Forensic Nursing Salary
The Forensic nursing job is an interesting science for those that pursue it. To qualify for this specialty you will need to successfully complete a Forensic Nurse Specialty Certification. You must already be a registered nurse to go on to complete the forensic certification.
Forensic registered nurses may have an increased salary due to the fact that they carry the additional certification to practice in the forensic nurse specialty. The completed Forensic Nursing Specialist certification includes 5 continuing education classes that can be completed with 250 contact hours of education.
According to the AANP, (American Academy of Nurse Practitioners) the median salary for registered nurses in 2009 and 2010 was $87,000 for full time nurses. This info was based on the National Nurse Practitioner Compensation Survey. They stated that the nurse practitioner salary had increased by 5.9% over 2008.
Where you live and your experience in your Forensic Nursing specialty will make a difference in your salary as well. For instance, if you live in the far western US in the states of California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Washington or Alaska, you will most likely be have a higher salary than in other states. The median base salary in these states is about $99,980 which is $50.81 per hour.
If you live in the plains states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota or South Dakota you will generally have a little lower base salary averaging around $84,780. This is $42.22 per hour. The southeast states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia will net you about $85,880 per year. This equates to 42.81 per year.
The average base salary for registered nurses in the southwest states of Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas is about $94,780 which comes out to $47.35 per hour. Expect about $89,000 if you live in the middle eastern states of Delaware, DC, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.
If you become a Forensic Nurse with by receiving an Associates or Baccalaureate degree your salary will not be much different. The little higher salary comes with a Masters and Doctorate degree.
Registered nurses with 1-5 years experience generally make about $5,000 less per year that a registered nurse that has at least 6-10 years experience.
There are many other benefits that come with your full time Forensic nurse salary. These include paid vacations, professional liability insurance and health insurance.
Whatever state you work in as a Forensic Nurse Practitioner, you can expect to be paid very well.
