Wisconsin has a plethora of four-year colleges and universities that offer nursing programs. As the healthcare industry expands rapidly, highly skilled registered nurses (RNs) are in great demand. A university education prepares these nurses for work in multiple settings and trains them for independent decision-making. Nurses with a bachelor’s or master’s degree are thus well-placed to find a job with significant responsibility, strong career mobility, and competitive pay. Prospective nurses should thoroughly research Wisconsin’s colleges and universities when selecting their nursing education.
Nursing programs
Most four-year institutions focus their nursing education on the bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degree. This program equips nurses for increasingly complex and diversified nursing responsibilities. It combines theory, clinical hands-on training, laboratory work, and simulation learning experiences. Graduates of a four-year BSN program must pass the NCLEX-RN national licensure exam in order to practice as a registered nurse. A dozen of Wisconsin’s universities also offer a master of science in nursing (MSN) degree. This graduate program prepares licensed RNs to assume specialized roles like nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, and nurse anesthetist. Wisconsin boasts over 25 colleges and universities that offer nursing degrees of some type, including five campuses of the University of Wisconsin system.
As the healthcare industry booms, Wisconsin’s nurses have many exciting opportunities. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 56,000 RNs employed across the state who command a median annual salary of $63,260. However, BSN-educated nurses frequently earn top-quartile pay of $73,350 or more per year. Wisconsin’s RNs can seek employment with major healthcare networks like Maxim Healthcare Services or through staffing agencies like RNnetwork.
To help the state’s aspiring nurses, we have assembled below a complete list of Wisconsin’s four-year colleges and universities with nursing programs.