Hawaii’s nurses are highly paid and well respected. Nonetheless, many RNs are opting to return to school to earn a master’s degree in nursing as a path to more opportunities for leadership, stimulating work, increased responsibility and greater financial security.
The salary advantages of being MSN educated are well demonstrated by the 2012 national survey of nurse salaries conducted by the Advance Healthcare Network for Nurses. They reported the following average annual salaries for nurses with different educational achievements in the Western region of the US:
- ADN-educated – $71,469
- BSN-educated – $75,973
- MSN-educated – $87,933
Hawaii is home to four institutions of higher education accredited by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACA). They report that in 2013 a total of 269 nursing students in Hawaii were enrolled in MSN programs and 224 were studying to become APRNs, 192 of which planned to become nurse practitioners. APRNs make up only 5.2 percent of Hawaii’s total nursing force.
Outside of the clinical setting, MSN-educated nurses work as nurse administrators, educators and researchers.
Salaries of Nurse Practitioners in Hawaii
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Hawaii is the nation’s fourth highest-paying state for this occupation. Their 2013 survey of occupational wages shows that the 230 nurse practitioners working in Hawaii earned the following:
These figures are considerably higher than the national averages for nurse practitioners.
As a further comparison, BSN-educated RNs in Hawaii earned the following in 2013:
The following table shows nurse practitioner salaries in different areas of Hawaii (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013):
Salaries of Nurse Midwives and Nurse Anesthetists in Hawaii
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) maintains that the 40 nurse midwives who practiced in Hawaii during 2013 earned the following salaries:
The 2013 BLS survey does not include nurse anesthetist salaries in Hawaii. However, the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) 2013 report indicates that the average annual salary for nurse anesthetists in Hawaii is between $130,000 and $150,000.