Clinical Nurse Specialists
Direct nursing staff in the provision of patient care in a clinical practice setting, such as a hospital, hospice, clinic, or home. Ensure adherence to established clinical policies, protocols, regulations, and standards.
- O*NET-SOC code
29-1141.04 - Preparation Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
Wages
BLS doesn't publish wages for Clinical Nurse Specialists separately. These are the figures for Registered Nurses (29-1141), its parent occupation.
Median annual wage, U.S.$97,550
Employment, U.S.3,379,720
Median hourly wage$46.90
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $68,940 | $80,330 | $97,550 | $112,350 | $137,470 |
By state (51)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 54,340 | $77,080 | 1.18 |
| Alaska | 7,510 | $109,480 | 1.06 |
| Arizona | 73,150 | $99,500 | 1.04 |
| Arkansas | 29,400 | $78,940 | 1.04 |
| California | 338,940 | $140,270 | 0.86 |
| Colorado | 54,490 | $100,260 | 0.87 |
| Connecticut | 40,110 | $102,740 | 1.09 |
| Delaware | 14,290 | $99,520 | 1.36 |
| District of Columbia | 11,440 | $102,540 | 0.75 |
| Florida | 229,940 | $84,190 | 1.07 |
| Georgia | 100,950 | $93,550 | 0.95 |
| Hawaii | 12,940 | $136,320 | 0.95 |
| Idaho | 16,880 | $92,460 | 0.91 |
| Illinois | 138,910 | $95,990 | 1.05 |
| Indiana | 68,980 | $83,500 | 0.99 |
| Iowa | 34,420 | $78,630 | 1.02 |
| Kansas | 33,800 | $79,320 | 1.08 |
| Kentucky | 50,300 | $81,040 | 1.16 |
| Louisiana | 48,970 | $80,230 | 1.16 |
| Maine | 16,540 | $86,990 | 1.19 |
| Maryland | 52,910 | $99,790 | 0.88 |
| Massachusetts | 88,200 | $104,550 | 1.12 |
| Michigan | 104,950 | $94,300 | 1.10 |
| Minnesota | 70,110 | $101,510 | 1.09 |
| Mississippi | 29,060 | $77,090 | 1.15 |
| Missouri | 76,310 | $81,780 | 1.20 |
| Montana | 10,950 | $85,280 | 0.99 |
| Nebraska | 24,720 | $84,730 | 1.11 |
| Nevada | 27,070 | $103,670 | 0.80 |
| New Hampshire | 15,390 | $99,700 | 1.04 |
| New Jersey | 92,680 | $106,500 | 0.99 |
| New Mexico | 17,980 | $94,340 | 0.95 |
| New York | 205,810 | $109,440 | 0.98 |
| North Carolina | 111,120 | $84,350 | 1.03 |
| North Dakota | 11,340 | $80,730 | 1.21 |
| Ohio | 143,730 | $82,510 | 1.19 |
| Oklahoma | 38,270 | $82,920 | 1.03 |
| Oregon | 39,730 | $129,010 | 0.93 |
| Pennsylvania | 146,520 | $96,430 | 1.11 |
| Rhode Island | 10,090 | $100,640 | 0.93 |
| South Carolina | 49,750 | $82,360 | 0.99 |
| South Dakota | 14,710 | $78,060 | 1.48 |
| Tennessee | 72,200 | $81,500 | 1.01 |
| Texas | 271,380 | $95,970 | 0.89 |
| Utah | 27,420 | $84,600 | 0.73 |
| Vermont | 7,410 | $97,460 | 1.12 |
| Virginia | 77,490 | $93,600 | 0.87 |
| Washington | 69,260 | $124,200 | 0.90 |
| West Virginia | 23,430 | $80,130 | 1.54 |
| Wisconsin | 68,060 | $95,530 | 1.06 |
| Wyoming | 5,330 | $83,760 | 0.87 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nurse Practitioners | 5 | 0.987 |
| 2 | Nurse Midwives | 5 | 0.983 |
| 3 | Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary | 5 | 0.982 |
| 4 | Physician Assistants | 5 | 0.979 |
| 5 | Sports Medicine Physicians | 5 | 0.979 |
| 6 | Acute Care Nurses | 4 | 0.978 |
| 7 | Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians | 5 | 0.978 |
| 8 | Exercise Physiologists | 4 | 0.977 |
| 9 | Hospitalists | 5 | 0.976 |
| 10 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | 5 | 0.974 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Clinical Nurse Specialists, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nurse Practitioners | Active Listening | 0.76 | 0.987 |
| Obstetricians and Gynecologists | Reading Comprehension | 0.87 | 0.970 |
| Advanced Practice Psychiatric Nurses | Negotiation | 0.88 | 0.969 |
| Family Medicine Physicians | Active Listening | 0.76 | 0.963 |
| Podiatrists | Reading Comprehension | 0.87 | 0.963 |
| Neuropsychologists | Reading Comprehension | 1.00 | 0.961 |
| Neurologists | Reading Comprehension | 1.12 | 0.959 |
| Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric | Reading Comprehension | 1.24 | 0.950 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Clinical Nurse Specialists, excluding software Clinical Nurse Specialists already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| MEDITECH software | 12 of 20 | 7.2x |
| Epic Systems | 11 of 20 | 8.1x |
| Greenway Medical Technologies PrimeSUITE | 5 of 20 | 21.0x |
| Medical procedure coding software | 6 of 20 | 6.2x |
| Practice Partner Total Practice Partner | 3 of 20 | 34.6x |
| Medical condition coding software | 5 of 20 | 5.8x |
| Allscripts PM | 3 of 20 | 15.4x |
| Automatic Data Processing AdvancedMD EHR | 3 of 20 | 15.4x |
| Benchmark Systems Benchmark Clinical EHR | 3 of 20 | 15.4x |
| CareCloud Central | 3 of 20 | 15.4x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speaking | Essential skill | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.38 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 3.62 | 4.00 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.62 | 4.00 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 3.62 | 3.88 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 3.50 | 4.12 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Science | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.75 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.62 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.25 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 2.50 | 3.00 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 2.38 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.12 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 1.50 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 0.88 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.50 | 0.50 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 4.76 | 4.95 |
| Education and Training | 4.43 | 6.10 |
| Psychology | 4.29 | 5.71 |
| English Language | 4.29 | 5.33 |
| Biology | 4.00 | 4.71 |
| Therapy and Counseling | 3.95 | 5.05 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 3.71 | 5.00 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 3.71 | 4.95 |
| Administration and Management | 3.57 | 4.33 |
| Mathematics | 3.10 | 3.81 |
| Administrative | 2.95 | 4.43 |
| Public Safety and Security | 2.95 | 3.00 |
| Law and Government | 2.90 | 3.38 |
| Computers and Electronics | 2.86 | 3.67 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 2.86 | 3.38 |
| Chemistry | 2.76 | 3.52 |
| Communications and Media | 2.76 | 2.90 |
| Philosophy and Theology | 2.60 | 3.38 |
| Economics and Accounting | 2.52 | 2.71 |
| Telecommunications | 2.48 | 1.67 |
| Production and Processing | 2.33 | 2.76 |
| Design | 2.05 | 2.24 |
| Physics | 2.05 | 1.95 |
| Foreign Language | 2.05 | 1.48 |
| Engineering and Technology | 2.00 | 2.19 |
| Sales and Marketing | 1.90 | 2.24 |
| Mechanical | 1.76 | 1.38 |
| Transportation | 1.67 | 1.48 |
| Geography | 1.62 | 1.48 |
| History and Archeology | 1.62 | 1.38 |
| Building and Construction | 1.43 | 0.86 |
| Fine Arts | 1.14 | not rated |
| Food Production | 1.14 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Oral Comprehension | 4.12 | 4.88 |
| Oral Expression | 4.12 | 4.38 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.38 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Speech Clarity | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Written Expression | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Information Ordering | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Near Vision | 3.62 | 3.88 |
| Selective Attention | 3.25 | 3.12 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.12 | 3.50 |
| Originality | 3.00 | 3.38 |
| Far Vision | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Number Facility | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Speed of Closure | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Time Sharing | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Memorization | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 2.75 | 3.00 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Manual Dexterity | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Auditory Attention | 2.62 | 2.75 |
| Finger Dexterity | 2.62 | 2.62 |
| Trunk Strength | 2.62 | 2.12 |
| Visualization | 2.50 | 2.75 |
| Control Precision | 2.00 | 2.50 |
| Multilimb Coordination | 2.00 | 2.50 |
| Depth Perception | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Extent Flexibility | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Stamina | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Static Strength | 1.88 | 2.12 |
| Reaction Time | 1.88 | 1.75 |
| Gross Body Coordination | 1.88 | 1.62 |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.88 | 1.50 |
| Response Orientation | 1.75 | 1.50 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 1.75 | 1.38 |
| Dynamic Strength | 1.75 | 1.25 |
| Explosive Strength | 1.62 | 0.88 |
| Rate Control | 1.38 | 0.50 |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.12 | not rated |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.12 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.00 | not rated |
| Night Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Sound Localization | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft Outlook hot
- Microsoft PowerPoint hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- eClinicalWorks EHR software hot
- Allscripts Professional EHR
- Amkai AmkaiCharts
- Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR
- Cerner Millennium
- ChartWare EMR
- Email software
- GE Healthcare Centricity EMR
- Medscribbler Enterprise
- MicroFour PracticeStudio.NET EMR
- NextGen Healthcare Information Systems EMR
- Online medical databases
- SOAPware EMR
- StatCom Patient Flow Logistics Enterprise Suite
- SynaMed EMR
- Texas Medical Software SpringCharts EMR
- Web browser software
- e-MDs software
Where it concentrates
BLS doesn't publish wages for Clinical Nurse Specialists separately. These are the figures for Registered Nurses (29-1141), its parent occupation.
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morgantown, WV | 4,510 | 3.08 | $80,130 |
| Rochester, MN | 6,390 | 2.39 | $101,660 |
| Ann Arbor, MI | 10,980 | 2.30 | $103,450 |
| Gainesville, FL | 7,470 | 2.25 | $81,870 |
| Greenville, NC | 3,770 | 2.15 | $81,670 |
| Iowa City, IA | 4,090 | 2.00 | $85,940 |
| Sioux Falls, SD-MN | 7,680 | 1.98 | $75,350 |
| Charleston, WV | 4,320 | 1.92 | $80,230 |
| Springfield, IL | 4,110 | 1.87 | $84,220 |
| Mayaguez, PR | 2,070 | 1.83 | $39,280 |