According to the New Jersey Collaborating Center for Nursing’s 2017 annual nursing report, access to care remains an issue throughout the state. As of 2018, 13 of the state’s 21 counties reported a shortage of primary care providers.
The Center for Nursing notes that one of the most effective ways to ameliorate this problem is to produce more advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) and grant them modern nursing regulations.
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Fortunately, many RNs throughout the Garden State have taken notice and have chosen to pursue the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in recent years to earn their APRN license. While the MSN remains the minimum educational requirement to become an APRN in New Jersey, the DNP has increasingly become the degree of choice among both aspiring and practicing APRNs who want to enjoy the professional and economic benefits that come with this degree.
For example, according to the New Jersey State Nurses Association, there were 203 RNs pursuing their DNP – that’s just slightly below the 293 RNs pursuing an MSN. Post-graduation trends for the DNP have also continued to rise in recent years, from just 59 DNP graduates in 2014, to 93 in 2015, 88 in 2016, and an impressive 116 in 2017.
A nurse’s level of education is directly tied to their ability to improve patient outcomes. As a result, the New Jersey healthcare system does not just need more nurses. It needs more highly educated, skilled and specialized nurses. As a result, employers in New Jersey often offer a premium for DNP-educated APRNs and administrators.
Case in point: According to a 2018 Advance Healthcare Network survey, DNP-educated nurse practitioners surveyed earned an average of 7% more than NPs whose highest degree was a master’s.
Salaries for DNP-Educated Nurses in New Jersey According to Role
DNP-educated nurses are consistently recognized for earning top salaries (New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, 2018):
- Nurse Administrators: $129,750-$161,270
- Nursing Instructors: $116,180-$131,050
- Nurse Practitioners: $130,630-$158,390
- Nurse Anesthetists: $203,740+
- Nurse-Midwives: $126,160-$135,460
Salaries for DNP Nurses in New Jersey’s Major Regions
The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development provides salary information for DNP-educated advanced nursing professionals in the major regions of the state (2018):
Nurse Administrators and Executives:
- Atlantic City: $128,460-$156,800
- Trenton: $127,790-$157,170
- Vineland-Bridgeton: $125,410-$155,200
Nurse Educators:
- Atlantic City: $85,420-$99,830
Nurse Practitioners:
- Atlantic City: $136,050-$158,180
- Trenton: $126,600-$133,980
- Vineland-Bridgeton: $133,090-$155,240
Nurse-Midwives:
- Trenton: $124,520-$132,350
An Overview of Hourly Wages for New Jersey’s DNP-Educated Nurses
A 2019 Medscape Compensation Report found that 78% of APRNs are paid overtime for their work, revealing that hourly wages in this field are commonplace and overtime wages can account for a significant portion of an APRN’s salary.
The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development provides hourly wages for DPN-educated nursing professionals, as of 2018:
- Nurse Anesthetists: $97.95+
- Nurse Practitioners: $62.80-$76.15
- Nurse-Midwives: $60.66-$65.13
- Nurse Administrators: $62.38-$77.54
Salary and employment data compiled by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development in May of 2018 – (https://www.nj.gov/labor/ ). Salary data represents state and MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) average and median earnings for the occupations listed and includes workers at all levels of education and experience. This data does not represent starting salaries. Employment conditions in your area may vary.
All salary and job growth data accessed in December 2019.
This page includes salaries that fall within the 75th and 90th percentiles for each nursing role to account for the fact that DNP-educated nurses are recognized as earning more than master’s-prepared nurses in the same roles.