Nursing Schools in Rhode Island

Rhode Island is the smallest state in the United States but its beautiful coastline, beaches and historic New England architecture more than make up for its diminutive size. It is also proud of its health care industry, the biggest employer in the state. According to the Hospital Association of Rhode Island, the sector has 76,000 workers in 2010, nearly 12,000 of which are nurses serving a population of over a million people. This accounts for 18 percent of the state’s overall labor force.

Major hospitals are concentrated around Providence, the state’s capital and largest city. Nurses working in Rhode Island receive some of the best salaries in the U.S. In fact, the state belongs to the top ten list of the highest hourly median wages of nurses in the country according to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. Rhode Island nurses are also one of the most unionized, offering them added security and protection from work-related challenges.

There are six nursing schools in Rhode Island. Many applicants of these programs come from out-of-state owing to the quality of nursing education that Rhode Island nursing schools have to offer. But due to lack of teaching resources and stiff competition, only less than half of applicants are admitted annually.

Applicants should be able to complete prerequisites, submit minimum test scores and pass the admission process. They should be prudent enough to check if their target school is duly accredited. The majority of nursing graduates in Rhode Island are produced by public schools. To increase the number of graduates, nursing schools have implemented a number of measures. They have been developing their accelerated nursing programs to produce graduates in a short amount of time. Distance learning methods are being integrated into traditional nursing programs. Young people are also being actively recruited to infuse new blood to the aging nursing workforce. These initiatives by the nursing industry in Rhode Island aim to make it easier for aspiring nurses to earn their nursing degree.

By 2020, the Rhode Island SHAPE Foundation predicts a nursing shortage of 25 percent. This early, the shortage is slowly being felt but the tipping point will come in 2015 when many nurses retire. The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training says that nursing will be the fastest occupation in the next decade and estimates that there will be 4,380 nursing positions available in 2018.

The current graduation rate among the students at nursing schools in Rhode Island will not be able to meet that demand. Therefore, there will be plenty of opportunities for future nurses especially when the economic recovery gains momentum. Truly, the smallest U.S. state offers one of the biggest opportunities for nursing graduates.

Employment: 11,630
Hourly Mean Wage: $33.09
Annual Mean Wage: $68,830
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

State Nursing Board: Rhode Island Board of Nurse Registration and Nursing Education
State Nurses Association: Rhode Island State Nurses Association
State Hospital Association: Hospital Association of Rhode Island

Rhode Island Nursing Schools