Registered Nurse
Registered nurses assess patients, manage their medications and treatments, and coordinate the care each person receives across a shift.
- Median salary
- $114,000
3.7%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 366,200
2.1%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +26.1%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Low
- 1 out of 10
- Average hours
- 41/wk
+1h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- In shortage
national
- Registered nurses work on hospital wards, in aged care homes, community health centres, GP clinics and patients' own homes.
- It is a different job from an enrolled nurse's: the enrolled nurse delivers care under supervision, while the registered nurse assesses, plans and takes clinical responsibility for the patient.
- You need a nursing degree and registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia to work under the registered nurse title.
How much do registered nurses earn?
The median full-time salary for a registered nurse is $114,000 per annum, before tax, up $23,500 since 2018.
Most of your pay comes from the enterprise agreement or award covering your employer and your classification level within it, and that level rises with experience and further qualifications. Shift loadings, night and weekend penalties, overtime and on-call can add a noticeable amount on top, so a figure quoted for a ward job often assumes you will work those. Before you accept a position, ask whether the advertised rate includes loadings or is the base, and whether penalties are paid separately or already rolled into the package.
What does a registered nurse do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Assessing a patient at the start of a shift and deciding what needs escalating to a doctor
- Administering medications and IV infusions, checking the dose against the chart and the patient's identification each time
- Writing up care in the electronic health record as the shift goes, so the next nurse works from an accurate picture
- Managing wound care, catheters, mobility and hygiene for patients who cannot do these things themselves
- Handing over at the end of a shift, because a detail missed there carries into the next one
What skills do registered nurses need?
Employers look for patient care and support, clinical assessment and treatment, medication management, backed by Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems fluency and strong written communication.
Specialist skills
- Patient care and support
- Clinical assessment and treatment
- Medication management
- Care planning and coordination
- Infection control and hygiene
Software and tools
- Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems
- Patient monitoring equipment
- IV infusion pumps
- Clinical assessment scales
- Medical documentation software
General skills
- Written communication
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
Is the job growing?
About 366,200 people work as registered nurses in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 26.1% over the decade to 2035. That's very strong growth. Few roles in Australia are expanding this fast, and it points to solid demand for years to come.
How do you become a registered nurse?
Here's the path most registered nurses take, step by step.
- 1Complete a Bachelor of Nursing
Three years full time at university, with supervised clinical placements in hospitals, aged care and community settings built into the degree. Registration requires a program accredited by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, so check that before you apply.
- 2Register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia
Applications go through AHPRA once you have your degree, and cover identity, English language skills and a criminal history check. You cannot use the registered nurse title until this comes through.
- 3Do a graduate year in a health service
Most new graduates apply for a supported first year, rotating through wards with extra supervision and study time. It is paid work, and it is where a real patient load replaces the case studies.
- 4Settle on a clinical area and build on it
Emergency, paediatrics, theatre, mental health and aged care each take additional training. Postgraduate certificates and diplomas are common once you know where you want to stay, and they move you up the classification scale.
- 5Consider the enrolled nurse route first
A Diploma of Nursing takes roughly 18 months to two years and registers you as an enrolled nurse, which is paid work sooner. Study toward the degree later, and some of the diploma can count toward it.
Study routes we have checked
Qualifications that are a recognised way into this role, and what else you need.
- Bachelor of Nursing
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Bachelor of Nursing - Advanced Standing
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Bachelor of Nursing (Enrolled Nurse Entry)
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Bachelor of Nursing (Enrolled Nurses)
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Bachelor of Nursing (Pre-registration)
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Midwifery
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Psychological Science
A recognised route into this role
Complete an NMBA-approved entry-to-practice nursing programme and satisfy registration standards before practising. Post-registration or research-only study is not an initial-registration route. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
- Master of Nursing
A step towards this role
Only graduate-entry versions approved as entry-to-practice nursing programmes lead to initial registration; post-registration masters do not. Satisfy registration standards before practising. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
Ready to apply as a registered nurse?
Whether you're working toward becoming a registered nurse or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a registered nurse move to?
Moving into Nurse Manager typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $24,200 a year more on average.
- Nurse ManagerRecorded move$138,200+$24,200
- Director of NursingRecorded move$135,200+$21,200
- MidwifeRecorded move$109,900−$4,100
- Nurse EducatorRecorded move$109,200−$4,800
Thick lines are moves people were recorded making in Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility (income tax records, 2011-12 to 2020-21). Thin lines are moves we suggest from skill overlap and entry requirements.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
Nurse Manager Unit management uses clinical judgement and staff coordination; additional management study prepares registered nurses for the role.Known move | +$24,200 | 13% | reskill |
Director of Nursing Senior nursing leadership builds on ward experience and clinical governance; a short management course supports the move.Known move | +$21,200 | 46% | short course |
Nurse Practitioner Advanced assessment and prescribing extend registered nurse practice; a master's degree and endorsement are required. | +$0 | 58% | reskill |
Midwife Registered nurses bring clinical assessment and medication management; midwifery registration requires postgraduate midwifery study.Known move | −$4,100 | 55% | reskill |
Nurse Educator Clinical teaching and curriculum design build on bedside expertise; further education study is needed for nurse educator roles.Known move | −$4,800 | 12% | reskill |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a registered nurse?
The typical registered nurse is 38 years old; 86% are women, 56% work full-time, and full-timers average 41 hours a week.
- 38
- Median age
- 86%
- Female share
- 56%
- Full-time
- +1h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a registered nurse?
You spend the shift moving between patients, and the pace rarely lets up: someone needs pain relief, a family member wants an update, and a doctor is asking for observations you have not taken yet. Rosters run around the clock, so night shifts, weekend work and public holidays are part of the pattern. What holds nurses in the job is the contact, because you follow a patient's progress and you are the one who notices when something changes. If you want your judgement to matter to someone's day and you can carry the physical load, the work is likely to hold your interest; if you need quiet, predictable hours, a ward will wear you out.
What people like
- You watch treatment work. A patient settles once the pain relief goes in, or a wound closes over weeks, and you saw it happen.
- Your clinical judgement gets used. You notice a change in someone's breathing before the observation chart flags it, and you act on it.
- Ward teams are close. You work under pressure with the same people shift after shift, and the nurse you hand over to knows the same patients.
- The qualification travels. Registration works anywhere in Australia, and nursing experience opens doors into community health, education and management later on.
What people find hard
- The roster takes over your life. Rotating shifts make regular commitments hard to keep, and a run of nights leaves you recovering rather than living.
- Wards run short some days. When staffing is tight you carry more patients than you can give proper attention to, and that is the part nurses describe as hardest.
- People are frightened, and it lands on you. Patients in pain and worried families can be angry or demanding, and you are the one standing in front of them.
- Patients die. Some of the people you have cared for, including those you have looked after for months, do not recover.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ registered nurses?
Health Care and Social Assistance employs the largest share of registered nurses.
Top employing industries
- 1Health Care and Social Assistance
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 63.7% | |
|---|---|---|
| Postgraduate | 20% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 9% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 2.6% | |
| Year 12 or below | 1.8% |
Will AI replace registered nurses?
Low exposure. Unlikely. AI will change some of the work around this job, not the job itself.
Automation has a small footprint in registered nursing, because the work depends on hands-on assessment and physical care: taking observations, inserting a cannula, repositioning a patient, seeing that someone is deteriorating. The systems that are now common, electronic health records, medication scanning and infusion pumps with dose limits, cut paperwork and catch errors, but the nurse still checks the patient against what the screen says. If you are training now, the clinical skills matter most, along with enough comfort in the ward's software to spot when a record and a patient do not match.
How a typical week splits
None of the main tasks in this job.
- Writing up care in the electronic health record25% of the week
Templates and voice-to-text cut the typing, and clinical language models can draft a summary that a nurse then reviews before it stands as the record.
- Assessing patients and monitoring their condition30% of the week
Taking observations, listening to a chest and noticing a change in someone's colour happen in person and stay with the nurse.
- Administering medications and IV fluids25% of the week
Scanning and smart pumps confirm the drug and dose, but the nurse checks the patient, the line and the response.
- Handover, care planning and talking with families20% of the week
Explaining a treatment plan to a worried family, or briefing the next shift on what changed overnight, depends on reading the room.
How we work this out
We break each job into its main tasks, estimate the share of a typical week each one takes, and judge how far current AI and automation tools reach into it. The score out of 10 starts from the job's overall rating (low is 1 to 3, moderate 4 to 6, high 7 to 10) and the task split places it within that range. Source: Career Tips analysis of each role's main tasks.
Common questions about becoming a registered nurse
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do registered nurses earn in Australia?
Full-time registered nurses earn a median $114,000 per year before tax. That figure covers every setting and level of experience, so a new graduate and a clinical nurse specialist both sit inside it. Treat it as a guide when you compare offers, because loadings change what actually lands in your account.
How long does it take to become a registered nurse?
Three years of full-time study for the degree, then a graduate year before most people feel confident on a full patient load. If you begin as an enrolled nurse, the diploma takes about 18 months to two years and you can put that study toward the degree later.
Are registered nurses in demand in Australia?
Registered nurses are currently in shortage nationally, and employment is projected to grow 26.1% over the decade to 2035. For someone entering now, that points to continuing vacancies across hospital, aged care and community settings.
Will AI replace registered nurses?
No. The tasks that need hands, eyes and judgement, such as assessing a deteriorating patient or inserting a cannula, are the ones automation touches least. What has changed is the paperwork around them, so a graduate who picks up the ward's software quickly spends less time on admin and more with patients.
What can a registered nurse move into later?
Midwifery is a common step, and nurses bring the clinical assessment and medication skills that postgraduate midwifery study builds on, though midwives earn $4,100 less than registered nurses. Management is the other main route, as a nurse manager or director of nursing, where staffing, budgets and clinical governance take over from bedside care and the pay rises with the responsibility.
Do registered nurses have to work night shifts?
Most hospital roles are rostered around the clock, so night shifts, weekend work and public holidays come with the territory, while clinic and community roles often keep closer to office hours. If shift work is the part you are unsure about, ask at interview how the roster is set and how far ahead it is published.
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