When you think of nurses and nurses' career options, you might conjure up just a handful of different kinds of nurses. Fact is, there are over a dozen types of specialized nurses in a large number of different health care fields. To name just a few, there are neonatal nurses, orthopedic nurses, staff nurses, nephrology nurses and nurse practitioners. In addition to that, nursing is also government recognized to be one of the top-ten jobs for substantial growth (courtesy Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Being a RN, or Registered Nurse, is a specialty that has garnered a wealth of respect in the medical community as never seen before. Decades ago, nurses were not nearly as respected and valued as doctors have always been. The past few years have dramatically changed that stigma about nurses, though. Nurses are, more than ever, becoming leaders and are increasingly becoming the main factor in many long-term patients' care.

Your Path to Success

Without further adieu, let's briefly look at some of the objectives you need to tackle before entering the nursing field. A great stepping-stone for most beginner nurses is becoming a nursing assistant (or aide); however, it is only the start of your journey. While this job will serve as valuable experience while you are in school, you probably want to aim for the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) certification-which requires, generally, one through years of study at a junior college or accredited vocational school.

With the additional experience you will gain with this license, you are well on your way to becoming a fully-fledged Registered Nurse. This typically comes after you have received your BSN (Bachelor of Science) in nursing, and the former experience will be all-the-more valuable in landing the job.

Before you do anything, however, check to validate whether or not your target school is accredited via the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission on their website. After college is taken care of, the NCLEX is the nationally-standardized test to which all RN's are required to take and successfully pass.

Perhaps you want to get set on the path to become a neonatal nurse? This entails caring for newborns for the first 28 days of their lives. Another exciting field is that of the oncologist nurse, in which you are a direct assistant to a doctor of oncology that treats cancer patients and those recovering from cancer treatments. One last example is the nurse case manager. This is a career path that is growing by leaps-and-bounds and involves working with providers and their patients to develop a plan of health care, monitors and accesses the individuals' care, and provides alternative treatments or changes existing treatments as needed. They also make sure that the care of the patient is the best that can be offered at the most cost-effective solution available to the patient.

Shoot for the Stars

Those are only three types of nurses, in addition the nursing assistant and LPN. There are over a dozen more, and the nursing field has been short of nurses for many years-which is obviously very advantageous to you and future job security. Finally, added to all this, if you decide to shoot for the stars and earn your Master's degree, such jobs open up as Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners (APRN-PMH) and Certified Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA).