legal advice???

Sorry about that first response...wrong thread :)

Yes, your criminal history will affect things...and the fact that you had it dismissed doesn't mean it's been wiped entirely clean from your record. Your arrest likely remains visible on your background check, and you may have to explain it.

A school can reject you based on your criminal history. When it comes to how to answer questions on your application regarding arrests and convictions, seek legal counsel as we can't provide legal advice per our TOS.

Likewise, just because a school accepts you and your criminal record doesn't mean that the BON (or whatever state board) will rubberstamp your application and automatically register you as a CNA. The BON reviews applicants with a criminal history on a case-by-case basis and can accept or reject it based on their own criteria. Again, when it comes to how to answer questions on your application, seek a lawyer's advice. Should the BON ask you to appear before them to explain, I strongly recommend that you have that lawyer with you as the BON is not the nurse's (or CNA's) friend.

And last, should the BON allow you to become a CNA doesn't mean that employers have to automatically accept your criminal record and hire you. They are free to reject you based on your record. Unfortunately, a history of shoplifiting is a turn-off for a lot of employers. Again again, if you have questions about how to answer application questions, consult a lawyer.

So as you can see, what you did will impact your future big time.

You can't undo what you did, but you can learn from it and not make the same mistake again.

Best of luck.