There's the possibility for independent kinds of practice, for developing businesses. It's a lot broader than the traditional hospital-based nursing although hospitals are still the largest employer of nurses.
Nursing research is one area in particular that has begun to flourish.
While some funding is better than none, which is what it used to be, it's still at a fairly low level. With the advent of managed care, the need for nurse practitioners continues to grow. The family nurse practitioner program is one of TWU's most popular advanced degrees right now with 66 percent of the master's-level students enrolled in this area. By contrast, the community health master's program offered in Houston has seen a decline in recent years. The program, which prepares clinical nurse specialists to care for whole communities, is not being taught this year due to the lack of interest.