School Nurse – Career and Education Profile

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School nurses work with children to provide non-emergency care in an educational setting. You can also work as a school nurse in a more adult setting by working at a college or university.

Job Responsibilities

School nurses are trained to respond in case of an emergency, but your normal duties will be to help children who get sick during the school day. You’ll provide care such as taking temperature, recording vital signs, administering medications, doing simple routine check-ups, and providing dressing for wounds that don’t need more serious medical attention. You make also be tasked with administrative duties, such as keeping student records organized and calling parents when a child needs to go home. Some school nurses go on to work in a college setting, where you’ll deal with many of the same problems, but also offer advanced services and educate students who may be at risk.

Salary and Career Options

According to reports, school nurses make a wide range of salaries, from less than $20,000 annually for part-time workers to more than $75,000 annually. On average, school nurses make around $57,000 annually. Most schools explicitly hire nurses, not doctors, so outlook in this field is good. If you want to advance in your career, you can become an advanced practice nurse or consider getting an additional degree in counseling.

Educational Requirements

Most schools require you to have at least a bachelor’s degree in nursing, though some accept applications from all RNs, even those who just have an associate’s degree. In addition to having your license as an RN, to work as a school nurse, you need to be certified by the National Board for Certification of School Nurses, and some schools require you to have a master’s degree in the field.

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.

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.

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.

Other Nursing Degrees

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.

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.

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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