CNA to LPN

josinda421 · Mar 25, 2007

I have never heard of such thing. I'm a CNA myself from MD and I'm in LPN school. Your CNA courses have nothing to do with your LPN course, they are separate, for LPN you would be taking science and nursng courses, CNA is just a training not a schooling in itself- you understand? :specs:

DreamyEyes · Mar 25, 2007

I wish it was that easy! :lol2: For community colleges, you usually have to have some pre-reqs done (including chemistry) before applying to an LPN school. Then you have to wait to see if you're accepted. Private schools usually don't have any pre-req classes required before you apply, but they're very expensive.

eldragon · Mar 25, 2007

I'm currently in an LPN nursing class in a community college, and here is how it will go:

1 year of LPN classes which include clinicals, lectures and lab. Then I have to pass the NCLEX. Then I have to take 6 pre-req courses which include 2 English, 2 specific psychology and 2 biology classes, and pass the NET with a specific score, and after I get those done : I can apply to bridge over to an RN programs, and go another year of college with lecture and clinical to be eligible to test for RN boards.

There are also prereqs to take the prereqs. In order to take the college biology courses, you have to have at least a 21 on the science portion of the ACT, or have 3 biology high school credits with a certain GPA.

BTW - you also have to take the ACT and get a specific score on that.

That's how I'm doing it.

tookewlandy · Mar 25, 2007

From what i have read on other posts on here, In California you can as a CNA sit for the NCLEX-PN after you have worked 5 years( paid years) and after you have taken a pharmacology class and maybe a few other classes. i think that is a great way for CNA's to advance because from what i have seen and experienced CNA functions almost the same as LPN( especially in the hospital setting). The only downside is that if you get your LPN license in this way the only place that will recognize it is California and you wont be able to use it in other states. good luck

Hopeslayer · Mar 25, 2007

From what i have read on other posts on here, In California you can as a CNA sit for the NCLEX-PN after you have worked 5 years( paid years) and after you have taken a pharmacology class and maybe a few other classes. i think that is a great way for CNA's to advance because from what i have seen and experienced CNA functions almost the same as LPN( especially in the hospital setting). The only downside is that if you get your LPN license in this way the only place that will recognize it is California and you wont be able to use it in other states. good luck

:confused: An experienced CNA cannot function anywhere near the same as a LPN in any setting.

tookewlandy · Mar 25, 2007

An experienced CNA cannot function anywhere near the same as a LPN in any setting.

Well in my opinion an experienced CNA can..sorry

pagandeva2000, LPN · Mar 25, 2007

From what i have read on other posts on here, In California you can as a CNA sit for the NCLEX-PN after you have worked 5 years( paid years) and after you have taken a pharmacology class and maybe a few other classes. i think that is a great way for CNA's to advance because from what i have seen and experienced CNA functions almost the same as LPN( especially in the hospital setting). The only downside is that if you get your LPN license in this way the only place that will recognize it is California and you wont be able to use it in other states. good luck

While I don't live in California, I can say that this shocks me. I have questions on even an experienced CNA being able to challenge NCLEX-PN with just a chemistry class and pharmacology. There are many concepts that may appear on that exam that needs to be covered, including disease processes, nursing care plans and critical thinking along with the prioritization of care as well as co-horting clients according to diseases. This is not being said to insult the experienced CNA, but while the CNA may witness a great deal of things, and may even have a chance to do some of the things that a nurse may allow them to do undercover (a nurse can get in some SERIOUS trouble allowing a non-licensed person perform any of her duties), but the rationale needs to be explained fully in order to answer the questions on NCLEX. Each state does function independently, so, it may be true, but that is a shock to me. What about psychiatry, pediatric and maternal child situations? A pharmacology class will not tell you the immunization schedule for children and adults, share the difference between placenta privia and adruptio placente, tetralogy of fallot versus coartraction of the aorta? When would the CNA learn the signs of a person who is an alcoholic verses an opioid abuser? What about electrolyte imbalance? No...sorry to say, the CNA and LPN do not function the same.

pagandeva2000, LPN · Mar 25, 2007

I wish it was that easy! For community colleges, you usually have to have some pre-reqs done (including chemistry) before applying to an LPN school. Then you have to wait to see if you're accepted. Private schools usually don't have any pre-req classes required before you apply, but they're very expensive.

WOW...they are asking for chemistry in the LPN courses in your state? We didn't have to face that in New York. What a difference...I would have failed miserably depending on a chemistry class. I took the class for the heck of it and dropped it in three weeks, because it wasn't needed for the LPN program and it would have drastically dropped my GPA. :trout:

pagandeva2000, LPN · Mar 25, 2007

Hi everybody,
I'm a newly certified nursing assistant in the state of Arizona. Currently I'm unable to work since I just moved here from Belgium to marry my husband. I'm still waiting for my work authorization and change of status to permanent resident. This should not take too long, since everything was filed a couple of months ago and I'm one of the lucky few who got support from a local senator.
Anyway, this actually has nothing to do with what I wanted to ask. :)
The other day I was talking to my uncle-in-law, he used to be a nurse in California. And he told me about this "special path" to becoming an RN.
Since I already got my CNA I should be able to just take a certain chemistry class in (community) college and take my LPN state board exam after passing that.
From there it should be pretty "easy" to get my RN through nursing school.
Now I'm wondering, is this actually true? Can you just take a chemistry class - if so which one? - and take the state board exam?
Has anybody here any experience with this?
Thanks so much in advance!
- Sarah

I would ask your uncle some serious questions. Jumping from a CNA to even LPN is a major thing. For example, in CNA school they may tell you the normal parameters for a blood pressure, and if it exceeds above or below, you are told to inform the nurse. Your responsibility ends there. At that point, she takes over. To walk into even the first semester, fundamentals of nursing, it is a MAJOR difference between what a CNA would know and an LPN.

There are even LPNs that go into the RN program that are shocked silly when they get bombarded with the theory that the RN has to know. My instructor told us like this; the LPN learns 'what you see and then, what do you do with a bit of why and the RN functions under 'what she sees, what it may be, and more of why it may be and then, has to delegate who to do what in the particular circumstance'. The LPN does know a great deal, but it can still be relatively basic compared to what the RN has to use to function, and the scope of practice is different. The LPN works under the auspice of the RN. We do MANY things, but not ALL things. We cannot triage or assess a patient, per se. We cannot administer certain medications (such as chemotherapy, IV push, and in some states, even piggyback medications). I hear all sorts of things, but maybe it depends on the state or country, but, somehow, just what you mentioned alone does not seem to be enough for me, based on my experience.

c18436572 · Apr 4, 2007

Hi everybody,
I'm a newly certified nursing assistant in the state of Arizona. Currently I'm unable to work since I just moved here from Belgium to marry my husband. I'm still waiting for my work authorization and change of status to permanent resident. This should not take too long, since everything was filed a couple of months ago and I'm one of the lucky few who got support from a local senator.
Anyway, this actually has nothing to do with what I wanted to ask. :)
The other day I was talking to my uncle-in-law, he used to be a nurse in California. And he told me about this "special path" to becoming an RN.
Since I already got my CNA I should be able to just take a certain chemistry class in (community) college and take my LPN state board exam after passing that.
From there it should be pretty "easy" to get my RN through nursing school.
Now I'm wondering, is this actually true? Can you just take a chemistry class - if so which one? - and take the state board exam?
Has anybody here any experience with this?
Thanks so much in advance!
- Sarah

Hi, I am in my last 2 weeks of CNA classes in Phoenix and let me just say this, your uncle is way off. You would have to take 2 semesters of classes plus clinicals to get your LPN and then you would have about 9 pre-req classes (approx. 32 credit hours) to take, prior to even being able to apply for the RN program. Plus, there is only 1 community college that offers a LPN program in Phoenix. There is also the Maricopa Skill Center and they offer only an LPN program.

Here is a link to Community College Nursing programs inAZ.

Hope this helps.

http://www.pc.maricopa.edu/index.php?page=29&subpage=729

Fiona59 · Apr 4, 2007

From what i have read on other posts on here, In California you can as a CNA sit for the NCLEX-PN after you have worked 5 years( paid years) and after you have taken a pharmacology class and maybe a few other classes. i think that is a great way for CNA's to advance because from what i have seen and experienced CNA functions almost the same as LPN( especially in the hospital setting). The only downside is that if you get your LPN license in this way the only place that will recognize it is California and you wont be able to use it in other states. good luck

So, you are telling us that in California, CNA's insert/remove foleys, dc IV's, remove staples and sutures, do dressing changes, etc?

Our NA's don't even change ostomy flanges in acute care.