Types of Nurse Leadership Roles You Can Pursue With an MSN

Nursing

Types of Nurse Leadership Roles You Can Pursue With an MSN

Written by: University of Tulsa • Jan 7, 2025

A Nurse Leader in Front of a Whiteboard Gives a Presentation to Seated Students.

The nursing field has a wide variety of roles and opportunities available to skilled graduates. From specialized clinical nursing to administration, education, and research, high-level nursing roles can look very different from one graduate to another.

Although there are many options, gaining access to nurse leadership roles requires graduates to pursue advanced degrees, such as a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) , and gain experience in the workplace. With the right training, nursing leaders can pursue areas they are passionate about and shape a fulfilling career in health care.

What Is an MSN Degree?

A Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) is an advanced degree that many nurses choose to earn when they become ready to advance their careers. As a program that delves into both the research and clinical aspects of nursing, an MSN can be a great choice for students interested in learning how to become an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) or pursue an administrative or academic career. Depending on which type of MSN program students choose, they may have the option to concentrate on a specific area of nursing such as leadership and innovation, education, public health, or informatics and analytics.

With the knowledge and skills gained by earning an MSN, many graduates enter the field in clinical nursing roles. Whether working in public or private facilities, nursing graduates provide essential care to patients of all ages. Depending on their specialization, an MSN can allow nurses to take on entry or senior-level roles, treat patients of different age groups and genders, and deliver chronic or acute care.

For nurses looking to compete for nurse leadership roles or dedicate their careers to a specialized area of health care, completing an advanced degree like an MSN can be a fundamental step toward achieving those goals.

Pathway to Completing an MSN

Prospective nurses have a variety of educational pathways that they can follow throughout their careers. For those interested in completing an MSN, the typical educational pathway includes the following:

Undergraduate Education: entry-level programs include either an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN), an Associate of Science in Nursing, (ASN), or a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). While an ADN and an ASN can be completed much quicker, often in two years as opposed to four for a BSN, these abbreviated programs can limit career and educational options. Increasingly, a BSN is considered to be the industry-standard degree in nursing. Those who already have a bachelor’s in another subject but want to earn a BSN can consider an accelerated BSN program, which can help them earn the degree more quickly.
Registered Nurse Licensure: prior to entering the workforce, nurses must pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN) to begin clinical work as a registered nurse (RN).
Advanced Education: the primary advanced level programs for nurses are Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). Both typically require two to three years to complete. While they include practical skills training, MSNs often focus on nursing research, allowing graduates to build their knowledge of the academic and administrative side of nursing and preparing them for both managerial and bedside care roles. DNP programs typically focus on practical nursing skills, preparing graduates for advanced level clinical nursing roles.

Why Pursue an MSN Degree?

Pursuing an MSN degree can be a significant decision for many nurses. Without an advanced degree, RNs can enter the workforce and begin earning a living as a nurse, while a master’s program requires one to two more years of education. For many ambitious nurses, their long-term career goals in nurse leadership roles may require that they complete an MSN. Fortunately, online programs allow nurses to work while earning an advanced degree.

Some of the many advantages of pursuing an MSN include the following:

The opportunity to specialize in a specific area of nursing
Additional experience, allowing for more workplace autonomy and responsibility
Increased desirability as a candidate and the potential to work in different facilities or locations
An introduction to nursing research
Potential to pursue nursing education
Leadership training
A deeper understanding of nursing theory and methods

Typically, those hiring for administrative or managerial roles in hospital leadership, executive nurse leadership, and clinical nurse leadership look to candidates who have both workplace experience and advanced education. While some candidates reach senior roles without advanced degrees (but after several years of experience), many organizations require the extra knowledge and skill development provided by an MSN for executive roles.

Nurse Leadership Roles for MSN Graduates

One of the main appeals of earning an MSN is the opportunity to compete for coveted nurse leadership roles. As more and more nurses invest in advanced degrees, the benchmark to reach senior level roles in hospital leadership, executive nurse leadership and clinical nurse leadership rises, requiring candidates to enter the role with a well of advanced knowledge, practical experience, and managerial skills.

With this knowledge, however, skilled nurses can open doors for themselves to new and exciting career opportunities at the head of their teams or organizations. By earning an MSN, nursing graduates can take on nurse leadership roles that improve the lives of both their patients and peers.

Executive Leadership Roles

Nurse executives oversee entire departments within their organizations. Some executive leadership roles for nurses include the following.

Chief Nursing Officer (CNO)

The chief nursing officer (CNO) is typically a health care organization’s most senior level nurse leadership role. Normally reporting only to the president; chief executive officer (CEO); or in some cases, a chief nursing executive (CNE) of a facility, organization, or government agency, the CNO oversees the nursing systems and practices that their organization follows.

As a senior executive nurse leadership role, the CNO works with other members of hospital leadership to make high-level decisions regarding the organization’s business strategies, budgets, and patient care practices. In many organizations, the CNO is a public face of the facility and interacts with not only nursing staff and supervisors but also the public and community leaders. These responsibilities require a CNO to not only have practical experience but also possess strong communication and managerial skills.

Becoming a CNO is incredibly competitive and challenging. As the head nurse of an organization, CNO candidates have extensive training, an advanced degree such as an MSN, and significant workplace experience.

The median annual salary for chief nursing officers was approximately $146,100 as of October 2024, according to Payscale. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that positions for top executives, including CNOs, are projected to grow 6% between 2023 and 2033.

Director of Nursing

Achieving quality patient care requires the expertise of a team of experienced individuals. Within hospital leadership, the director of nursing can be instrumental in achieving positive patient outcomes and steering an organization in the right direction. While other individuals may handle clinical nurse leadership roles or executive nurse leadership roles, a director of nursing often fits between, working to improve the systems in place for clinical care nurses while reporting to nursing executives.

Unlike nurse administrators or medical and health services managers who may often take on more business-oriented roles, many facilities may look to a director of nursing to focus more closely on patient care itself and steer the overall course of a program. On a day-to-day basis, directors of nursing may do the following:

Coordinate with nurses and other medical professionals to shape a facility’s care strategies
Monitor the successes or challenges facing patient care
Hire nursing candidates and ensure candidates have the qualifications required for their role and in accordance with state law
Ensure patient care and hospital policies abide by state laws and regulations
Develop short- and long-term goals for the nursing department
Establish and update patient care policies as needed to ensure the highest quality patient care

As the main nurse leadership role tasked with managing nursing personnel and operations, the choices a nursing director makes can be incredibly influential to the success of a facility and its ability to provide quality patient care. While some candidates may be able to work their way into a director of nursing role with a BSN and extensive workplace experience, most large organizations look to MSN or DNP graduates to effectively steer their nursing programs.

The median annual salary for nursing directors was approximately $90,700 as of March 2023, according to Payscale. Salaries can vary based on the location, type, and size of the organization (and the candidate’s level of education and workplace experience). The BLS reports that positions for top executives, including directors of nursing, are projected to increase by 6% between 2022 and 2032.

Nonclinical Leadership Roles

Some nurses may want to pursue leadership roles that don’t focus on clinical care but on other aspects of care optimization or delivery. Some of these roles include the following.

Nurse Administrator

A nurse administrator is a non-clinical nurse leadership role reporting to a hospital or medical facility’s executives. Working to help oversee a hospital’s nursing department, nurse administrators normally work in office settings and focus on the needs of nurses, handle staffing, and manage the systems and policies behind patient care.

As a role that manages other nurses and supervisors, earning an MSN is a valuable way for candidates to gain the knowledge required to make informed decisions about a hospital’s systems and assess the success of different protocols.

On a day-to-day basis, nurse administrators may find themselves taking on a wide variety of duties, including the following:

Preparing budget reports for executives
Hiring and overseeing staffing levels
Setting and monitoring performance goals
Ensuring the nursing department follows state-mandated laws and regulations
Providing resources to nursing staff and their supervisors to maintain employee satisfaction and retention
Coordinating with supervisors to monitor the quality of patient care and adapt administrative strategies

While many nurses expect to spend much of their career in a clinical bedside care role, nurse administrators in hospital leadership can be just as crucial to quality patient care as those working hands-on with patients. By ensuring that hospitals are running smoothly and that both patients and medical staff have the resources they need to succeed, nurse administrators can play a valuable role in the success of a facility.

As of May 2024, the median annual salary for nurse administrators was approximately $96,540, according to Payscale. With the American Nurses Association reporting that as many as one-fifth of nurses intend to retire in the next five years, well-educated nurses are in demand to replace them in crucial nurse leadership roles across the country. According to the BLS, positions for nurses in administrative roles similar to medical and health services managers are projected to increase by about 29%, which equates to around 61,400 openings each year on average between 2023 and 2033.

Nurse Educator

The nursing field is constantly evolving. As new technologies are invented, research conducted, and systems developed to improve the overall quality of patient care, the nurses that provide that care need to advance their skills as well. Working as a nurse educator is a nurse leadership role that can take on different forms depending on the facility, organization, or institution.

Earning a degree like an MSN can be instrumental to gaining the knowledge required to educate other nurses for those interested in working in different medical facilities. With the included research aspect of an MSN, graduates are often better equipped to keep up with research and innovations on their own, to then pass along to their students.

Within smaller organizations or community positions, nurses may be able to simply complete a BSN to be eligible for educational roles. However, working as an educator in a university or other postsecondary institution requires graduates to complete either an MSN or DNP. Many future educators also earn certification such as the Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) designation from the National League for Nursing (NLN).

Nurse educators both teach student nurses in classroom settings and provide additional training to nurses in the workforce, offering the knowledge and skills to provide quality care to their patients. According to the BLS, the approximate median annual salary for postsecondary nursing instructors and teachers was $80,780 as of May 2023. and overall employment is projected to increase by 18% between 2023 and 2033.

Medical and Health Services Manager

Medical and health services managers work in hospital leadership to oversee overall operations. Depending on the size of the facility, medical and health services managers may be in charge of the entire facility or of specific departments and teams. Like a nurse administrator, becoming a medical and health services manager is a great option for those who would like to work in a medical facility but are more inclined to pursue a non-clinical role.

Working closely with nurses and their supervisors, medical and health services managers help improve patient care by developing and implementing an organization’s care policies. This may involve detailed administrative duties such as managing budgets, maintaining records, keeping track of resources to optimize their performance, or coordinating with medical professionals to implement new systems that abide by state laws and regulations.

While specific certifications are not required, there are some that can be useful to medical and health services managers, such as those in risk management, finance, or data analysis.

According to the BLS, medical and health services managers earned approximately $110,680 per year as of May 2023. The BLS projects positions will increase by 29% between 2023 and 2033, much higher than the average for all occupations, making medical and health services management a valuable option for skilled nursing graduates.

Clinical Leadership Roles

Effective nursing teams have clinical leaders who have a high level of patient care knowledge. Roles in clinical leadership include the following.

Clinical Nurse Leader

Clinical nurse leaders (CNLs) work with other medical practitioners such as clinicians, specialists, physicians, pharmacists, and nurses to improve patient care. CNLs function as a resource for patients’ care teams, help evaluate treatments and coordinate care plans, perform research, and provide education and direct care to patients. They also manage clinical care aspects such as interpersonal communications and leadership, outcomes measurement, care coordination, transitions of care, risk assessment, and overall quality of patient care.

Eligibility for these positions requires both an MSN and CNL certification, which involves passing an exam offered by the Commission on Nurse Certification (CNC).

With such a wide variety of duties and responsibilities, CNL candidates must build a balance of communication skills, leadership qualities, research experience, and the ability to coordinate and delegate between other medical professionals.

According to Payscale, the median annual salary for clinical nurse leaders was approximately $91,460 as of September 2024. As the role of CNL is relatively new, the BLS does not yet offer salary data. However, the position is comparable to advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) roles, which the BLS projects to grow by 40% between 2023 and 2033.

Build a Fulfilling Career in Nurse Leadership with an MSN

Higher education can be a great way for nursing graduates to expand their career options and pursue nurse leadership roles. In a program like the Online Master of Science in Nursing at the University of Tulsa , students can gain the experience they need to prepare for a wider variety of roles in nursing and compete for coveted senior leadership positions.

An online program accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), the University of Tulsa’s MSN program allows students to choose between three specialty tracks: Education and Elevation, Public Health Global Vision, and Leadership and Innovation while studying from experienced faculty.

Recommended Readings

10 MSN Specialties: How a Concentration Can Help You Focus Your Degree

Is an MSN Worth It? Reasons to Pursue This Advanced Degree

10 Nursing Certifications for MSN Graduates

Sources:

American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL)

American Nurses Association, Director of Nursing

American Nurses Association, “How to Become a Director of Nursing”

American Nurses Association, Nurses in the Workforce

American Nurses Association, “Shaping Future Healthcare: The Path to Becoming a Nurse Educator”

American Nurses Association, “What Is a Chief Nursing Officer / Chief Nurse Executive?”

Indeed, “31 Types of Nursing Positions: With Job Duties and Salaries”