With 3.3 percent unemployment in July 2011, North Dakota enjoyed the lowest jobless rate of any state in the nation, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Students interested in health care careers may seek education and employment opportunities in the Peace Garden State.

The wide-open spaces, big skies and snow-covered landscapes of North Dakota provide a serene backdrop. In 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau counted about 700,000 state residents living in almost 69,000 square miles of land. The state's largest city is Fargo, on the Minnesota border, and other bustling population centers can be found in Grand Forks to the north and Bismarck, the state capital.

Why choose online nursing schools in North Dakota?

Potential nursing students can expect health care career opportunities to increase in the U.S. between 2008 and 2018, per BLS projections. Nationally, the BLS estimates that unemployment in the education and health services sector for August 2011 was 6.3 percent, compared to the jobless rate of 9.1 percent for all occupations.

Mean annual wages for nursing careers in North Dakota rose between 2009 and 2010, according to BLS data:

1. Registered nurses: from $56,110 in 2009 to $57,020 in 2010
2. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses: from $34,810 in 2009 to $35,320 in 2010

In comparison, the mean yearly salary across all occupations in the state stood at $37,040 in 2010.

North Dakota nursing schools online

Students may choose to pursue one of several paths through school, depending on the type of nursing they wish to practice. The University of North Dakota offers a variety of nursing degrees and provides online nursing courses. Rasmussen College, which has a campus in the state but no nursing program there, maintains a distance learning option for nursing studies. Studying at one of the many online nursing schools in North Dakota allows future nurses to balance their studies with work and family responsibilities.