The Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget recently ranked registered nurses among its list of “Michigan’s Hot 50“ occupations through 2018. Registered nursing qualified for this exclusive list by becoming one of the most high-demand, high-wage careers in the state.
Right now, most registered nurses are earning an average hourly wage of $30.82. Yet, forward-thinking nurses in Michigan are quickly learning that completing a BSN degree either as an initial path to licensure or through an RN-BSN completion program means earning a higher salary.
BSN degrees not only equate to bigger paychecks, but they are also the preferred RN educational standard among nursing students and employers in Michigan. According to the Michigan Center for Nursing, in 2014, the level of educational attainment among registered nurses working in the state was as follows:
- Bachelor’s Degree: 46%
- Associate’s Degree: 42%
- Diploma: 16%
- Master’s Degree: 14%
Comparing ADN to BSN Salaries in Michigan
Nurses that complete BSN degree programs are better prepared to preform complex care procedures and work with medical technology than their ADN-educated colleagues. As a result, nursing employers are willing to pay BSN-educated nurses higher salaries.
In 2013, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that ADN-educated nurses working in Michigan were earning an average annual salary of $55,500 and an average hourly wage of $26.66.
Comparatively, in that same year, BSN-educated nurses employed statewide were earning a much higher average annual salary of $73,900 and an average hourly wage of $35.52.
As Michigan’s nursing community continues to push for a better educated workforce, more new nursing students are enrolling in pre-licensure BSN programs and more RNs are returning to school to complete RN-BSN programs. In 2013, the American Association of Colleges of Nurses reported that 8,443 students were enrolled in bachelor-level nursing degree programs in Michigan. In that same year, the state graduated 3,502 students from BSN and graduate-level nursing programs.
Salary conscious students looking for BSN degree options in Michigan are in luck. The Michigan Board of Nursing has currently approved thirty BSN programs in Detroit, Lansing, Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, Warren, and Rochester, among other cities.
Regional Pay Averages for BSN Nurses in Michigan
BSN-educated nurses earn within the 75th and 90th salary percentile, representing the top 25% of earners in the field. However, when researching nursing pay potentials, it is important to remember that salary and wage averages naturally vary between geographic locations in the state.
In 2013, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics released the following data showing the salary and wage averages among BSN-educated registered nurses working in many of Michigan’s prominent metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas: