Becoming a Vocational Nurse
If you are interested in nursing and think it might be the right career choice for you, training to become a licensed vocational nurse (LPN or LVN) is probably the fastest way for you to actually start work as a nurse.
Training to become a licensed vocational nurse takes much less time and costs less than training to become an RN (registered nurse). You almost always need a high school diploma or GED, although there are a few programs you can enter as you are still finishing your high school courses. You must be ready to perform nursing tasks. You need to be relatively strong and healthy, and you certainly cannot be squeamish around blood or body functions.
If you really want to get into the workforce quickly, you can find an LPN training program that you can finish in a year. There are some that you can finish in as little as seven months. After that, you have to apply for licensure in your state, and take and pass the NCLEX-PN exam.
If you are not in a hurry, and want to continue to work while you train, you can find a program that gives classes on evenings and weekends. That way you can work and study at the same time.
LPNs are the most hands-on nurses. They usually work under the supervision of registered nurses and doctors in hospital settings. In some parts of the country, LPNs work primarily in hospitals. In other parts, they work less in hospitals and more in extended care and home health care nursing. They have more responsibilities in extended care facilities and outpatient clinics. In fact, LPNs can be supervisors of medical aides when working in extended care facilities. There are also increasingly more jobs in those areas.
You have to find the right vocational training program for you. There are many to choose from, at least 1,500. Some training programs are at community colleges, and others are at vocational colleges. Of course you want to make sure the program is certified. You want to find a program that is near where you live or where you want to live, that you can afford it or the school has grants or loans to help you, and that the school will prepare you to eventually take the NCLEX-PN exam. Vocational training programs usually only take a year.
Getting an LPN at a nursing college takes longer, more like two years, but you will gain more classroom knowledge that will help you if you want to advance your career later.
Once you are on the job as a vocational nurse, you may then want to take advantage of an LPN to RN program. Often your employer will help pay for you to upgrade your skills and get a registered nursing degree. Besides the LPN to RN program, there is also an LPN to BSN program, where you can get your baccalaureate degree and become an RN.
Once you are already an LPN, and have been working, you have already received instruction as well as on-the-job learning. This means that it is possible to get your RN or you BSN online. There are also evening and weekend programs.
Many people who are sure they want to go into nursing make the choice to start as a licensed vocational nurse. If you choose this path, you will get into the workplace quickly. There are plenty of jobs for LPNs. Once working and earning money, you can decide if you think further training is a good idea, depending on what your career goals are. If you do want to go on, you can train to be a registered nurse, possibly with the financial help of your employer.
Published: 2009-10-14
