There's no shortage of nursing schools offering course-work for those who aspire to become a part of the ever-growing healthcare industry. These certified nursing schools will not only train you to become a professional nurse but many offer post graduate courses as well, to better help you develop your nursing career.

Those currently holding nursing degrees have the option to enroll in the various post nursing degree programs that are now available - from Registered Nursing Degrees to Parish Nursing. There's a wide range of choices for aspiring healthcare professionals. They can choose which type of nursing degree they would like to specialize in and contrary to popular belief, an individual with a nursing degree is no longer limited to working in just a hospital. There are numerous other places wherein people need the care and attention only a qualified nursing professional can provide.

There has always been a great demand for people who have nursing degrees and with more and more baby boomers growing older with each passing year the demand for qualified nursing professionals will only continue to grow. In reality, if a significant shortage of healthcare professionals were to develop, it would pose a grave threat to society because without qualified professionals, the country's health care industry would greatly suffer.

The U.S. Department of Labor has predicted that the United States will have a shortage of nurses close to 400,000 by the year 2020. Simply one of many reasons why the nursing profession is clearly an excellent career choice now and into the foreseeable future. Of course, you must keep in mind that the job requirements are things that you are inclined to perform. A few examples would be service-oriented tasks such as feeding the patient, changing their clothes, helping them take a bath, cleaning up after them and making sure they properly take their medications. If you don't have the desire, stomach or patience for doing such things you should stay clear of pursuing a nursing degree because it's not a profession that suits you.

A common nursing career is the RN - Registered Nurse, which requires that an individual has the ability to provide direct care to their patients by constantly observing, assessing and recording symptoms, both negative and positive.

There are also those types of nurses that assist doctors when they perform surgery, conduct patient examinations as well as assisting with treatments. In addition, they are also given the responsibility of having the ability to diagnose and treat common illnesses and injuries without always having a doctor present to guide them through the process.

Another required skill in many nursing professions is a basic understanding of medications and how they need to be administered. More and more patients are relying on their nurse to help them get well. In many instances, many nursing specialties require the ability assist the doctor in educating patients on what to do when it comes to their health and properly advise them on the best course of action related to their current health situation.

In many hospitals, a registered resident nurse is also in charge of the other nurses and also has the seemingly daunting task of organizing work schedules - since shifting is a common practice for those in the nursing profession, assigning which duty should be taken on by whom, as well as supervising the less trained nurses aides.

Another very positive benefit of getting involved in the nursing profession is that it does pay very well. However, top compensation also brings with it other responsibilities like excellent organization skills, flexibility and perhaps the most important characteristic found in all good nurses is a caring and compassionate nature that translates into a natural chemistry between themselves and their patients.