Considering a teacher-to-nurse career change? Many teaching skills can translate to a nursing career, like communication, resourcefulness, and emotional resilience. Making a career change to nurse can happen fairly quickly. With an accelerated nursing program, you can earn a degree in as few as 16 months.
Like nurses, teachers make a profound impact on the people they help. Both are challenging and rewarding careers. And yet, according to the National Education Association (NEA), about 16% of teachers surveyed in 2025 planned to exit the profession for various reasons.
If you’re thinking of leaving the field, you might consider making a teacher-to-nurse career change.
Northeastern University supports the ambitions of teachers who are thinking of making the switch to healthcare. Our school facilitates this progress by offering an Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program designed specifically for career switchers.
With our ABSN program, you can make the career change to nurse quickly by leveraging your prior education. Here, it’s possible to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) in as few as 16 months.
Learn more about what you can expect from a career in nursing and explore the steps needed to switch to a new field.
What’s the fastest way to get a BSN? Take a closer look at accelerated nursing programs.
Why Teachers Make Great Nurses
What do teaching and nursing have in common? Both professions have the potential to profoundly impact others’ lives. While a teacher’s role is to guide students toward empowerment in their education and careers, a nurse guides patients toward healing and health.
Nurses also sometimes take on a teacher role in their patient care. Patient education is an important nursing responsibility. For example, they often help educate patients and caregivers on procedures and at-home care. Additionally, experienced nurses often mentor their less-experienced coworkers.
Nurses and teachers share more than just the role of educator. Other skills that transfer well between these two fields include:
- Adaptability
- Attention to detail
- Communication
- Critical thinking
- Emotional resilience
- Patience
- Problem-solving
- Resourcefulness
Another consideration is the patient population. If you’re dissatisfied with your teaching career but still want to work with children, you could pursue a career in pediatric nursing. Other nursing specialties to consider include:
- Labor and delivery
- Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
- Pediatric diabetes nurse
- Pediatric intensive care unit (PICU)
- Pediatric oncology
- Lactation consultant
- School nurse
Conversely, you might decide to pursue a nursing specialty in adult health or adult-gerontology. You could work as a home health nurse, hospice nurse, or long-term care nurse in an assisted living facility. There is a world of possibilities to explore in nursing.
Nursing vs. Teaching: Differences to Consider
Although nursing and teaching have many similarities, there are also differences to consider. One difference, for example, is salary expectations. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual salary for kindergarten and elementary school teachers was $62,310 as of May 2024. The BLS reports that the median annual salary for registered nurses (RNs) during that same time was $93,600.
Other differences between nursing vs. teaching include:
- Work environment: For teachers, the choice of work environment primarily boils down to public or private schools. Nurses, on the other hand, can choose from a vast array of work settings, including hospitals, doctors’ offices, specialist clinics, insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, home health agencies, emergency medical evacuation flights, and many more.
- Work schedules: Teachers tend to start work before the school day begins and continue to work long after it ends, grading papers and attending meetings. Many teachers also work second jobs during the summer vacation to make ends meet. In contrast, nurses’ schedules can vary from a typical 9-to-5 to 12-hour shifts three days per week.
- Career growth: For teachers, career growth might involve pursuing administrative roles, earning a master’s degree to become a principal or superintendent, or earning a doctorate to become a postsecondary professor. For nurses, career growth might involve moving away from patient care into management, administration, or nursing education. Some nurses might also continue to provide patient care as advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs).
Of course, the job duties are considerably different for nurses compared to teachers. Instead of preparing lesson plans, delivering lectures, grading homework and attending faculty meetings, you’ll bandage wounds, administer medication and, ideally, help patients enjoy better health.
Discover why autonomy in nursing is so important for patient care.
How to Switch Careers From Teacher to Nurse
Making a career change to a nurse is fairly straightforward. All aspiring RNs need a nursing degree, such as a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. They also need a passing score on the NCLEX-RN to obtain a nursing license. With a license in hand, new RNs can start applying to nursing jobs.
Since you already have a completed teaching degree, you might be eligible for an accelerated BSN program, which builds on your existing degree and leverages your experience toward a nursing degree. At Northeastern, the ABSN program requirements include:
- Completion of all prerequisites with a grade of C or better
- Official transcripts
- Goal statement, also known as an admission essay
- Updated resume
- Two letters of recommendation
Once you’re in the ABSN program, you’ll work through a curriculum that blends didactic learning in online classes with hands-on nursing labs and clinical rotations.
Why an ABSN Program Is Ideal for Teachers Seeking a Career Change
If you’ve decided that making the teacher-to-nurse career change is the right move for you, an ABSN program can be the ideal way to achieve it. An ABSN eliminates the need to go back to school for another four years to earn a nursing degree. You can graduate in as few as 16 months at Northeastern by leveraging your prior teaching degree.
Before enrolling in an accelerated BSN program, you must complete the prerequisite requirements. Because of your teaching degree, you might already have met some of these requirements, particularly if you’re a science teacher.
If you do need to take some prerequisites, you can get started on those while you’re still teaching. Take advantage of your summer vacation to dive into the prerequisites, and then submit your nursing school application. At Northeastern, you can submit your application after completing at least five of the prerequisites and registering for the last three. Your admissions counselor will help identify which credits transfer and help you enroll in the remaining classes.
Our ABSN program offers a fast pace, which is ideal for teachers interested in making a rapid career change to nursing. Within a couple of months of graduating, you’ll take the NCLEX to earn your nursing license.
Explore how to pay for nursing school with scholarships, grants, and other forms of financial aid.
Start Your Next Career With Northeastern University
Northeastern University welcomes nontraditional students who are interested in leveraging their prior education to earn a nursing degree in as few as 16 months. Our ABSN program offers exceptional student support, with small class sizes that allow for personalized attention. With three start dates and no waitlist required, you can start sooner than you think.
Contact an admissions counselor today to find out if our ABSN program is the right choice for your career switch. You can earn your nursing degree at any of our ABSN locations near Boston, Massachusetts, Providence, Rhode Island, or in Charlotte, North Carolina.
