Nursing Specialties

Now that you have made the decision to become a nurse, it is now the time to pick a nursing career. There are so many nursing specialities for you to choose from, so we have created a resource that explains the different types of nursing career options.

As baby boomers continue to age, there will be an abundance of nursing careers available for new nurses to enter the job marketplace and get great paying jobs.

Below is a chart that features the different nursing specialties along with education requirements and characteristics of the job discipline.

Nurse Specialty

Education Requirements

Work Environments

Acute Care Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice

Adult Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice
Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN)

BSN, MSN, or PhD

Clinical | Community

Auxiliary Nurse

NVQ

Community

Cardiac Nurse Specialist

BSN or MSN

Clinical | Emergency

Certified Nurse Midwife

RN Diploma, ASN, BSN or MSN

Advanced Practice | Women’s Health
Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Surgical

Clinical Nurse Leader

BSN and MSN

Clinical | Management

Clinical Nurse Specialist

BSN + MSN or PhD

Advanced Practice | Clinical
Community Health Nursing

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Critical Care Nursing

BSN and MSN

Emergency

Dental Nurse

NEBDN Certificate

Community

Emergency Nurse

ASN or BSN

Emergency
Emergency Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Emergency

Family Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Family

Flight Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community
Forensic Nurse

ASN or BSN

Community

Geriatric Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Family

Holistic Nursing

ASN or BSN

Clinical | Community
Home Health Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Hospice Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Infection Control Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Clinical | Management
International Nursing

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Labor and Delivery Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Women’s Health

Lactation Consultant

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Women’s Health

Legal Nurse Consultant

ASN or BSN

Management

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)

LPN Certification

Clinical

Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN)

LVN Certification

Community

Male Nurse

ASN or BSN

Community

Maternity Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Women’s Health

Medical Assistant

AAMA, AS or BS

Community

Medical Surgical Nursing

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Surgical

Military Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Neonatal Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Family

Neonatal Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Family

Nurse Anesthetist

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Surgical

Nurse Case Manager

ASN or BSN

Management | Clinical

Nurse Educator

BSN or MSN or PhD

Community | Management

Nurse Entrepreneur

ASN or BSN

Management

Nurse Manager

BSN or MSN

Management

Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice

Nurse Researcher

BSN and MSN or PhD

Community

Nursing Informatics

BSN

Management

Nursery Nurse

ASN

Community

Occupational Health Nurse

BSN

Community

Oncology Nurse

BSN

Clinical

Obstetrics Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Women’s Health

Palliative Nursing

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Parish Nursing

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Pediatric Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Family

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Family

Pediatric Oncology Nurse

BSN

Clinical

Practice Nurse

BSN, MSN, or PhD

Clinical Community

Perioperative Nursing

BSN

Surgical

Private Duty Nursing

RN Diploma, LPN, or LVN Certification

Community

Psychiatric Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Psychological

Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Psychological

Public Health Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Registered Nurse (RN)

RN Diploma, ASN, BSN or MSN

Community | Clinical

Rehabilitation Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Psychological

RN Case Manager

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Clinical Management

School Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Staff Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Student Nurse

Certification

Community

Telemetry Nursing

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Travel Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Community

Trauma Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Emergency

Triage Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Emergency | Community

Veterinary Nurse

AS or BS

Pet Health

Wound Care Nurse

RN Diploma, ASN or BSN

Clinical | Community

Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner

BSN and MSN

Advanced Practice | Women’s Health