- Start your healthcare career in just a few years—not decades—by choosing a Nursing degree that combines theory with hands-on hospital training.
- From the NCLEX-RN in North America to the Staatsexamen in Germany, the journey to becoming a nurse looks different around the world, but all routes lead through practical placements and official registration.
- Whether you're drawn to mental health, child care, or leadership roles in healthcare, Nursing offers strong salaries, career growth, and global demand.
Looking for a healthcare career that doesn’t take a decade of medical studies, lets you work closely with patients, and gets you hands-on experience right from the beginning? That’s Nursing. Nurses play a key role in healthcare, whether they’re working in a hospital, a private clinic, or a school. One of the most popular ways to become a nurse is by studying for a Bachelor's degree in Nursing, but there are other ways too.
Let’s learn more about Nursing as a career, what kind of training nurses go through, and how the process of becoming a nurse is different around the world.
What does a nurse do?
Nurses treat patients in hospitals, clinics, schools, care homes, and many other places. Depending on their training and speciality, they may work with children, the elderly, or patients with specific medical needs. Some of their tasks include:
- Checking heart rate, temperature, and blood pressure to see how a patient’s doing
- Giving medications and vaccinations
- Helping patients and families understand what to expect during care
- Helping doctors during operations
- Treating injuries like cuts, burns, or broken bones
Since it’s a very hands-on job, Nursing degrees include a mix of classroom learning and hospital placements. Head to Bachelorsportal to learn more about the structure of Nursing degrees around the world.
Is becoming a nurse the right path for you?
Nursing is a rewarding career path, but it can also be demanding.
You’ll go through intense training, occasionally work night or weekend shifts, and face tough situations, like the loss of a patient.
But the rewards are just as powerful: you’ll save lives, enjoy strong job security, and get paid higher than average. If you have the following skills, nursing may be the right path for you:
- Interest in healthcare and science
- Good communication and teamwork skills
- The ability to stay calm in stressful situations
- Empathy and critical thinking skills
- Good time management and organisation
- Physical and emotional strength
What degree do you need to become a nurse?
The most common degree for nurses is a Bachelor’s in Nursing. It usually takes 3-4 years and includes both classroom learning and hands-on practice in hospitals. Some countries also offer nurse apprenticeship programmes, which are shorter alternatives to Nursing degrees.
After completing your Bachelor’s degree or nursing apprenticeship, you might want to specialise or work towards more advanced roles in the field. You can do this by continuing your education with a Master’s in Nursing. Here are some specialisations to consider:
- Mental Health Nursing: Supporting people dealing with mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, or schizophrenia.
- Adult Nursing: Caring for adults of all ages with a wide range of health conditions, from short-term injuries to chronic illnesses.
- Child Nursing: Specialising in caring for babies, children, and teenagers.
- Nurse Administrator: Focusing on the management side of nursing, which includes leading other nurses, making policies, and making sure everything runs smoothly.
Training and experience after graduation
In most countries, you’ll need real-life experience before you can become a fully qualified nurse. That’s why Nursing degrees include hands-on training in hospitals. Here’s what comes next after you graduate:
What mandatory training or internships are there for nurses?
In most Nursing degrees, you’ll spend half of your time attending university lectures, and the other half completing placements in hospitals or clinics. This means that by the time you graduate, you’ll already have work experience.
Professional qualification exams for nurses
Once you finish your degree, the next step is to take a national nursing exam or register with your country’s official board. Here are a few examples of how it works around the world:
- USA and Canada: The next step after graduation is an exam called the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN)
- UK: If you studied Nursing in the UK, you register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). If you studied in another country but want to become a nurse in the UK, you’ll need to pass the NMC’s Test of Competence exam.
- Australia: You’ll need to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA).
- Germany: Like many other medical professions, nurses in Germany need to take the Staatsexamen (state exam).
The registration process to become a nurse
During the registration process, you’ll typically need to submit the following documents:
- Proof of your Nursing degree or certification
- Proof of identity
- Exam results
- Background checks
- Medical check-up to show you’re fit to work in healthcare
- Application fee
- Language proficiency (If you’re working in a country that doesn’t speak your native language)
How is becoming a nurse different around the world?
Here’s a quick recap on how Nursing education, training, and exams work in some popular study abroad countries. We’ve also added approximate entry-level wages you can expect if you find a job as a nurse after graduation:
Here is your updated table with entry-level wages included for each country, based on publicly available estimates for newly registered nurses:
Country | Education | Training | Exam name | Registration body | Entry-level wage (approx.) |
US | Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), 4 years | Clinical placements during the degree (~800 hrs) | NCLEX-RN | State Board of Nursing (via NCSBN) | $65,000–$75,000/year (varies by state) |
UK | Bachelor of Science Nursing, 3 years | Clinical placements during degree (~2,300 hrs) | Test of Competence (for overseas) | Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) | £27,000–£31,000/year (NHS Band 5) |
Canada | Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), 4 years | Clinical placements during degree (~800–1,000 hrs) | NCLEX-RN | Provincial nursing regulators (e.g. CNO, BCCNM) | CAD 65,000–75,000/year (varies by province) |
Australia | Bachelor of Nursing, 3 years | Clinical placements during degree (~800–1,000 hrs) | No separate national exam (if trained in Australia) | Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) | AUD 65,000–70,000/year (public sector) |
Germany | Bachelor of Nursing, 3 years (usually in German) | Clinical placements during degree (~2,500 hrs) | Staatsexamen (State Exam) | Local State Health Authority (Gesundheitsamt) | €32,000–38,000/year (hospital entry roles) |
Final tips to succeed in your nursing journey
Be open to learning from more experienced nurses and start building strong relationships with your team from day one. The job can be intense, but leaning on your colleagues, asking questions, and staying curious will make a big difference.
Start by researching Nursing degrees to get a better understanding of how coursework and hospital placements work. In most places, it’s half-half, but healthcare education varies a lot from country to country.
FAQ
1. How long does it take to become a nurse?
It usually takes 3-4 years to become a nurse if you study a full-time Bachelor’s degree, according to the 1,700+ programmes on Bachelorsportal.
2. How difficult is it to become a nurse?
It may be challenging to balance coursework with clinical placements while studying for your Nursing degree, but with the right dedication and effort, it’s doable.
3. Is nursing a good career choice?
If you’re passionate about helping others, enjoy working in a team, and want a stable, rewarding career, nursing could be a great fit.
