This page is built from the open postings on hospital and health-system career sites in District of Columbia listed on Betterleap's job board: 854 open positions from 14 employers as of September 26, 2026, 0.4% of all open postings on the board, which ranks District of Columbia #40 of 51 states. Registered nurses are 49.3% of the state's postings (208). Every figure below is a count or a posted pay range, never a job description; the method is at the end.
Where the jobs are in District of Columbia
| # | City | Open postings | of which RN | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington, DC | 849 | 208 | 14 |
| 2 | DC, DC | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | Washingotn, DC | 2 | 0 | 1 |
Every city links to its live listings; the state's registered-nurse listings are at RN jobs in District of Columbia.
Health systems hiring the most in District of Columbia
Counted by open postings on the system's own career site, so a system that lists every unit and shift separately ranks higher than one that posts one evergreen requisition per role.
| # | Employer | Open postings in DC |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MedStar Health | 449 |
| 2 | Universal Health Services | 244 |
| 3 | Unity Health Care, Inc. | 58 |
| 4 | Childrens National Health System | 24 |
| 5 | Community of Hope Inc. | 23 |
| 6 | Davita Inc | 19 |
| 7 | Sanford Health | 14 |
| 8 | Whitman-Walker Clinic Inc | 6 |
Which roles District of Columbia employers are hiring
| Role | Open postings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| registered nurses | 208 | 49.3% |
| physicians | 59 | 14% |
| nurse practitioners | 38 | 9% |
| medical assistants | 27 | 6.4% |
| patient care technicians | 24 | 5.7% |
| respiratory therapists | 23 | 5.5% |
| licensed practical nurses | 22 | 5.2% |
| nurse managers | 21 | 5% |
What nursing jobs pay in District of Columbia
For reference, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 11,440 registered nurses employed in District of Columbia with a mean wage of $51.43 an hour ($106,980 a year), OEWS May 2025.
Only 10.3% of District of Columbia postings state a pay range with both ends: too few to publish a posted median (the rule is at least 100 postings and a median within a third of the BLS mean). The BLS figure above is the reliable reference for this state.
Licensing: working as a nurse in District of Columbia
District of Columbia is not yet a Nurse Licensure Compact state; NLC legislation is pending, per NCSBN's compact map (read September 26, 2026, which lists 40 member states). Today a nurse licensed elsewhere needs a District of Columbia license by endorsement. The state's board of nursing contact page is on NCSBN.
Licensing is issued by the state board of nursing: an approved nursing program, the NCLEX-RN (or NCLEX-PN), a background check and the board's application. The board's own pages are the source of truth for fees and timelines; this page does not restate them.
How this is built
- Scope: open postings on public hospital and health-system career sites, counted as of the date shown; job descriptions are never republished. Only postings whose location is in District of Columbia count here; a posting listing several sites counts once, at its first site.
- Pay point: midpoint of the posted range, hourly (annual ÷ 2080), only where both ends and the unit are posted. The top of a posted range is never used as "the pay". A posted median is published only with at least 100 postings and within a third of the BLS mean.
- Freshness: counts are refreshed monthly and the page shows its date; a posting that leaves an employer's site drops out.
- References: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, state estimates; NCSBN Nurse Licensure Compact map data, read September 26, 2026.
Data as of September 26, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How many open nursing jobs are there in District of Columbia right now?
854 open postings from 14 hospital and health-system employers in District of Columbia as of September 26, 2026, 208 of them for registered nurses. Washington has the most (849), then DC (2).
What do registered nurses earn in District of Columbia?
The BLS OEWS May 2025 mean for registered nurses in District of Columbia is $51.43 an hour, $106,980 a year, across 11,440 employed RNs. Too few open postings state a pay range for a posted median to be published for this state.
Is District of Columbia a Nurse Licensure Compact state?
No; NLC legislation is pending in District of Columbia (NCSBN map, read September 26, 2026).
Which hospitals are hiring nurses in District of Columbia?
By open postings on their own career sites: MedStar Health (449), Universal Health Services (244), Unity Health Care, Inc. (58) and 5 more listed above, as of September 26, 2026.