Nurse, Registered (RN)

Exam

State + third-party exam

Education

Degree

Experience

None

Background check

Specific type of conviction prohibited

Registered nurses assess and manage patient/client responses to actual and potential health care problems. Decision-making and problem-solving abilities about patients and patients’ situations may be carried out independently or in collaboration with other health care providers. Employment settings are numerous and include acute-care (hospitals) and long-term care facilities; clinics; out-patient settings; community and public health facilities; schools; industrial and corporate settings; research and development; and education. Registered nurses, upon completion of advanced studies, can seek additional certification, for example as Nurse-Practitioner, Nurse-Midwife, Nurse-Anesthetist, or Clinical Nurse Specialist. Furthermore, each of these areas (and several others) contains numerous fields of specialization and certification.