Masters in Nursing Nurse Educator

This degree is one of the most common MSN options to be found as an online master's in nursing program. The Masters in Nursing Nurse Educator degree is for working RNs who would like to earn an education credential in their field and find a career in teaching or training nurses or nursing students. The jobs for graduates from a Nurse Educator program include working as trainers in a clinical setting; for some healthcare environments RNs go through a lot of on the job training even though they have completed their nursing degree or diploma and passed the NCLEX. Other teaching options include working with a program that provides the mandatory annual continuing education courses that every working RN must take. Some MSN Nurse Educator graduates find teaching opportunity as an instructor in a community college or diploma program.

The curriculum for this degree provides extensive training in the theories and methods behind teaching. Students are exposed to classes in teaching strategies and in the challenges of teaching in a clinical setting. Nurse educators also may find careers working in community health programs, all of which have an educational component. Some of the coursework in this area may include classes in gerontological health nursing, working with families and children, and a class - and perhaps some clinical hours - in psychiatric health nursing. A Masters in Nursing for Nurse Educator program prepares advanced practice nurses to function in healthcare settings where education is an important part of the services offered. Public health is perhaps the most active sector of healthcare for educational programs.

The online Nurse Educator programs are a relatively convenient option for working RNs who need to have a flexible schedule when they return to school. There will be some clinical hours required, in most instances at a location that is focused on education rather than clinical activity. So nurses enrolled in this program may have to take some time off in order to complete the practicum, but that is concentrated towards the end of the program. Nurse educator is one of the most popular MSN choices among nurses who would like to move away from clinical work and into another level of nursing service.