Funding Gap Adds to Las Vegas ' Nursing Shortage

In the private sector, a nurse with a master's degree can earn between $85,000 and $125,000. In a public sector teaching job, nurses are paid between $55,000 and $85,000.

This imbalance is just one of the reasons why Nevada faces a significant nursing shortage. Limited positions for nursing students in Nevada's schools and heavy work loads carried by current nurses also contribute to the problem.

“This is not just a nursing shortage,” says Carolyn Yucha, RN, Ph.D., FAAN, dean and professor in UNLV's School of Nursing. “The situation is exacerbated by continued increased demand for nurses, particularly in Southern Nevada.”

The solution lies in a boost in the number of master's and doctorally-prepared nursing faculty. The Nevada Legislature in 2003 allowed not only for UNLV nursing students to attend school year-round, but for professors to earn more by working year-round instead of the typical nine academic months. By going to school year-round, UNLV nursing students can now graduate 16 months after entering the program. In turn, students receive a more rapid-track quality education, putting better qualified nurses into our heath care workforce faster.

Also during the 2001 legislative session, the enrollment allocation at state nursing schools doubled. The challenge now is that schools don't have enough master's or doctorally degreed faculty to teach all the students. There are eight unfilled nursing faculty positions currently at UNLV. In order to serve existing students and meet the increased class size mandated by the Legislature, UNLV faculty are working longer hours and year-round instead of a typical nine-month schedule.

“To help combat the shortage of properly educated nursing professors,” says Yucha, “UNLV now offers advanced nursing degrees online. Working professionals can complete online coursework during their off-hours to receive master's or doctoral degrees.”

The School of Nursing has also designated graduate student fellowships as a top priority during Invent the Future, UNLV's first comprehensive fundraising campaign that will provide $500 million in resources to fund the future of our community. Private support of these fellowships will fund graduate tuition, research costs, or similar items in the graduate program essential to attract nursing professionals back to the classroom for advanced education. These stipends may be combined with graduate assistant positions to enable students to focus on their studies rather than pursue outside employment.

Pete Codella contributed this story for the summer issue of UNLV Magazine.