How to Become a Pediatric Nurse

A career as a pediatric nurse often comes with both laughter and heartbreak. When you become a pediatric or “peds” nurse, your career expands as you gain experience caring for acute, chronic, or critically ill children.

Here you can discover what it takes and how long it takes to become a pediatric nurse. Learn about the skills, education, and certifications you need to succeed in that role.

Generally speaking, a pediatric nurse cares for babies and children up to age 18. Peds nurses are skilled at customizing their care based on a child’s developmental needs.

Pediatric nurse workplaces include:

Responsibilities vary by setting. For example, a nurse in a pediatric neurology clinic might help a child prepare for brain surgery. This can involve collecting blood work, gathering vital signs, and counseling patients and families before surgery.

A pediatric registered nurse (RN) working in a children’s hospital might care for the same child after brain surgery. In this setting, their responsibilities are more focused on ensuring a child is stable after the procedure. Their nursing tasks might include:

No matter which setting a pediatric nurse chooses, the role requires taking a patient- and family-centered approach to care. Peds nurses must include the child’s parents in clinical decisions. This often means involving parents in interdisciplinary rounds and providing individualized teaching.

To become a pediatric nurse, you need to earn an associate degree in nursing (ADN) or a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degree and pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) to receive RN licensure. Then, you must gain experience in pediatric nursing. You can also consider becoming a certified pediatric nurse.

You need at least an ADN degree to take the NCLEX-RN and get your RN license. However, a BSN degree offers more opportunities for leadership positions, continuing education, promotions, and higher salaries. ADN programs are typically offered by community colleges.

To become a pediatric nurse, you must first complete your nursing education, pass the NCLEX-RN, and become licensed in the state where you plan to practice.

To maintain RN licensure, you’ll renew your nursing license every two years. The requirements vary by state, but license renewals generally require a combination of working hours and continuing education.

After you have your RN license, you can apply for pediatric nursing jobs. Depending on the nursing specialty you choose, you may need to get certifications before working on a unit. Some examples of certifications for peds nurses, depending in large part on specialization, are:

Pediatric nurses can get certified in their specialty area after working for a few years. Certifications can supplement your nursing practice, but aren’t mandatory to work in a unit. Examples of optional certifications include:

Pediatric nurses make an average of $33.23 per hour and $71,174 per year, according to Payscale data from May 2025. The projected job growth rate for RNs is 6% from 2023-2033, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).