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Job outlook for nurse midwives in the United States
Are nurse midwife jobs in demand?
Nurse midwife job and salary trends over time
Nurse midwife jobs over time
Nurse midwife job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 992 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 972 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 971 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 961 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 946 | 0.00% |
Average nurse midwife salary over time
Nurse midwife salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $74,490 | $35.81 | +2.8% |
| 2025 | $72,483 | $34.85 | +2.2% |
| 2024 | $70,930 | $34.10 | +2.5% |
| 2023 | $69,220 | $33.28 | +2.3% |
| 2022 | $67,687 | $32.54 | +1.4% |
Nurse midwife jobs by state
Most common states for nurse midwives
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 910 | 105% |
| 2 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 1,372 | 102% |
| 3 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 713 | 94% |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 6,340 | 92% |
| 5 | Vermont | 623,657 | 574 | 92% |
| 6 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 1,177 | 88% |
| 7 | Delaware | 961,939 | 794 | 83% |
| 8 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 832 | 79% |
| 9 | Alaska | 739,795 | 583 | 79% |
| 10 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 1,564 | 75% |
| 11 | Indiana | 6,666,818 | 4,864 | 73% |
| 12 | Pennsylvania | 12,805,537 | 9,105 | 71% |
| 13 | Florida | 20,984,400 | 14,243 | 68% |
| 14 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 468 | 67% |
| 15 | Iowa | 3,145,711 | 2,044 | 65% |
| 16 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 1,213 | 63% |
| 17 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 1,143 | 63% |
| 18 | Tennessee | 6,715,984 | 4,178 | 62% |
| 19 | Ohio | 11,658,609 | 7,123 | 61% |
| 20 | Kansas | 2,913,123 | 1,766 | 61% |
Most common cities for nurse midwives
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spring Valley | 1 | 3% | $87,527 |
| 2 | Cambridge | 2 | 2% | $87,042 |
| 3 | Fairfield | 2 | 2% | $105,956 |
| 4 | West Bloomfield | 1 | 2% | $81,537 |
| 5 | Des Moines | 3 | 1% | $55,625 |
| 6 | Columbia | 1 | 1% | $90,445 |
| 7 | Duluth | 1 | 1% | $77,558 |
| 8 | Detroit | 2 | 0% | $81,754 |
| 9 | Baltimore | 1 | 0% | $90,573 |
| 10 | Houston | 1 | 0% | $73,350 |
| 11 | Los Angeles | 1 | 0% | $99,931 |
| 12 | Omaha | 1 | 0% | $66,173 |
Nurse Midwife job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of nurse midwife experts
University of St. Francis
Prairie View A & M University
New York University
Western Carolina University
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
Elms College
American Association of Nurse Practitioners
American Association of Nurse Anesthetists
The University of Texas at El Paso
Lincoln University
Dr. Maria Martinez DNP RN
Interim Associate Dean for Undergraduate NursingUniversity of St. Francis
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research And Clinical Nursing
What Nurse Midwife skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Maria Martinez DNP RN: Stay resilient and gain your experience for 2-3 years as an RN. When interviewing and applying for your first RN career opportunity, look at the mission and vision of the hospital, to see if it matches your work ethic values. Inquire and seek a good preceptor/mentor who will empower you to grow in your career. Stay humble and learn from the experts.
What general advice would you give to a Nurse Midwife?
Allyssa Harris RN, PhD, WHNP-BC: Daily, nurses with the health care team to manage and coordinate patient care which include physical assessments-assessing, observing, and evaluating the patient's response to care, administering medication and treatments, assisting with procedures, and providing health education to patients and their families. Additionally, nurses often supervise other unlicensed health care team members including licensed vocational nurses, patient care technicians (PCTs) and nursing students.
What general advice would you give to a Nurse Midwife?
Alison Alaimo MSN, RN: Nursing is a good profession to enter for several reasons. It is a very demanding, yet very fulfilling career. Nurses get to have a direct impact on patient health outcomes. The demand for nurses is exceedingly high now. Our students are securing employment one or even two semesters before they graduate from the nursing program. Nursing is also a career path which is available everywhere so no matter where you go, you can have a job in nursing. There are diverse career opportunities in nursing, so jobs are available no matter a person's interests. Working as a nurse offers a lot of flexibility so nurses can work nights, full-time, part-time, or per diem. The high demand for nurses is driving competitive compensation and benefits packages. Many hospitals will assist students in paying off student loans in return for a work agreement. Finally, there is always room for professional growth. Continuing education opportunities abound and there is always the option to pursue an advanced degree or other specialized training.
What skills stand out on Nurse Midwife resumes?
Beth Latimer: Stand-out skills on RN resumes include exposure and competence in public health framed nursing competencies. These include excellence in contextual, patient-centered, clinical care with health promotion, risk reduction expertise. Interprofessional educational experiences are sought after and highly regarded as working with high-performing interprofessional teams needed to plan, deliver, and improve outcomes with patient center care at the forefront is not only beneficial to patients and families but will improve patient outcomes in the long run. Expertise in navigating the health records system and documenting appropriately certainly helps the RN spend more time at the bedside rather than spending lots of time figuring out the electronic health record. At NYU Meyers, we implemented and are utilizing Epic as the electronic health record. Epic is widely utilized in the majority of health systems, and this certainly gives our patients an upper hand since they are continuously utilizing this in simulation. The students are then able to navigate this exact system in the clinical setting and are able to spend less time looking for the right page to document in since they are already familiar with this system.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Nurse Midwives?
Beth Latimer: Technical skills are important to master. However, this happens more so "on the job" rather than at graduation. Only practice makes perfect when mastering a skill, and having daily interactions with patients will develop those hard technical skills necessary for success.
Terrica Durbin Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Director, School of NursingWestern Carolina University
College of Health and Human Sciences
What soft skills should all Nurse Midwives possess?
Terrica Durbin Ph.D.: Communication, critical thinking, problem-solving, flexibility.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Nurse Midwives?
Terrica Durbin Ph.D.: Clinical skills specific to the nurse's setting, electronic recordkeeping, patient assessment, and prioritizing appropriate interventions.
What skills will help Nurse Midwives earn the most?
Terrica Durbin Ph.D.: Travel nurses, who can move from one facility to another during shifting patient care needs, tend to be very well-compensated. Additionally, nurses with advanced degrees tend to be among the highest earners. In particular, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners, Nurse Midwives, and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists enjoy a high level of practice autonomy and higher salaries, commensurate with their education and training.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Nurse Midwife job market given the pandemic?
Kim Raines: There are a couple of angles to this. Certainly, there is an increasing burnout rate developing among various healthcare professionals. A survey conducted in December of 2020, by www.businesswire.com, a division of Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance and a provider of professional liability insurance for medical professionals speaks to this. In the survey, "Nearly half (48%) have considered either retiring, quitting their jobs, or changing their careers altogether, while the same number say that their mental health has deteriorated." This has incredible implications going forward.
Telehealth is here to stay. Patients and providers alike have found distinct advantages to telemedicine and a way to meet the needs of more individuals. Mental health is an excellent example of a rapidly growing area of telemedicine. Insurance companies, representing patients or providers will need to be creative in accommodating the need while ensuring quality in this exploding environment.
Will there be an increase or decrease in demand for Nurse Midwives in the next 5 years?
Cynthia L. Dakin: I believe there will continue to be an increase in home care and extended care facilities as the baby boomers continue to age. With the advances in reconstructive orthopedic surgery, more people will be seeking care in rehabilitation centers and home care. Additionally, although telemedicine has been around for several years, the number of people choosing these visits vs. face-to-face has greatly increased due to the current pandemic. As providers become more comfortable with this method of care delivery and with this mode of primary healthcare, it will increasingly be used to stretch a PCPs ability to meet the increasing needs of the population.
Karla Nygren MSN, MBA, RN, CCRN, CEN, CFRN, CPEN, CPN, TCRN
CPN-at-Large Representative, Pediatric Nursing Certification BoardPNCB
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Nurse Midwives to find work opportunities?
Karla Nygren MSN, MBA, RN, CCRN, CEN, CFRN, CPEN, CPN, TCRN: Opportunities will exist everywhere, from rural to frontier to urban. If they aren't visible when they graduate, wait a bit, and the pendulum will swing.
What general advice would you give to a Nurse Midwife?
Sophia Thomas: Graduates should absolutely get involved by joining their state NP organization as well as the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. State organizations provide opportunities for networking with colleagues and advocate for health policy issues that impact state-level practice. It is also important to join the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, which provides further opportunities for networking, continuing education, professional growth, and the latest information related to state and federal health policy issues impacting NPs and the patients we serve. AANP is the largest professional association for NPs in the world, and we advocate for all NPs on the state and national levels.
I recommend new NPs interview their prospective employers, not only to learn what is expected of the NP regarding the role, patient load, and clinic time, but also to learn about the work environment, professional expectations, the employers' understanding of the NP role, and opportunities for orientation and mentorship. They should inquire about compensation rates and standard benefits as well as additional compensation offered, such as license, certification, and DEA fees, as well as reimbursement for continuing education and any productivity incentives offered.
New NPs shouldn't limit themselves to being a clinician. They should get involved in health policy, research, and leadership opportunities. I always recommend that new NPs get a mentor, a seasoned NP who can facilitate continued professional growth in areas they want to focus on. The Fellows of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners have a formal mentorship program that I encourage all NPs to get involved in.
How would you rate the starting salaries for Nurse Midwives, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?
Sophia Thomas: AANP does a sample survey of salaries. See below for information from our 2019 survey. It is important to note that salaries range widely, based on clinical and geographical areas as well as the number of years' experience. See below for the information: Source: 2019 AANP National Sample Survey of Nurse Practitioners
-Starting salaries for NPs are exceptional, and usually hover between $80,000-100,000, but that can vary significantly based on geographic location, work setting, and certification/specialty. Some salaries are higher.
-The bureau of labor statistics (BLS) offers an excellent breakdown of salaries by region and state as well: link
-(Note: some stats on the BLS website are reflective of the Mean or Average salary and others represent the Median or midpoint. AANP data are all reported in Median)
-As NPs advance in their careers, there is a clear and positive relationship between number of years' experience and salary growth.
What type of skills will young Nurse Midwives need?
Angela Mund: To meet the needs of our current volatile and complex healthcare landscape, all healthcare providers will need to understand the business of healthcare, in addition to providing expert patient care. Starting in 2025, all graduates from nurse anesthesia programs will be awarded a doctoral degree, a doctorate in nursing practice (DNP), or a doctorate in nurse anesthesia practice (DNAP). These degree programs include additional anesthesia experience as well as an understanding of effective leadership, healthcare economics and reimbursement, the use of big data for improving patient outcomes, and evidence-based practice.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Nurse Midwives to find work opportunities?
Leslie Robbins Ph.D.: A growing baby boomer population, improved access to health care, and a rapidly retiring nursing workforce have led to nursing shortages across the nation. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the need for more than 1 million nurses by 2022. This substantial demand for nurses has created more significant employment opportunities for recent graduates, especially in the Western and Southern United States.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Nurse Midwives to find work opportunities?
Vilma Davis: As previously mentioned, there is a need for nurses throughout the United States. Most nursing programs will intermittently have nurse recruiters come on campus, giving students an opportunity to ask questions and get information about the job market. This is one way that graduates can get plugged into where the needs of nurses are. Graduates can also visit the websites of various hospitals and see what openings are available for which they can apply. Doing a simple google search for "nursing jobs" will yield a plethora of available jobs that they can review and make the decision which they would like to pursue.