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Nurse Anesthetists

Typical education: Doctoral or professional degreeHigh pressure Bright Outlook

What they do

Administer anesthesia, monitor patient's vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia. May assist anesthesiologists, surgeons, other physicians, or dentists. Must be registered nurses who have specialized graduate education.

Kinds of work

  • Social: Helping, teaching, caring for and supporting other people.
  • Investigative: Science, research, figuring out how things work and solving complex problems.
  • Realistic: Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals, often outdoors.

High pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $236,590 Median per year · $113.75/hr Most earn $155,250–$339,500

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Select, order, or administer anesthetics, adjuvant drugs, accessory drugs, fluids or blood products as necessary.
  • Select, prepare, or use equipment, monitors, supplies, or drugs for the administration of anesthetics.
  • Assess patients' medical histories to predict anesthesia response.
  • Develop anesthesia care plans.
  • Select and prescribe post-anesthesia medications or treatments to patients.
  • Administer post-anesthesia medications or fluids to support patients' cardiovascular systems.

Job outlook

Bright Outlook Rapid Growth

United States
10% more jobs by 2035, much faster than average · about 2,400 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Offices of physicians49.4%
  • General medical and surgical hospitals30.7%
  • Offices of all other health practitioners7.5%
  • Self-employed (their own business)2.8%
  • Colleges, universities, and professional schools2.1%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Experience before this job: 2 to 4 years

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: Doctoral or professional degreeExperience before this job: 2 to 4 years

Nurse anesthetist is not an entry-level job. People usually become a registered nurse first, work in a demanding setting like the ICU for a few years, then complete a doctoral-level nurse anesthesia program, so the whole path often takes about 9 to 11 years after high school.

  1. Bachelor's degree in nursing (BSN)

    4 years

    You learn patient care, anatomy, pharmacology, and hospital skills, and you finish the nursing licensing exam (NCLEX-RN) to become a registered nurse.

  2. Registered Nurse

    2-4 years

    Working as an RN, especially in an intensive care or operating room setting, teaches you to monitor critically ill patients, which is the core of nurse anesthesia work.

  3. Doctoral-level nurse anesthesia program

    about 3 years

    You earn a graduate degree in nurse anesthesia, combining classroom study with many hours of supervised clinical practice giving anesthesia, and then pass the national certification exam.

  4. Nurse Anesthetist

    Career

    You give anesthesia to patients before, during, and after surgery or other procedures, working with surgeons, anesthesiologists, or dentists and watching patients as they wake up.

Where it can lead

  1. Chief Nurse Anesthetist

    3-5 years of experience first

    You take on leadership of a team of nurse anesthetists, handling scheduling, staffing, quality of care, and policies, which usually builds on years of clinical experience and strong teamwork skills.

  2. Anesthesiologist

    Several years of additional schooling of experience first

    You can move toward becoming a physician who leads anesthesia care, but this requires going to medical school and completing a residency, a much longer path than the nurse anesthesia route.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take biology, chemistry, and anatomyThese classes build the science foundation you will need for nursing school and later for understanding how anesthesia affects the body.
  • Take health or medical science courses if offeredThese courses introduce you to patient care, medical terms, and the healthcare environment in a low-pressure way.
  • Volunteer at a hospital, clinic, or nursing homeVolunteering shows you how a healthcare team works and whether you enjoy caring for patients.
  • Join a health occupations club or HOSA chapter if your school has oneThese groups offer leadership practice, healthcare skills, and sometimes competitions that look good on college applications.
  • Look for a part-time job or summer job in a caregiving roleJobs like caregiver, aide, or receptionist at a medical office help you practice responsibility and communicating with patients.

In college

  • Major in nursing, or pick a science major and apply to an accelerated BSNA BSN is the usual first degree for becoming an RN, and a science major can also work if you then complete a nursing program afterward.
  • Work as a CNA, EMT, or medical scribeThese hands-on roles build patient care experience and show admissions committees that you understand the work.
  • Get involved in pre-nursing or health science student clubsClubs give you leadership experience and connections with faculty and healthcare professionals.
  • Seek clinical rotations and nursing internshipsHands-on time in hospitals helps you learn the skills you will use in critical care and the operating room.
  • Keep a strong GPA and plan for the NCLEXA high GPA helps you get into a competitive graduate nurse anesthesia program, and passing the NCLEX is required to become an RN.

Tips for getting started

  • Start building hands-on experience early. Working as a certified nursing assistant or a hospital volunteer shows you what patient care is really like and helps you decide if nursing is right for you.
  • Aim for a job in a critical care or operating room setting after you become an RN, since that experience is closely related to nurse anesthesia work.
  • Keep your grades strong, especially in science classes like biology, chemistry, and anatomy, because graduate nurse anesthesia programs are competitive.

Related jobs that often lead here

Related jobs a step up

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

College majors that lead here

Majors: U.S. Department of Education and BLS (CIP–SOC crosswalk). Earnings and debt: College Scorecard, typical across U.S. colleges.

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