The nursing and teaching professions have a lot in common. They both fall under the HEAL umbrella: health, education, administration, and literacy. People who enter these two fields tend to be motivated by a desire to become a force of good in the world. And, historically, both professions have been dominated by women.
But that鈥檚 changing, at least among one of these professions.
Over the last several years, the percentage of male registered nurses in the United States has ticked up considerably鈥昮rom 2.7 percent of the total workforce in to in 2022, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing鈥昩ut the opposite has happened among the nation鈥檚 K-12 teaching workforce. About of teachers were men in 1980; by the 2020-21 academic year, just were, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Yet research shows that male teachers have many beneficial effects on student engagement. All students, but boys in particular, benefit from having a male role model in the classroom.
Why have more men been drawn to the nursing profession in recent years, and are there lessons schools and districts can glean from this other HEAL profession? To find out, 91直播 spoke to males at every stage of the nursing profession鈥攆rom young male nursing students to nurses with decades in the profession.
Read on for three insights that could inform recruitment strategies in K-12 education.
There鈥檚 less of a stigma about men in nursing
These days, there鈥檚 a decreasing stigma associated with entering a predominantly female profession like nursing, male nurses said. That stigma had weighed heavily on Frankie Hamilton when, in his early 20s, he considered switching professions from teaching high school chemistry to becoming a nurse.
鈥淩ight out of undergraduate school, in 2004, I was working with nurses a lot of the time, but every nurse I worked with was female,鈥� said Hamilton, a board member for the , an advocacy organization for male nurses. 鈥淚 was like, everyone thinks nursing is just for women.鈥�
Hamilton enrolled in nursing school in his late 20s. During his early career as a bedside nurse, he recalled encountering gender stereotypes on the job.
鈥淲hen I would go into patients鈥� rooms, they would often say things like, 鈥榃hy don鈥檛 you become a doctor?鈥欌�� said Hamilton, currently the director of ambulatory care services at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx neighborhood of New York.
鈥淚 feel like that鈥檚 probably less so the conversation these days,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 still that perception out there, but I think it鈥檚 diminishing.鈥�
The declining stigma around male nurses could be in part a byproduct of changing societal perceptions of gender roles in general, as well as those specific to nursing, which COVID-19 helped to dissolve, experts say.
鈥淚 think a lot of media attention about the positive impact of nurses during COVID helped with that [evolving] perspective,鈥� said Melissa Gomes, associate professor of nursing and associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion at University of Virginia鈥檚 School of Nursing.
Nurses were publicly hailed as 鈥溾�� for their work during the pandemic, Gomes said.
鈥淚 think that the lens of what it means to be a nurse has shifted,鈥� she said. But there鈥檚 more behind this shifting perspective than a chance global pandemic.
Nurses have opportunities for multiple career pathways
Advocacy organizations and nursing schools like UVA鈥檚 have intentionally worked to broaden the perception of nursing.
鈥淲e鈥檝e done a great job in the profession of highlighting the nursing science and the impact that we as nurses have, across not only the clinical sector, but also with evidence-based, community-participatory research,鈥� Gomes said.
It鈥檚 a tactic that鈥檚 appealing to men who are looking for a career that offers room for advancement. Such is the case for Jack Dennis and Ariel Till, both 20-year-old, 3rd year students in UVA鈥檚 School of Nursing program.
鈥淚 always knew I wanted to be in the medical field,鈥� said Dennis, whose sister is a nurse. 鈥淭here are so many pathways to nursing. It doesn鈥檛 stop at bedside nursing. You can go to graduate school, you can be an educator, you can be a nurse practitioner or a nurse anesthetist鈥攖here鈥檚 no stop to it.鈥�
Till, who grew up hearing stories about the profession from his mom, who was a nurse, said that background, plus his interest in medicine and anatomy, drew him to the field.
鈥淭here are so many different routes, you don鈥檛 feel like you鈥檙e stuck in one place,鈥� Till said.
Seasoned nursing professionals agree.
鈥淲ith nursing, you can change your specialty, and many do. We have a broad education, and then you can specialize,鈥� said Sean DeGarmo, who has been a flight nurse, a critical care nurse, a nursing instructor, and now serves as the director of advanced practice initiatives and certification outreach for American Nurses Enterprise, an advocacy organization.
Teachers, on the other hand, have fewer career pathways in education available to them. If they don鈥檛 want to pursue positions in administration, which generally require additional education and training, they often remain in the classroom or leave the field altogether. It鈥檚 an issue that鈥檚 gaining more traction recently.
鈥淚f we can create career pathways for teachers to expand their impact and build more sustainable lives, we can retain teachers and create a stronger education system. Instead of leaving to become realtors or lawyers, teachers can create curriculum, work as education consultants, and coach other educators,鈥� wrote Lily Jones, a teacher advocate, in a January article on .
With more avenues for career advancements comes more opportunities for better pay. The average salaries of registered nurses and classroom teachers don鈥檛 differ too much. In 2023, federal data show the was $86,070, compared to an average salary of $71,699 for teachers, who generally work on a 10-month contract.
But nursing professionals with advanced credentials tend to have higher pay ceilings than educators. For instance, the average 2023 salary for a (who need a doctoral degree) was $212,650, compared to $156,468 for K-12 superintendents, most of whom hold doctoral degrees.
There are strong advocacy efforts within nursing to recruit more men
Well before advancing through the career ladder, men must first feel comfortable with the notion of joining the nursing profession. That鈥檚 where advocacy efforts come into play.
The University of Virginia鈥檚 School of Nursing earned a 鈥淏est School for Men in Nursing鈥� designation the past two years by the American Association for Men in Nursing.
Gomes credits the school鈥檚 MAN Club, a student affinity group that stands for Men Advancing Nursing, as part of the appeal.
鈥淭hey have their own space where they can feel like, 鈥極h, OK, I see this is where I belong,鈥欌�� she said.
It鈥檚 where Till and Dennis first gained their footing as male nursing students, and where they now serve as leaders in the club.
鈥淲e wanted to foster our own tiny community within the nursing school,鈥� said Till.
That helps build their identity within the nursing school; so too does being taught by male professors, who make up 17 percent of the university鈥檚 nursing faculty members.
The advocacy work within the profession isn鈥檛 limited to organizations for male nursing students. promotes nursing to men who otherwise might not be aware of the profession鈥檚 opportunities.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been visiting middle schools and high schools and really trying to kind of get the conversation going early, so that young [male] children and kids in high school can know that, 鈥楬ey, nursing can be a profession for me,鈥欌�� said Hamilton, the association鈥檚 board member.
Hamilton sees a lot of parallels to effectively recruiting men for either teaching or nursing. Men first need to be educated on the traits that make up an effective nurse (or teacher), he said, and to consider whether their own strengths match.
鈥淚f your top qualities align with the qualities of a great teacher or a great nurse,鈥� Hamilton said, 鈥渢hen it makes sense that this profession would be a possibility for you.鈥�
