Family Nurse Practitioners: Employment and Salary Trends

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Family Nurse Practitioners (FNPs) are licensed independent practitioners who practice in a variety of settings as primary and/or specialty care providers who emphasize health promotion, disease prevention, and community education. Entry-level NPs and nurse educators need at least a master’s degree, but more employers and communities are seeking NPs with post master’s or doctoral degrees. NP’s often get several years of experience as registered nurses (RNs) before pursuing a higher degree. This advanced education requires you to invest time and money, but will reward you with better employment opportunities and a higher paycheck in the long run.

How to Determine Your Salary

The most reliable salary data for nurses is pertinent to RNs or NPs, rather than the specific category of FNPs. While an FNP has more experience and education than a registered nurse (RN), earnings are determined by many factors including location and specialty. The following links provide an idea of what you can expect to earn in various settings:

The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) conducted a survey in May 2011, based upon 6,680 responses by NPs. On average, respondents had almost 11 years of experience practicing as an NP. The majority of respondents reported that they either were family (38%) or adult (30%) NPs. The average yearly total compensation for all respondents was $94,050 and the mean hourly wage reported was $46.12.
The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) provides information about salaries to various salary and job sites, including PayScale.com. The salary range for the category that includes NPs and FNPs is $61,881to $97,723 per year.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) determined the average salaries of RNs working in various clinical and administrative settings. Considering that this article focuses on the RN status, which doesn’t include masters or doctorate level nursing education, these rates are likely a low estimate of FNP salary.
The Health Resources and Services Administration conducted a sample survey of RNs in 2008 which indicated that salaries for RNs have increased more than threefold since 1980, from $17,398 to 66,973. However, “real” salaries accounting for inflation and other market factors have remained flatter, according to the graph below. These salaries do not reflect insurance costs that you may need to carry as an independent practitioner or benefits provided if you work for a health facility.

Employment Settings and Prospects

According to The Bureau of Labor Statistics, NPs fall under the group heading of health care practitioners and technical occupations. Employment for this category is expected to grow in certain types of facilities, with health practitioner offices seeing a 38.5% job growth, physicians’ offices seeing 34.2% job growth, and medical and diagnostic laboratories seeing 31.8% job growth by 2018.

These facilities offer a rich opportunity for NPs with master’s degree and specialized skills. Additionally, the HRSA’s sample survey of RNs in 2008 provided the following breakdown of which facilities provided the most employment for RNs:

These percentages provide a good estimate of NP employment settings as well, since specific, reliable data on FNP employment is unavailable.

The Aging Nurse Population and What It Means for Employment Prospects

The median age of nurses has increased rapidly in the past three decades, and as more nurses retire and the need for replacements grows, there will be more opportunities for nurses who can teach, conduct research as well as practice nursing. The median age for nurses achieving their first doctoral degree is 45, and 49% of nurses who achieve their doctorate go into the service industry, which further diminishes the field of qualified nurse educators to train new nurses. Young nurses who are willing to quickly earn their doctorate and go into education will find themselves in demand in the next decade as more nurses retire and need to be replaced.

How to Ensure Your Success as an FNP

To be a successful FNP, find a specialty that you’re passionate about, and be willing to commit to learning about it and practicing in it for years. What’s more, the time commitment for reaching a doctoral degree in nursing is lessening. There is a growing movement toward accelerated BSN to DNP or PhD programs that allow nurses to reach doctorate level degrees in five years.

If you’re just starting out, and know you want to achieve a doctorate, it will be worthwhile to find an accelerated program that NPs are becoming leaders in primary and acute health care as they combine the roles of care-provider, mentor, educator, researcher and administrator. NP programs cultivate these skills, along with knowledge competencies essential to all NPs, regardless of sub-specialty or population focus.

According to the AANP, competencies are organized into seven realms including:

Management of patient health/illness status
NP-patient relationship
Teaching-coaching function
Professional role
Managing and negotiating health care delivery systems
Monitoring and ensuring the quality of health care practices
Culturally-sensitive care

Ensuring the highest level of care for your patients requires national certification, periodic peer review, clinical outcome evaluations, a code for ethical practice, evidence of continuing professional development and maintenance of clinical skills. You can accomplish many of these efforts by leading and participating in both professional and lay health care forums, by conducting research and by applying research findings to clinical practice.

The nursing expertise gained through doctoral level studies will not only earn you more money, it will also allow you to influence others in your field, and to mold the professional standards for the nursing community. FNPs accomplish this through involvement in professional organizations and participation in health policy activities at the local, state, national, and international levels.

Other Factors That Influence Salary

No matter how good your education, or how much experience you have, there are other factors that can influence your salary as an FNP:

Population focus: There is growing demand for NPs in rural areas and inner cities. Often, NPs charge less for primary care services than MDs, which makes them more affordable, but also diminishes earnings.
Location: According to the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Employment Statistics from 2010, the states with the highest pay for RNs are California, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Alaska, and Maryland.
Specialty: According to the HRSA’s sample survey, there are far fewer nurse anesthetists and nurse midwives than there are nurse practitioners. NPs with unique specialties can potentially demand greater compensation.

There are many resources, both financial and informational, in place to help you pursue a degree as an FNP. Nursing is a demanding path, but the impressive salaries, rapid job growth, and the emotional rewards of helping others make this career a worthwhile investment.

Top Online FNP Degree Programs

To become a family nurse practitioner (FNP), a master’s degree in nursing is a professional requirement. Below are the top online accredited colleges that offer MS in nursing degree programs, suitable for FNPs. You can request information by clicking the college's logo.

MSN in FNP Specialization	Georgetown University — The MSN with a specialization in family nursing from Georgetown University enables licensed RNs to transition into careers as family nurse practitioners. The focus of this FNP program is to provide its students with the technical expertise and clinical skills necessary to prevent disease, promote health, and manage and assess illness within families. School Info Click Here
MSN in Nurse Practitioner	Kaplan University — With its main campus in Davenport, Iowa, Kaplan University is one of the largest online colleges in the nation. Kaplan's online MSN degree for nurse practitioners allows licensed RNs with bachelor's degrees to advance their careers with flexibility and affordability in mind. It is one of the ideal online choices for those seeking to become family nurse practitioners. School Info Click Here
MS in Nursing MSN in Health Education MSN in Health Informatics	University of Phoenix — The College of Nursing at the University of Phoenix offers several Master of Science in nursing degree programs with different specializations for aspiring nurse practitioners. Within the program, areas of concentration available for study include health education and health informatics. School Info Click Here
MSN in Nurse Educator MSN in Educator Bridge	Capella University — For those individuals aspiring to become educational leaders in the field of nursing, Capella University offers two degrees: the first is a regular MSN program in nursing education for those who already practice nursing and have earned a BSN degree. They also offer an MSN bridge program that accepts non-nurse students with bachelor's degrees. School Info Click Here
MSN in Nurse Practitioner	South University — For working healthcare professionals with busy career schedules, the flexibility offered by the South University master's degree program in nursing may be an ideal fit. Individuals looking to advance their careers within the healthcare industry and become family nurse practitioners will find that graduating from this program will surely open doors to new opportunities. School Info Click Here