It has never been easier for students and professionals alike to earn a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree in Pennsylvania. In fact, a 2015 report released by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) revealed that Pennsylvania was one of the top eight states with the highest number of DNP programs in the United States. In that year, the nineteen colleges and universities in Pennsylvania offered accredited DNP programs.
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Upon graduating, many DNP-educated nurses stay in Pennsylvania due to the state’s exceptional employment and salary conditions. For example, the United States Department of Labor determined that in 2014:
- Pennsylvania hospitals were the fourth largest employer of postsecondary nursing instructors and teachers in the country. The 3,210 postsecondary nursing instructors and teachers practicing here were paid an average annual salary of more than $95,000.
- Nurse anesthetists were ranked among the state’s top fifteen highest paying occupations. On average, nurse anesthetists received a salary of over $100,000 annually.
- Reading was among the top ten highest paying metropolitan areas for medical and health services managers in the country. Medical and health services managers employed here earned an average annual salary of more than $185,000.
Occupational Salaries for Nurse with DNP Degrees in Pennsylvania
In 2015, the Pennsylvania Center for Workforce Information & Analysis published the following salary data. Shown here are the 75th percentile average salaries for each role to account for the fact that DNP-prepared nurses routinely earn salaries that fall within the top 25% of their profession:
Nurse Anesthetists:
- Allentown – $152,010
- Erie – $145,810
- Philadelphia – $185,460
- Pittsburgh – $149,930
- Scranton – $181,100
Nurse Practitioners:
- Allentown – $109,000
- Erie – $93,600
- Philadelphia – $104,430
- Pittsburgh – $95,680
- Reading – $100,070
- Scranton – $141,010
Nurse-Midwives:
- Allentown – $125,720
- Philadelphia – $101,050
- Pittsburgh – $97,820
- Reading – $108,170
Nurse Educators:
- Allentown – $84,410
- Erie – $74,480
- Philadelphia – $87,710
- Pittsburgh – $80,120
- Reading – $77,460
- Scranton – $84,410
In February 2016, the Department of Veterans Affairs searched for a certified nurse practitioner with a doctorate degree to work for their Community Living Center in Clarion, PA. According to their online job advertisement posted on the job aggregation website indeed.com, the position offered a starting salary of between $70,319 and $126,901.
Doctor of Nursing Practice Salaries in Pennsylvania by Role
To show the kind of high-end salaries that nurses with DNP degrees typically receive, the United States Department of Labor provided the 75th and 90th salary percentiles for a variety of advanced nursing professions in Pennsylvania (2014):
*Values are equal to or greater than $90 an hour or $187,199 a year. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics does not provide salary data higher than these values..