seeks affordable care options.

As a full-time medical records clerk, you would likely have access to benefits such as a 401(k), paid vacation and medical and dental insurance. With the options to work part-time and weekend shifts, a career as a medical records clerk is very flexible, allowing you to explore the positions that best suit your professional goals.

On a typical day, a medical records technician might create or retrieve medical records for new and existing patients and review medical records for accuracy and completeness. It is of utmost importance that they maintain the confidentiality of these records because patient information is highly sensitive data.

Medical records technicians must also ensure that patient information is cataloged correctly and transferred and stored securely. A career in medical records is especially suited for people who like to help others, but also have an affinity for working with data.

Successful medical records technicians are also compassionate, have strong interpersonal skills. They can communicate effectively with doctors, nurses and other members of the patient care team as necessary as a part of their job duties.

Medical records technicians, otherwise known as medical coders or registrars, are an important part of the healthcare system. They keep track of patient data ranging from medical history to test results and help code and digitize that information into electronic health records (EHRs), which are stored in a hospital’s patient database and later interpreted by health insurance companies for reimbursement of healthcare services.

If you are interested in working the background of healthcare and have strong organizational and analytical skills, a career as a medical records technician might be an enticing option for you.

Nurse practitioners have an expanded scope of practice compared to registered nurses. In addition to RN duties, nurse practitioners may also write prescriptions, order lab tests, diagnose illnesses, and more (although specifics vary by state). NPs have greater autonomy in delivering patient care, and for that reason, the education requirement is higher. 

Learn more about how to go from RN to nurse practitioner.

It can take roughly 3-5 years to go from non-nurse to NP through our program options but it depends on what education you’ve already earned and how quickly you want to progress.

No. Registered nurses holding an associate degree who enroll in an accelerated RN to MSN (Nurse Practitioner concentration/track) program may skip earning a Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) on their way to earning their MSN.

Those who want to become an NP but only have a non-nursing bachelor’s degree may be eligible to enroll in our online Direct Entry MSN program, which makes it possible to earn a master’s degree in nursing in as few as 20 months without earning a BSN on the way.

This depends on the state in which you practice. Qualifying for NP school is not the same as qualifying for NP jobs. You may not need to be a Registered Nurse (RN) to qualify for an NP degree program, but some employers may require a minimum amount of RN experience from NP job applicants.

No. To become a nurse practitioner, you will need to earn a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree.

While we do not currently offer a single dedicated program for those looking to go from non-nurse to nurse practitioner, we do offer several online nursing programs for non-nurses with eligibility in several U.S. states.

Accounting job requirements typically include a bachelor's degree, which generally takes four years to complete. A master’s degree may be completed in under two years. However, this is dependent on the program and the number of credits transferred.