Nursing Jobs to Help You Pay Off Student Loans Most Quickly

Because it takes just 4-12 weeks to become a CNA and courses are very affordable, you might consider earning your CNA license before you earn your nursing degree. The pay is considerably lower than RN salaries, but it will help you build your professional network. CNAs assist nurses and patients with activities of daily living (ADLs).

Medical transporters help patients get to where they need to go. They may assist patients on stretchers, gurneys, or wheelchairs, and accompany them to and from their destination. Hospitals typically provide training for this job.

Once you’ve passed certain basic courses, you may be eligible to work as a nursing assistant and help patients with ADLs. Most states require CPR certification for this role.

Monitor technicians work in an ICU or similar unit and keep track of heart rate monitors. They alert RNs or physicians if a monitor shows signs that indicate a patient needs attention. Depending on the state and hospital, you may need training in reading an EKG or other monitoring results.

Phlebotomists draw blood in hospitals, labs, or blood donor centers. Some employers provide training, while others require you to have passed the relevant nursing skills course.

Most medical technician jobs require you to have passed some nursing skills courses. Job duties vary but generally include tracking supplies, adding information to medical records, and maintaining a sterile environment.

Nurses in nonprofit (501(c)3) or government hospitals, including federal, state, and tribal governments, are eligible for PSLF if they work full time and have made at least 120 payments toward their loan. Most hospitals are eligible for 501(c)3s.

Nurse practitioners (except for neonatal), certified nurse midwives (CNW), and psychiatric nurse specialists working in specified areas with a shortage of primary care providers are eligible for NHSC loan repayment.

RNs, NPs, CNWs, and psychiatric nurse specialists working in NHSC-approved substance abuse disorder sites are eligible for NHSC-SUD loan forgiveness.

If you’re in the last year of your NP or CNM program and commit to at least three years of service in an NHSC-approved site, you can receive up to $30,000 in loan repayment each year for three years, with eligibility to continue and receive further forgiveness through the Students to Service program.

You may be eligible for the NHSC Rural Community Loan Repayment Program if you work in an approved rural SUD setting as an RN, NP, or CNM.

RNs, NPs, and nursing school faculty may be eligible for NHSC Nurse Corps loan forgiveness in exchange for teaching nursing or working in an underserved area.

Travel nurses go to where the demand is highest. During COVID-19, travel nurses could earn twice as much as regular nurses because hospitals were so understaffed. Demand is still high and so is travel nurse pay due to the ongoing shortage.

Nurse anesthetists are the highest-paid nurses, earning a median salary of $195,610 in 2021, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Starting in 2025, new nurse anesthetists must have a Doctorate of Nursing Practice.

NNPs work with newborns, either in a standard neonatal department or the neonatal intensive care unit. The 2019 median salary is $122,500, according to the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP).

Psychiatric mental-health nurse practitioners provide treatment for mental and behavioral health conditions. The 2019 median salary for this role is $125,000, according to AANP.

Adult-geriatric nurse practitioners care for adolescent and adult patients. AANP reports the median salary is $115,500 in 2019.