Becoming an LVN in California isn’t a career. We think of it more as a calling. It’s also one of the most popular career choices amongst young people right now, so much so that four-year nursing programs are turning away students in record numbers.
Why does the world need so many LVNs right now? It’s pretty simple.
With an aging population, there are two big reasons that healthcare facilities up and down the state will need nurses well into the future. One, baby boomer nurses are leaving the profession in high numbers and those jobs can’t be filled fast enough. Two, as those folks retire, they are moving into living assisted or care facilities that need to hire LVNs to care for those residents.
Long-term care facilities aren’t the only places you can work as an LVN.
Once you become an LVN, you are legally entitled to work in:
- Hospitals (private or public)
- Correctional facilities
- Schools, colleges, universities
- In-home healthcare services
- Nursing homes
- Doctors’ and healthcare providers’ offices
- Residential rehabilitation and nursing care facilities
Job Duties of an LVN
What is the big difference between working as an RN or an LVN? RN’s typically require less supervision and, because they have more training, are often charged with more clinical duties than an LVN. That doesn’t mean that LVNs are “lesser” nurses or “aren’t really nurses.”
In fact, as an LVN you can perform a range of tasks and provide care in many ways including:
- Wound care, changing wound dressing
- Monitoring/measuring a patient’s vitals
- Administering medication by way of an IV
- Collecting fluids and samples
- Monitoring a patient’s changing condition
- Reporting up to a supervising nurse regarding a patient’s condition
- Consulting with patients’ loved ones regarding care
Becoming an LVN is an excellent career.
The reason we say nursing is a calling is because you see the impact of how you improve people’s lives every day.
You get to work with all kinds of patients in a variety of situations. Many LVNs stay in the field because they enjoy the hands-on time they get with patients. Others opt to enroll in an LVN-to-RN bridge program later. The advantage? You’re already working in the field, your employer may cover the cost of yoru transition program, and you can earn a four-year degree after you’ve been earning a competitive salary for many years.
Also, it’s a well-paid career. That’s not just us saying that. The job and career site Indeed ranked LVNs among the 25 highest paying professions!
Working in healthcare is fulfilling, and you can become an LVN in as little as 13 months. What are the steps involved and what do you have to do in order to work in this gratifying and exciting field?
One: Get Your High School Diploma or GED
To get accepted into most accredited LVN programs like ours, you need to demonstrate that you graduated from high school with a diploma. If you didn’t finish? No problem. We just need to get you signed up for and pass the GED.
Two: Enroll in an Accelerated Program
Community colleges offer full LVN programs, but many are not necessarily accelerated. Trade schools like CDI are designed to give you the same challenging and holistic training offered at community colleges, but you typically are ready to take your accreditation exam sooner.
CDI gets you working in the field as quickly as 13 months. During that time you’ll get the many benefits of attending a specialized institution like ours.
- Hands-on clinical rotations
- Smaller, intimate classes
- Hybrid in-person/online class schedule
- Free tutoring services included with tuition
- Job placement after graduation
- Financial aid application assistance
Three: Take and Pass Your Accreditation Exam
To work as an LVN in California, the most important thing is your licensure exam. Before you can work in a professional healthcare setting, you have to pass the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses, or NCLEX-PN.
We have a lot of experience and a great track record when it comes to preparing students to pass the NCLEX the first time. In fact, we had one of the highest pass rates of any other LVN school in California five years in a row!
We take our students’ career opportunities very seriously, and that’s why we make sure to give you plenty of prep and practice tests before you take the real thing. Our program is so successful, we were recently named the best vocational nursing school in Los Angeles!
Questions about Becoming an LVN? We’re Standing By to Answer Them.
Becoming an LVN is a huge decision. We know that there are a lot of programs and pathways to get there, and navigating that path can be confusing.
We want to help you satisfy your life goals and help you make your dreams of becoming a nurse come true.
We’re standing by to discuss enrolling you in our latest class, or to answer any questions you have about our program. The CDI team is committed to your success and we can’t wait to talk to you. Contact us today and let’s start your future as soon as possible.
