Education
Educational Preparation
In 2004, the most common initial preparation for nursing was an associate’s degree. During the past two decades or so, there has been a downward trend in the number of nurses whose initial preparation for nursing was a diploma program. The trend away from diploma programs and toward associate degree or baccalaureate programs continued in 2004.
Since 1996, the number of RNs completing associate’s degrees has exceeded the number graduating from diploma programs. In 2004, the number of RNs whose initial preparation was either an associate’s degree or a baccalaureate program exceeded the number graduating from a diploma program. In contrast, in the 1980 survey, 63.2 percent of licensed RNs had received their initial nursing education in a diploma program; while in 2004, only 25.2 percent (733,377 licensed RNs ) had received their initial RN nursing education in a diploma program.
Corresponding figures for RNs with an associate degree increased from 19 percent (308,616 nurses) in 1980 to 40.3 percent (1,087,602) in 2000 to 42.2 percent (1,227,256) in 2004. For RNs who completed their initial preparation in a baccalaureate degree program, the estimated figures indicate an increase from 17.3 percent (287,993) in 1980 to 29.3 percent (791,004) in 2000 and to 30.5 percent (887,223) in 2004. In addition, an estimated 0.5 percent of RNs in 2004 (15,511) had received their initial nursing education through a master’s or doctoral degree program.
Age at Graduation from Initial Nursing Education Programs
The average age at graduation for recent RN graduates appears to be slightly lower than in 2000. The average age at graduation for RNs during the 5 years prior to the survey was 29.6 years for the 2004 survey compared to 30.5 years in the 2000 survey; however, RNs who graduated between 1995 and 1999 in the 2004 survey were 30.9 years of age at graduation.
When the distribution of age at graduation is observed by age groups, the indication that graduates from initial education programs in more recent years are younger becomes clearer. In the 2004 survey, 39.2 percent of those graduating between 2000 and 2004 were under 25 compared to 31 percent of RNs under age 25 who completed their initial education between 1990 and 1999. Complementing this increase in younger graduates, 29.5 percent of nurses who completed their initial education between 1990 and 1999 were in the 35 to 49 age interval, but only 20.9 percent of RNs completing their initial education programs between 2000 and 2004 were in the 35 to 49 year age interval.
The average age at graduation from initial nursing programs varied by the type of program. Graduates of associate degree programs tend to be older, as are recent diploma graduates. For the 5-year period before the March 2004 survey, the average age of diploma graduates was 31.8 years; associate degree graduates averaged 31.9 years and baccalaureate graduates averaged 26.2 years.
Advanced Nursing Education
Similarly, in terms of the highest level of preparation for nursing, the trend from 1980 to 2004 indicates that an increasing number of RNs receive baccalaureate and master’s degrees, even if their initial preparation for nursing was an associate’s degree or a diploma. The 2004 survey indicates that the RN population is increasingly prepared with a baccalaureate, a master’s, or doctorate degree. The highest level of preparation for an estimated 17.5 percent of RNs (510,209) is a diploma; for an estimated 33.7 percent (981,238) the highest preparation is an associate degree; for 34.2 percent (994,240) it is a baccalaureate degree; and for 13.0 percent (377,046) it is a master’s or doctoral degree.
In fact, the highest increase from 2000 to 2004 was for the number of RNs receiving their master’s or doctorate degrees (an estimated increase of 101,978 RNs or 37 percent) compared to a decrease of 91,495 nurses or 15.2 percent in the number of RNs whose highest degree was a diploma. Over the entire period from 1980 to 2004, there was a 43.5 percent decrease (an estimated change from 903,131 RNs to 510,209) in the number whose highest level of preparation was a diploma, while the number whose highest level was a master's or doctorate increased by 339 percent (from 85,860 to 377,046). Similarly, the estimated number of RNs whose highest preparation was a baccalaureate increased by 170 percent (367,816 to 994,240) and the estimated number whose highest preparation was an associate’s degree increased by 232 percent from 295,318 to 981,238 RNs.
Additional Nursing Education Preparation
About 23.1 percent of the RN population in 2004 or an estimated 671,883 RNs completed additional academic nursing or nursing-related preparation after they graduated from their initial nursing education. Of the 1,227,256 RNs initially prepared in associate degree programs, 20.7 percent or an estimated 253,453 of the nurses (i.e., 8.7 percent of all RNs) obtained additional nursing-related degrees. Of the 733,377 RNs initially prepared in diploma programs, 30.2 percent or an estimated 221,608 (i.e., 7.8 percent of all RNs) obtained post-RN nursing or nursing-related degrees. In addition, of the 887,223 RNs initially prepared in baccalaureate programs, 22.2 percent or an estimated 196,639 (i.e., 6.8 percent of all RNs) subsequently received master's or doctorate nursing-related degrees.