Parish Nurse – Career and Education Profile
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Working as a parish nurse combines medical knowledge with religious faith, allowing you to help patients from all walks in life in a way that combines physical and spiritual healing.
Job Responsibilities
Parish nurses do many of the same tasks as general staff nurses of the same educational level. The only difference is that as a parish nurse, you’ll work in a faith-based community and may take a patient’s spiritual needs into consideration as you focus on treating physical and mental problems as well. Parish nurses may complete basic nursing tasks, but can also be called on for tasks such as counseling, praying with a patient, and other faith-based duties. You could work in a general medical facility, serving members of your faith community who are admitted, or you could work for a religious organization.
Salary and Career Options
The salary you’ll make as a parish nurse depends on your education level and where you work. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, registered nurses make $66,530 annually. The top ten percent make an average of $93,700, so even a six-figure salary is possible if you’re an RN. In many cases, parish nurses work on a part-time basis, or you may work at a facility like a religious summer camp, so you may instead get paid a stipend that is lower but comes attached with free housing and food.
Educational Requirements
You can get started working as a parish nurse by going through an LPN educational program. You can then consider becoming an RN, which requires you to go back to school to earn either an associate’s degree or a bachelor’s degree in nursing, which you can do through a typical RN program or through a LPN-to-RN program. There are also graduate-level nursing programs you can consider, an many parish nurses like to take addition faith-based classes.
LPN to RN College Programs
While several schools have online nursing degrees available, few offer LPN to RN programs. What's the good news? We have listed some accredited schools below that do offer the program in addition to schools with other bridge programs available. Find out more information and contact each school by using any of the links below.
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Indiana State University—Indiana State University offers a robust online program designed for LPNs wanting to become registered nurses and earn their BSN degree. Since ISU's credits transfer to over 80 campus majors, this is an ideal program for people wanting to open opportunities for their career down the road. |
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The College Network—The College Network is a partnership with several universities and organizations like the National League for Nursing that focuses on online education and programs, with several courses for nurses or those interested in a nursing career. Specifically, TCN helps students prepare for their PN and RN licensures and move on to earn graduate degrees. |
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Select a subject and degree level, then click "Find My Degree" to browse 100+ online nursing schools offering relevant accredited programs. |
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Walden University—Walden University is typically a graduate school with several masters and doctoral programs available, but they do have BSN and RN to MSN bridge programs available. Walden is based out of Minneapolis and offers several options in transferring your previously earned credits to and from (or even within) the school. |
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Kaplan University—Kaplan University is one of the nation's largest and leading online educators and offers several bridge programs for registered nurses to earn their BSN or MSN degree. If you have previously earned credits, Kaplan makes it easy for you to transfer to any one of their undergraduate or graduate programs. |
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Herzing University—While Herzing University does not offer an undergraduate nursing degree, it is a great choice for working nurses wanting to pursue leadership positions in Nurse Education or Management. With over 10 campuses and 45 online programs available, Herzing has a massive network that makes it easy to transfer to or from the school. |
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