Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
P.O. Box 64882
St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
651-201-3838
Minnesota’s Registered Nurse Workforce
2009-2010
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), in cooperation with the Minnesota Board of Nursing, collects
information on education, career and future plans of registered nurses (RNs). Minnesota RNs complete
workforce surveys during the biennial licensing renewal process. Unless noted, all data presented are based on
information collected from RNs (including advanced practice registered nurses) renewing licenses from 2009 to
2010. The survey response rate was 58 percent.
Overall
As of January 2011, there were 86,179 RNs
licensed in Minnesota. Of these, an estimated
74,839 worked in Minnesota.
Training and Education
At the time of initial licensure, 75 percent of
Minnesota RNs received nursing preparation at an
academic institution in Minnesota.
Sex, Race and Ethnicity
Licensed RNs were predominately female
(93 percent). The percentage of the RN workforce
that was male rose from 7.1 percent in 2007-2008 to
7.5 percent in 2009-2010, a 6 percent increase.
When initially licensed, 44 percent of Minnesota
RNs held an Associate’s degree, 37 percent held a
Bachelor’s degree, 15 percent held a certificate or
diploma, and 3 percent held a Master’s degree or
higher. Among RNs who responded to the survey
question about additional education, 21 percent said
they went on to earn an additional nursing degree
after first becoming licensed as an RN, raising the
proportion of Minnesota RNs with a Bachelor’s
degree to 40 percent, and RNs with a Master’s
degree or higher to 10 percent.
Most RNs identified their race as White (94
percent). Only 6 percent of RNs identified
themselves as African American, Native American,
Asian or multiracial. One percent identified their
ethnicity as Hispanic.
Age Range
The median age of RNs in Minnesota was 48, a
small increase from 47 reported in 2007-2008.
The number of RNs who were 65 and older
increased by 56 percent (Graph A).
Geographic Distribution
For every RN located in a rural area, at least three
RNs were located in an urban area of the state
(based on mailing addresses) (Graph B).
Graph B
Distribution of Registered Nurses
by Rural-Urban Commuting Areas,
Minnesota 2009-2010
Graph A
Registered Nurses by Age Group
Minnesota 2007-2008 and 2009-2010
31%
6%
25% 26%
22% 20%
21%
21%
20%
7%
Urban
Large Rural
12%
Small Rural
8%
6%
75%
2007-2008
Under age 35
ages 35-44
2009-2010
ages 45-54
ages 55-64
Age 65 and older
Isolated
Rural
Minnesota’s Registered Nurse Work Force 2009-2010 – Page 2
Work Status and Future Plans
Eighty-eight percent of the respondents worked in a
paid or volunteer position. Only 4 percent said they
were employed in a job other than nursing, while 3
percent said they were unemployed. The remaining
licensed RNs were retired (3 percent), on family or
medical leave (2 percent), or students (1 percent).
Graph C
Registered Nurses Future Plans to Practice
Minnesota 2009-2010
Graph D
Registered Nurses by Primary Work Setting
Minnesota 2009-2010
1%
3%
3%
8%
8%
8%
57%
12%
94%
85%
77%
76%
Hospital (n=20,506)
75%
Clinic/Provider Office
(n=4,316)
Long Term Care Facility
(n=2,792)
Home Health/Public
Health (n=2,945)
School, College,
University (n=1,323)
Insurance Co; Rehab
facility (n=1,130)
Independent Practice;
Urgent Care (n=291)
Other, Unspecified
(n=2,890)
n=36,193
23%
25%
24%
15%
6%
34 years and
younger
35 to 44 years
45 to 54 years
10 years or less
55 to 64 years
65 years and
older
Hospital employment ranked highest for RNs in
both urban (59 percent) and rural areas (50 percent).
Clinic/provider offices were the second-most
frequent work setting for RNs in urban areas (13
percent), while long-term care facilities were
second among RNs in rural areas (13 percent)
(figure not shown).
more than 10 years
Among RNs who had future plans to stay in the
workforce, 60 percent said they plan to stay more
than 10 years. Twenty-three percent of RNs
younger than 35 years of age planned to stop
practicing in 10 years or less (Graph C).
Regardless of age, among the 20 percent who
planned to leave the RN workforce in five years or
less, the reasons were as follows: retirement (69
percent), moving to another state (15 percent),
changing jobs (6 percent), and other unspecified
reasons (10 percent).
Most RNs reported spending some portion of their
work providing patient care (59 percent).
Supervising patient care was the next most
frequently reported activity (24 percent), followed
by teaching/research (13 percent).
On average, 77 percent of an RN’s time was spent
providing patient care.
Primary Work Settings and Activities
RNs reported working an average of 34 hours a
week.
Hospitals were the most frequent place of
employment for RNs (57 percent) (Graph D).
For more information, contact:
Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
Health Workforce Analysis Program
651-201-3838
TTY: 651-201-5797
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/workforce
August 2012