LPN Career Outlook
Licensed Practical Nurse/Licensed Vocational Nurse (LPN/LVN)
The field of nursing is divided into three distinct types of nurse, based on schooling and training. While the most prevalent and well-known degree and title is registered nurse (RN), there are in fact other types of nurses, including Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) and Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVN).
The titles “licensed practical nurse” (LPN) and “licensed vocational nurse” (LVN) are two names for the same occupation. LPN/LVNs are concerned with basic patient care, and are almost always under the supervision of doctors or RNs. The range of responsibilities of LPN/LVNs is far less than that of RNs, and is usually restricted to routine bedside duties such as delivering medications, assisting patients with simple activities such as eating, bathing and using bedpans, and taking and recording patients’ vital signs.
Resources in this Article
- LPN to BSN Degree Online
- LPN to RN Degree Online
- Diploma RN to BSN Degree Online
- Nursing Degree Search
- Jobs: LPN jobs or LVN jobs in your area
Education & Training for Licensed Practical Nurse/Licensed Vocational Nurse
The LPN/LVN degree can be earned with about one year of schooling in a practical nursing program. There are currently about 1,200 accredited LVN/LPN programs in practical nursing in the U.S., including community colleges, vocational colleges, and online colleges.
In all 50 states and the District of Columbia, once the LVN/LPN student has graduated from an approved practical nursing program, he or she must then pass the NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination), a national examination, in order to obtain a nursing license. Most states also have their own additional requirements beyond these national requirements. In addition to passing the NCLEX, for example, LVN/LPNs must be licensed by the state in which they will practice.
Although requirements vary from state to state, licensed LPNs and LVNs for the most part qualify for entry-level positions as staff nurses as well as many other positions. There are also numerous opportunities to move beyond these basic degree programs, as there are currently more than 674 accredited nursing programs that offer a four-year course of study culminating in a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree, about 417 nursing schools currently offer master’s degrees in nursing, and 93 schools that offer nursing doctoral degrees.
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Explore Career Opportunities for LPNs/LVNs
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that employment opportunities for nurses of all varieties, including LVN/LPNs, is expected to grow “much faster than average for all occupations” during the upcoming decade.
According the U.S. Department of Labor, approximately 726,000 individuals were employed as LVN/LPNs in 2004. Nearly one-quarter of these worked in hospitals, another quarter in nursing care facilities, and about 12 percent in doctors’ offices. The average annual salary for LVN/LPNs in 2004 was $33,970, with a range running from a low of about $24,500 to a high of over $46,000.
Once one has attained a nursing degree as an LPN or LVN, many choose a specific area of interest in which to specialize. Among the most popular specialty LPN/LVN careers:
LPN or LVN to RN
These college programs allow the LVN/LPN to obtain the more advanced degree of registered nurse.
Nursing Care Facility
LVN/LPNs who choose this occupation care for institutionalized elderly patients.
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Have your say!
This article has 6 comments
LVNs do many more things than you credited them with. You are like so many and speak almost in a belittling manner about them!
Cynthia,
You are right. I help to run this site and this area is in need of an update. Can you write the articles that would better represent your profession? Please contact me at jeff @ my-nursing-career . com.
I really appreciate your comments and welcome the opportunity to improve the site in any way.
Regards,
Jeff
Oh my this is what a CNA does not a LPN
LVN’S need so much more respect for what they do. The general public has no idea that LVN’S exist. If your not a RN they think you know nothing. A LVN program is only one less sememster than A RN in most schools. The nursing experience is the same. The Rn has more book work, but LVN’s have just as much clinical experience. Most articles you read about LVN’S are down grading them, and its a very knowledgeable profession to have. There is a lot of responsibilities that you have for your patients no matter what area you work in. Its not about just changing bedpans and giving a pill to someone. The facts need to be accurate , because thats what gives people the impression that a LVN is just glorified CNA. I am not putting down A CNA they do a lot of important work, BUT when you go to school and study hard and do clinical and work in this field for years and you read something like this its hard to take. Thank you for listening.
My husband is 15 weeks (3 terms) away from graduating from the LPN program @ ECPI in Raleigh, NC. This is his second career at 56 years young. He has had the opportunity to have excellent class and clinical instructors. As a LPN student his clinical rounds have included, a nursing home, Dorthea Dix Hospital, Wake Medical Center, The University of North Carolina Hospitals and soon to be Duke Medical Center and or a Duke Clinical site. His scope of nursing as most LPN’s know is limited by state rules and regulations as are CNA’s and RN’s. Nurses are the hub in which medical facilities operate. All nurse’s bring individual and special talents to providing the best possible patient care. I am very proud of his accomplishments thus far. Without trying he’s become a role model at ECPI and in his clinical rounds. His HESI test results are great, he’s well prepared to take the NCLEX-PN exam and begin his new career. LPN Nursing school is very demanding and not for the weak at heart. A LPN career is very demanding and not for the weak at heart. With that stated the personal and financial rewards of being an LPN are what each individual makes of them. If your interested in becoming a nurse of any kind congratulations, your one step closer to entering a dynamic field of medicine!
Thanks for such a great story. Your husbands achievements are inspiring and impressive.