We tabulated the data based on 2,784 usable responses to a questionnaire published in the October issue of Nursing99 and posted on our Web site. The mean age of respondents is 41. See Salaries by Practice Area for more details. Sixty-seven percent of respondents have been in their current positions 5 years or less, highlighting the nursing profession'smobility. Here's what these nurses told us, starting with yearly salaries by geographic region.
Hospitals still pay the most, but home health is a close second.
For years, nurses have wondered about the value of a BSN degree when they don't get raises or differentials for obtaining one. But when we broke down t numbers, we found that overall, nurses with BSN or MSN degrees are faring better than those with an associate degree. The following chart shows how a nurse's education level affects her salary. Of course, many factors other than education also influence salary. For example, older nurses with many years of experience tend to make more money.