The state of Mississippi is in the Southern United States where it borders the Mississippi River on its western boundary. Mississippi is also known as the ‘Hospitality State’ because of the welcoming nature and hospitality of its residents. There are over fifty nursing schools in Mississippi which provide different types of nursing degrees to applicants.
Accreditation of Nursing Schools in Mississippi
When picking a school in Mississippi to pursue your nursing degree, you must be aware of two regulatory bodies. Firstly, the ‘Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning’ is the institution that approves the Registered Nurses (RN) programs. Secondly, the ‘Mississippi Board for Community Colleges’ is responsible for accrediting Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Programs.
Types of Nursing Degrees
The degrees that are available to students who would like to pursue a nursing career in Mississippi are:
This degree prepares graduates for entry-level jobs in an array of healthcare services. These services include hospitals, clinics, emergency services, physician’s offices and many more.
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Nursing B.S.N. (RN-B.S.N)
This program is targeted towards individuals who would like to acquire a registered nurse (RN) certification, which will allow them to have nursing professional skills through research and practice as well as theoretical study pathways. This program is also ideal for students looking to pursue a master’s Degree in Nursing.
The MSN program is a master’s level program that is seen as a graduate level degree which allows nurses to specialize in a given field. In order to do a master’s degree students must have completed an undergraduate degree in nursing. Students will be able to specialize in subjects such as; family nursing, nursing executive, psychiatric nursing and adult-gerontology nursing.
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Nursing Graduate Certificate Programs
Some specialized nursing schools in Mississippi also offer graduate certificate programs in nursing. However, in order to become eligible for this program, a student must have completed at least some master’s level courses in Nursing. Furthermore, the exact number of credit hours varies from school to school.
Careers for Nurses
While nurses may choose to specialize in a given field to further their careers the most common and widely known jobs for nurses are these two:
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Licensed Vocational and Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs)
Nurses care for the injured, ill or disabled people in settings such as nursing homes, hospitals, private homes, group homes and similar institutions. They perform a number of key tasks in a healthcare environment that include the administration of medication and keeping patient records. Most LPNs need either an associate degree or a post-secondary certificate ensuring proper training.
The median wage according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in 2012 for LPNs in Mississippi was $34,600 annually while the job growth was 17%.
RNs play a much bigger role in implementing healthcare objectives: they are responsible for assessing a patient’s health problems, maintaining medical records and implementing nursing action plans. Most registered nurses need a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing, however to specialize in a field they must pursue a master’s degree which will lead to higher pay scales and greater job responsibility.
The median wage according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in 2013 for RNs in Mississippi was $54,900 annually while the job growth was 17%.