Registered Nurse Jobs in Boston, MA
Registered nurses in Boston start around $40 an hour at the big teaching hospitals, and top-step union nurses at the Brigham earn more than $105. Here are current RN openings, followed by who is hiring, what it pays and how to get licensed in Massachusetts.
Current registered nurse Openings in Boston, MA
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Registered Nurse Work in Boston
Boston hires nurses at a scale few cities match. The Longwood Medical and Academic Area alone holds Boston Children's, Beth Israel Deaconess, Brigham and Women's and Dana-Farber, all within walking distance of the Green Line E branch. Mass General anchors the West End, Boston Medical Center runs the city's safety-net hospital in the South End, and Tufts Medical Center sits by the Orange Line in Chinatown. Openings run from the ED and PACU to the NICU and cardiac ICU, on days, nights and per diem schedules.
What sets Boston apart is the union contract. The Massachusetts Nurses Association represents nearly 4,000 nurses at the Brigham, and 1199SEIU represents about 2,000 RNs, LPNs and nurse practitioners at Boston Medical Center. Those contracts set step scales, differentials and staffing language, so your pay at a union hospital follows a published scale rather than a one-off offer.
Top Boston Employers Hiring Registered Nurses
These Boston hospitals hire registered nurses through their own career sites:
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center - the Longwood flagship of Beth Israel Lahey Health hires RNs for its ED, PACU, ICUs, operating rooms and infusion services.
- Boston Children's Hospital - the pediatric hospital on Longwood Avenue hires BSN-prepared RNs and posts pay ranges, with sign-on bonuses on some float roles.
- Boston Medical Center - the South End safety-net hospital hires union RNs for med-surg, emergency, labor and delivery, cancer care and primary care, plus a New Grad Residency.
- Tufts Medical Center - the Chinatown academic hospital hires RNs for its emergency department, operating rooms, transplant, psychiatry and labor and delivery units.
- VA Boston Healthcare System - the federal system hires RNs for its Jamaica Plain and West Roxbury campuses through USAJobs.
Registered Nurse Salaries in Boston
- Entry level: about $40 to $50 an hour for new graduate and early-career RNs.
- Experienced: roughly $55 to $85 an hour as nurses move up hospital step scales.
- Senior / top step: $90 to $106 an hour for top-step union staff nurses, such as $93.65 at Boston Medical Center and $105.65 at Brigham and Women's.
These are estimates. Boston Children's, for example, posts a 36-hour RN range of about $76,000 to $163,700 a year. Shift and specialty move pay further: the Brigham contract adds $3.00 to $4.50 an hour for evenings, $4.50 to $6.50 for nights, $2.25 for weekends and $4.00 for charge duty. ICU, OR and ED experience, a BSN and specialty certification all help.
How to Become a Registered Nurse in Boston
You need an associate or bachelor's degree from a board-approved nursing program, then a passing score on the NCLEX-RN and a license from the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing, which also reviews Good Moral Character. Local associate degree programs include Bunker Hill Community College in Charlestown, Roxbury Community College on Columbus Avenue and Quincy College. Bachelor's programs run at Northeastern, Simmons, Emmanuel and MCPHS around the Fenway and Longwood, UMass Boston's Manning College of Nursing at Columbia Point and Boston College's Connell School in Chestnut Hill. Career changers with a degree can take a direct-entry program at the MGH Institute of Health Professions in the Charlestown Navy Yard. Massachusetts does not take part in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so out-of-state nurses need a Massachusetts license by endorsement.
What the Job Involves
Registered nurses assess patients, give medications and IV therapy, monitor vital signs and lab results, and adjust care with physicians and the rest of the team. A typical shift includes charting in the electronic health record, teaching patients and families, managing pain, catching early signs of decline and handing off to the next shift. Most hospital RNs work 12-hour shifts, with nights, weekends and holidays in rotation.
Skills Employers Look For
- An active Massachusetts RN license
- BLS, plus ACLS or PALS for acute and pediatric units
- A BSN, required by some Boston hospitals and preferred by many
- Electronic health record charting
- Critical thinking and calm under pressure
- Clear communication with patients from many language backgrounds
Career Path and Advancement
Many Boston nurses start in a new grad residency, such as the one at Boston Medical Center, then build two years of med-surg or critical care experience before moving into specialty units. From there the ladder runs to charge nurse, clinical educator and nurse manager, or back to school for a nurse practitioner degree at the MGH Institute, Northeastern, Simmons or Boston College. Union step scales mean experience at one Longwood or South End hospital keeps raising pay year after year.
Related Careers in Boston
For a wider look at the Boston healthcare job market, see:
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do registered nurses make in Boston?
New and early-career RNs generally start around $40 to $50 an hour, experienced nurses earn about $55 to $85, and top-step union staff nurses reach $93.65 at Boston Medical Center and $105.65 at Brigham and Women's. Night, evening and weekend differentials add more.
Is Massachusetts a compact nursing state?
No. The Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing says the state does not take part in the Nurse Licensure Compact and does not issue temporary licenses. Nurses licensed in another state apply for a Massachusetts license by endorsement before starting work.
Do Boston hospitals hire new graduate nurses?
Yes. Boston Medical Center runs a New Grad Residency for nurses entering acute care, and other hospitals post new graduate roles through the year. Competition is real, so clinical placements in Boston hospitals during school help.
Do I need a BSN to work as a nurse in Boston?
Not by law; an associate degree qualifies you for the NCLEX-RN. In practice, many Boston teaching hospitals prefer a BSN and some postings, such as a Boston Children's radiology RN role, require it, so many associate degree nurses finish a bachelor's while working.
Are Boston nurses unionized?
Many are. The Massachusetts Nurses Association represents nurses at Brigham and Women's and other hospitals, and 1199SEIU represents nurses at Boston Medical Center. Union contracts set pay steps, differentials and staffing rules.
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