BSN Salaries in Indiana

As of 2011, about 49% of the nurses working in Indiana had at least a BSN according to a report released by the Indiana Center for Nursing in 2013. Research has shown that nurses with BSNs are able to provide a higher level of care, prompting the Indiana Board of Nursing to set a goal of having 80% of its RNs educated at the BSN level or higher by 2020.

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RNs who have a BSN receive higher salaries for their expertise, and as of 2013, some of Indiana’s clinical institutions required that its ADN-educated staff RNs work towards a BSN. This trend has caused a strong interest in RN to BSN programs in Indiana, and enrollment in these types of programs has increased by 22% between 2009 and 2011.

The need for RNs is growing in Indiana, and the Indiana Department of Workforce Development predicts a 22.1% increase in the number of RNs between 2008 and 2018. To meet the goal of having 80% of Indiana’s nurses educated with a BSN or higher, the state will need to see about 62,119 RNs educated at the BSN level.

Analysis of ADN and BSN Salaries in Key Regions of Indiana

Many of the job postings for nurses in Indiana require that applicants complete a BSN program within several years of being hired. The average salaries for RNs with a BSN in Indiana were 86% higher than that for ADN prepared RNs in 2013 according to the state’s Department of Workforce Development:

  • ADN – $41,205
  • BSN – $76,690

The salaries of BSN prepared nurses varied as much as 30.8% between Indiana’s major metropolitan areas. The average salary was the highest in Michigan City:

Indiana Area
BSN
Percent Difference
Michigan City
$91645
210%
Indianapolis
$85010
196%
Gary
$81411
173%
Columbus
$76107
187%
Muncie
$75317
184%
Terre Haute
$74027
167%
Lafayette
$73778
173%
Anderson
$73403
178%
South Bend
$73112
172%
Bloomington
$72821
167%
Evansville
$72051
181%
Fort Wayne
$71882
201%
Elkhart
$70054
171%

Salaries for BSN-Educated RNs Throughout Indiana

The US Department of Labor provides additional information on the salaries of BSN nurses throughout key regions of Indiana in 2013:

Area name
Employment
Hourly 90th percentile wage
Anderson IN
880
35.29
Bloomington IN
1350
35.01
Cincinnati-Middletown OH-KY-IN
23580
40.12
Columbus IN
620
36.59
Elkhart-Goshen IN
1410
33.68
Evansville IN-KY
4150
34.64
Fort Wayne IN
5120
34.53
Gary IN Metropolitan Division
6240
39.14
Indianapolis-Carmel IN
21540
40.87
Lafayette IN
1370
35.47
Louisville-Jefferson County KY-IN
14760
36.43
Michigan City-La Porte IN
740
44.06
Muncie IN
1120
36.21
South Bend-Mishawaka IN-MI
2680
35.15
Terre Haute IN
1590
35.59
Northern Indiana nonmetropolitan area
2530
33.64
Central Indiana nonmetropolitan area
2760
35.98
Southern Indiana nonmetropolitan area
2910
33.72

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