There is a major call to fill nursing jobs in Alaska, the largest state, especially travel nursing assignments. Top Alaskan hospitals continually search for dedicated registered nurses (RN), and the opportunities for nurses who love the great outdoors is magnificent; however, the state is fragmented by difficult terrain and weather, so residents rely on planes and trains to get them around. Nurses who choose to work here usually seek this type of challenge, and they feel drawn to supporting health care for a generally poor and under-served population.

Becoming a Nurse in Alaska

The on-campus situation for nurses in Alaska includes only one opportunity – the University of Alaska. This institution maintains a school of nursing, where students can earn anything from an AAS to BSN, including opportunities to upgrade from LPN to AAS and from RN to BSN. The specialties offered by the University of Alaska include adult care, clinical nurse, manager, neonatal/newborn care, pediatrics and psychiatric nurse. Alaska’s population has a strong need for nurses who also specialize in nutrition, counseling, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, prenatal care and other fields that can serve this state’s rural populations.

Nursing Jobs in Alaska

An LPN who works in Alaska can eark between $25,000 and $103,000 per year, depending upon expertise and location of the facility. For instance, an LPN who works in a nursing home in Anchorage can earn approximately $46,000 per year, and that same nurse can earn about $55,000 per year in Juneau. Some of the top nursing employers in Alaska include Providence Health Services, with facilities in Anchorage, Kodiak Island, Mat-Su Valley, Seward and Valdez; Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation, with services that extend from the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Regional Hospital in Bethel to four subregional clinics in Aniak, Emmonak, St. Mary’s and Toksook Bay, to community health clinics in each of 50 villages in Yukon-Kuskokwim region; and Banner Health System, with facilities in Fairbanks.