RN Programs in Colorado

The Colorado nursing shortage was twice the national average just before the recession, and it was said that without a big expansion in nurse training programs, projected retirements would push the nursing vacancy rate to 30 percent by 2020, according to "The 2004 Colorado Nursing Faculty Supply and Demand Study," published by the Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence. Mirroring conditions throughout the nation, nursing schools in Colorado turn away far more prospective nursing students than they accept due to a severe shortage of Nurse Educators and clinical instructors. According to a study done by the Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence, Colorado is the third fastest growing state in the nation, and is predicted to gain 1.5 million additional residents by 2020.

While new grads may not find positions readily available in hospitals at the moment, Nurse Educators, Nurse Practitioners, and experienced acute-care and emergency-room nurses remain in great demand.When the economy rebounds, those who put off retirement are expected to leave the profession in droves, along with those who returned to work to stave off economic distress - just as the aging baby-boom population requires more health care. "My concern is that we're going to be seeing a nursing shortage greater than we have ever seen", said Linda Goodwin, chief nursing officer for Memorial Health System. Nurses would be wise to use this time to their advantage by earning an advanced degree now in order to prepare themselves to assume better positions amid the increased opportunities that will exist as the economy starts to improve.

In order to meet the increasingly complex demands of today's health care environment, many healthcare agencies prefer or require a minimum of a bachelor's degree for their nursing staff, so now is the perfect time for LPN's to enroll in an online LPN to RN program, or LPN to BSN degree program, for RN's to take an online RN-BSN degree completion program, or RN to MSN bridge program, and for BSN nurses to earn a MS in Nursing degree.

Average Nursing Base Salaries:

Find Nursing Schools and Allied Health Programs For Colorado

Browse accredited nursing schools and allied health programs that accept students from Colorado, then request free information from any or all schools offering programs that match your needs: