Challenging The Boards To Become A Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN)

Contrary to popular beliefs, a person really can become a licensed vocational nurse (LVN) in the state of California without ever having graduated from an approved school. An unlicensed person with the right mix of healthcare experience who wants to become an LVN in California has the option of qualifying to take the NCLEX-PN on the basis of previous education and experience. This method of becoming an LVN is more commonly known as 'challenging the boards' or the 'equivalency method.'

According to the BVNPT (2011), qualifying for the licensure examination based on prior education and experience, often referred to as "the equivalency method," requires the applicant to provide documentation of a minimum of 51 months of paid general duty inpatient bedside nursing experience in a clinical facility and completion of a 54-theory-hour pharmacology course. Furthermore, the person who is interested in challenging the boards to become an LVN might be allowed to substitute previously-attained nursing education for some of the bedside experience requirements. The equivalency method permits unlicensed individuals who have had extensive inpatient bedside nursing care experience, plus a limited amount of formal education, to demonstrate that they have acquired sufficient basic nursing knowledge to be eligible for the licensure examination (BVNPT, 2011).

The applicant who wants to earn an LVN license in this manner must have the correct mix of experience. The 51 months of paid bedside experience must have taken place within the last 10 years and needs to consist of at least 48 months of medical/surgical nursing, 6 weeks of maternity or genitourinary nursing, and 6 weeks of pediatric nursing. In addition, half of the 51 month experiential requirement needs to have been within the last five years. The BVNPT will allow up to eight months of medical/surgical nursing experience to be accrued outside of an inpatient setting; however, the rest of the experience must be in an inpatient workplace setting such as a hospital. According to the BVNPT (2011), the following types of work experience will not be accepted in this category; home health aide, in-home care provider, in-home hospice provider, board and care provider, residential care provider, unit secretary, ward clerk, transport aide, phlebotomist, monitor technician, field paramedic.

Applicants who have acquired additional formal nursing education from an approved vocational nursing, practical nursing or registered nursing program may submit official transcripts for evaluation for possible credit in lieu of paid bedside nursing experience (BVNPT, 2011). All applicants who want to challenge the boards must complete a 54-hour pharmacology course that covers principles of administration, dosage calculations, knowledge and action of commonly used drugs, and medication preparation. According to the BVNPT (2011), the pharmacology requirement may be satisfied by completion of 54 theory hours of pharmacology in a Board approved vocational nursing or psychiatric technician program or 54 theory hours of pharmacology offered as part of an approved registered nursing program.

The major downfalls associated with this method of becoming an LVN is that these nurses cannot be licensed in other states. In addition, some healthcare facilities in California will not hire LVNs who became licensed through this method due to policies that require new hires to graduate from an approved school of nursing.