A vocational nursing diploma provides the educational training required for you to work as a licensed practical/vocational nurse (LPN/LVN). Typically offered by trade schools, private hospitals and community colleges, the vocational nursing degree is a one-year program that prepares students for entry-level nursing work, such as collecting blood and urine samples, assisting patients with basic hygiene and monitoring blood pressure and respiration. Coursework for a vocational nursing diploma includes anatomy, nutrition and physiology.
An associate's degree in nursing (ADN) prepares students to work as registered nurses, the standard staff nurse position in hospitals and doctor's offices. ADN programs are usually completed in two years and are offered by community colleges, private hospitals and universities. Students are taught to take patient histories, perform basic medical tests, give medications, provide health-care education to patients and work as a member of the health-care team. A sample of ADN classes includes pharmacology, family nursing, microbiology and information literary and health care.
The Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) degree also prepares students for work as registered nurses; however, the two additional years of study provide a broader academic education in the liberal arts, which is recommended for nursing students who would like to further specialize or continue with graduate nursing study. BSN degrees are offered by traditional four-year colleges and universities and provide similar nursing coursework as the ADN but also include sociology, advanced writing communication, ethics, literature and fine arts classes.
A master's degree of science in nursing (MSN) allows nurses to pursue one particular area of nursing or work as an advanced practice nurse, such as a nurse practitioner or nurse midwife. For example, Columbia University offers MSN subspecialties in addictive behaviors, HIV/AIDS, genetics and palliative care. For nurses who want to become health care or public health administrators, many nursing graduate programs offer joint MSN/MBA or MSN/MPH degrees, which provide students with the business, leadership and public health policy-making training necessary to work in these fields.
Doctorate and postdoctorate degree programs train nurses to work in nursing research, nursing education or as top-level advanced practice nurses. PhD students are taught investigative principles that will guide them when conducting research, collaborating with other medical professionals and scientists, and compiling data for reports at nursing conferences and publication in professional journals. A doctor in nursing practice (DNP) degree prepares nurses to be expert clinical nurses and will be required of all nurse practitioners beginning in 2015. Research universities provide postdoctorate programs for doctorate-level nurses to continue their work in advancing the level of nursing care provided to patients.