Featured
Tags
You’ve dreamed of this: that first classroom—or virtual learning space—where you’ll teach, mentor, and guide nursing students toward becoming highly skilled, compassionate, dedicated healthcare professionals. For registered nurses who have identified nursing education as their next calling, the path forward is clear, and the opportunity is significant. The national demand for nursing educators is strong,1 and the profession is actively looking for experienced nurses ready to make the shift from bedside to classroom.
Whether teaching at an academic institution is your goal or you’re exploring other nurse educator jobs in clinical staff development, simulation, or continuing education, here are five tips to help you launch your career in nursing education—along with a closer look at the qualifications most positions require.
What Nurse Educator Qualifications Do You Need?
Before exploring how to land your first nursing educator role, it helps to understand the credentials most positions require. A Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) is the standard credential for entry into most nurse educator jobs at academic institutions. According to NurseJournal.org, nurse educators must hold at minimum an MSN, though many roles—particularly at four-year colleges and universities—prefer or require doctoral preparation.2 Notably, more than 80% of current nurse faculty vacancies nationwide prefer or require doctoral credentials.1
For practicing registered nurses, an RN to MSN program is one of the most direct pathways into nursing education. RN to MSN online options have made this transition more accessible than ever, giving working nurses the opportunity to pursue a master’s degree in nursing while maintaining their clinical practice. A Master of Science in Nursing program with a focus on nursing education also positions graduates to sit for the National League for Nursing’s Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) exam—a recognized professional credential that demonstrates dedication to the teaching role.3
Whether you’re exploring traditional master’s in nursing programs, online MSN programs, or accelerated options, building graduate-level preparation is your essential first step. Chamberlain University’s MSN program includes flexible online options designed for working nurses.
Five Tips to Find Your First Nurse Educator Role
1. Apply for Adjunct Positions
Adjunct, or part-time, teaching positions can represent a traditional starting point in academia for most newly prepared nursing educators. For some MSN graduates, adjunct faculty roles are an end goal—part-time positions allow nurse educators to teach while continuing clinical work as an RN or nurse practitioner. For others, an adjunct position is the first step toward eventually securing a full-time nurse faculty role at a nursing school.
Given the persistent nationwide faculty shortage across nursing school programs, many institutions are actively recruiting qualified nurses for these positions. Opportunities are real and available—especially for nurses who hold an MSN degree or are actively enrolled in MSN nursing coursework. For some MSN grads who are also nurse educators in clinical settings, adjunct work creates a meaningful bridge between two professional identities.
Where to look: Search nursing school and university career pages, national job boards, and professional association listings for adjunct nurse educator jobs. Chamberlain University actively recruits experienced clinical nurses and nurse practitioners to consider nursing education careers on our faculty. Explore open positions.
2. Give Your CV a New Focus
Clinical experience is essential for a nurse educator role, but your CV should tell the story of a teacher, mentor, and guide, not just a clinician. When applying for nurse educator jobs, think beyond direct patient care and surface the educational experiences already in your professional history.
Have you oriented or precepted nurses? Include it. Have you developed staff education materials, led simulations, or contributed to curriculum work at your hospital or health system? These are exactly the experiences that nursing schools value in nurse educator candidates. Public education activities—such as leading CPR classes, presenting at community health events, or facilitating wellness workshops—also demonstrate your ability to communicate, teach, and engage diverse learners.
If you’re targeting an online nursing school position or a role in a virtual learning environment, highlight any experience with digital platforms, telehealth education tools, or online course facilitation. Online nursing school settings may place a particular premium on educators who are fluent in digital learning environments.
Tip: Frame your CV around outcomes—not just what you did, but what learners gained from your guidance. Concrete, measurable examples of educational impact can make you a stronger candidate in a competitive nursing education market.
3. Consider Experience-Boosting Opportunities
If formal teaching experience is thin on your resume, there are some ways to build the qualifications that nursing educators use every day. Look for structured opportunities that sharpen your skills before applying for your first nurse educator job.
Leading NCLEX-RN review courses can be one of the most effective ways to practice teaching complex clinical content in a focused setting. Academic coaching is another avenue worth exploring: In many nursing school programs—including online nursing school settings—academic coaches support students navigating their coursework, track participation and progress, and connect learners with faculty or resources as needed.
Other experience-boosting options include serving as a clinical preceptor for students from a nursing school partner program, contributing to nursing competency workshops at your clinical site, or presenting at regional or national nursing education conferences. Earning the National League for Nursing’s Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) credential can be another meaningful step—one that signals a professional commitment to the nurse educator role and cam distinguish your application in a nurse educator job search.3
4. Prepare—Really Prepare—for an Interview
An interview for a nurse educator job is different from the clinical interviews you’ve experienced. You’ll be expected to speak thoughtfully not only about your nursing expertise, but about your philosophy of teaching, your approach to student success, and your vision for nursing education.
Take time before any interview to be able to clearly articulate your teaching philosophy. Be specific and genuine about what draws you to becoming a nurse educator, including what aspects of guiding the next generation of the nursing profession resonate with you most, and how your clinical background shapes your approach to instruction.
Come equipped with concrete examples that translate clinical experience into a teaching context, sch as how you broke down a complex concept for a nurse you precepted, how you mentored someone through a difficult patient care situation, or how you’ve navigated challenging team dynamics. Story-driven, specific examples can make candidates memorable in a nurse educator job search.
Familiarize yourself with academic culture and vocabulary including learning outcomes, curriculum frameworks, accreditation standards, and program assessment. If you’re interviewing for an online nursing school position, demonstrate comfort with digital learning platforms and virtual facilitation. Video interviews are now standard practice in nursing education; rehearse in front of your camera before the day arrives.
5. Network, Network, Network
In nursing education—as in clinical practice—your professional relationships can open doors a resume alone cannot. Building a strong network within the nursing educator community can be one of the most valuable investments you can make before and during your job search.
Explore membership in professional organizations that bring together nurses as educators and nursing education leaders. Here are a few examples:
- National League for Nursing (NLN): The leading organization for nursing educators, offering CNE certification, professional development resources, and a national community of nursing faculty. Connecting with active nursing educators through NLN can facilitate your transition into teaching.
- Association for Nursing Professional Development (ANPD): Focused on continuing nursing education and professional growth for RNs in staff development and academic roles.
- Professional Nurse Educators Group (PNEG): A peer community where active nursing educators share resources, discuss challenges, and support one another in the teaching role.
Connect with current faculty through LinkedIn and specialized professional groups online. If you attended nursing school yourself, reach out to former professors or alumni for candid insight into making the transition into a teaching role. Ask if you can observe a class—in person or online—to develop a clearer picture of what the daily reality of nursing education looks like.
If you’re already enrolled in Chamberlain University’s online MSN program or exploring the RN to MSN online pathway, your faculty mentors and academic advisors are often your most direct source of guidance into nursing education as a career.
Why the Demand for Nursing Educators Continues to Grow
The demand for qualified nursing educators is not a temporary condition—it reflects a deepening, structural challenge within the U.S. nursing education system. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), there were 1,588 full-time faculty vacancies at U.S. nursing schools in 2025, representing a national nurse faculty vacancy rate of 7.2%.1
The consequences reach far beyond the academic campus: In 2025, nearly 17,000 qualified applications to graduate-level nursing school programs were turned away—in part because too few nursing educators are available to teach them. The result is a compounding challenge for the entire profession: Fewer faculty means fewer nursing graduates, which in turn limits the future pipeline of potential nursing educators.4
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 17% growth for postsecondary nursing instructors and teachers through 2034, with 15,300 job openings projected to be added.5
For nurses who want to make a broad and lasting impact on the nursing profession, beyond direct patient care, stepping into nursing education can be a meaningful career paths.
Start Your Journey in Nursing Education at Chamberlain University
If you’re a working RN ready to transition into teaching, Chamberlain University’s master’s in nursing program and RN to MSN online options offer a flexible, CCNE-accredited path forward. Whether your focus is classroom instruction, leading learning in an online nursing school environment, or taking on an advanced leadership role in nursing education, an MSN degree is your foundation.
Our MSN nursing program is built around the realities of working nurses and features flexible scheduling, experienced faculty, and a strong professional network. Explore Chamberlain’s online MSN program today. Visit chamberlain.edu or call 877-307-0149 to speak with an Enrollment Representative.
Chamberlain University, an HLC-accredited institution, offers bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs in nursing and healthcare professions. With a growing network of campuses and robust online programs, Chamberlain continues to build on more than 135 years of excellence in preparing extraordinary healthcare professionals.
1www.aacnnursing.org/news-data/fact-sheets/nursing-faculty-shortage
2https://nursejournal.org/careers/nurse-educator/how-to-become
3www.nln.org/awards-recognition/cne/Certification-for-Nurse-Educatorscne/cne-eligibility
5www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/postsecondary-teachers.htm#tab-6
By Lauren Pope
More from Careers
Request More Information
To receive the Chamberlain University Program Guide, including associated career paths, please select a program of study.