Neonatal Nurse Practitioners are nurses who have gone on to complete Master’s or Doctorate degrees in nursing, specializing in the neonatal field. Neonatal nurse practitioners go through extensive training and education to obtain their nurse practitioner license.
In the neonatal field, it is not uncommon for a neonatal nurse to seek a higher level of education, which can lead to a number of master’s degree programs. Many neonatal nurse’s seek these master’s degrees to become neonatal nurse practitioners.
However, what is becoming seen more commonly is a switch to require neonatal nurse practitioners to have their doctorate degree, and opposed to a masters. While this has not completely changed over, many institutions are moving in this direction.
Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Salary
The salary for a neonatal nurse depends greatly on their years of experience, and whether or not they are in a private neonatal practice. Private neonatal nurse practitioners tend to make more on average than a hospital staffed neonatal nurse practitioner.
Also, neonatal nurse practitioners are usually not paid an hourly rate, which means if they put in overtime, much as a doctor does, they are still compensated the same. This balances out however, with private practice neonatal nurse practitioners sometimes receiving a yearly bonus based on the profitability of the neonatal practice.
The salary for a neonatal nurse practitioner averages between $80,000 and $100,000 per year, with salary amounts expected to rise in the near future, as becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner will start transitioning towards the equivalent of a doctorate degree in nursing.
