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There are currently over 160 accredited LVN programs in California. 7 of those programs are at Unitek College. Their California campuses are located in Bakersfield, San Jose, Concord, Hayward, Freemont, San Francisco, and Sacramento.
Unitek has both weekday and evening programs available. The LVN program at Unitek is made up of intensive clinical rotations, as well as labs, classroom work, and cutting-edge simulations.
Their program is designed to prepare students to hit the ground running as soon as the program is completed. Unitek College (UC) also specifically prepares students to take the NCLEX-PN so they can begin working as an LVN as soon as possible.
Unitek College has many options available for getting your vocational nursing education. UC has both full-time day programs and part-time evening programs. It takes 12 months to complete the daytime LVN program. The evening program takes 17 months to complete.
Unitek's Bakersfield campus has 4 healthcare programs: Vocational Nursing, Medical Assisting, and a 3 year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program.
As of August 2023, there are 6 other accredited LVN programs in Bakersfield.
Regardless of which of the LVN programs you choose, the amount of classroom and clinical hours remains the same. The term “clock hours” refers to the total hours of clinical and classroom hours. California’s Board of Vocational Nursing & Psychiatric Technicians (BVNPT) requires that each student complete a minimum amount of hours.
For vocational nurses at Unitek College, 1,620 “clock hours” will be completed, which is above the state minimum. The one exception to this is the LVN program at UC’s Bakersfield campus. The Bakersfield program is a total of 1698 “clock hours”.
The LVN program at Bakersfield Adult School(BAS) takes 22 months to complete. There are 4 prerequisites which must be completed prior to applying:
Applicants must have either a high school diploma or GED. BAS's LVN program boasts a 100% NCLEX pass rate. The total cost of the program is $6,500, which includes all materials, books, uniform, and laptop.
The LVN program is currently impacted, which means there are many more applicants than there are available seats. Students who are not accepted are placed on a waiting list.
The LVN program at Bakersfield College(BC) is the oldest program in Kern County. It's also the most popular. Bakersfield is loaded with RN's who began their nursing education at BC. Many LVN's stay at BC after graduation in order to take their LVN to RN program.
The downside of BC's popular LVN program is that it can take anywhere from 1 to 3 years to get accepted. This is because the program is so impacted(there are many more qualified applicants than there are available seats).
Students who receive high grades in their prerequisite courses are usually accepted at a faster rate.
There are 4 prerequisite courses that need to be completed before applying:
All applicants must show proof of a high school diploma or GED.
High Desert Medical College(HDMC) offers 2 vocational nursing programs at their Bakersfield campus: an LVN certification program which takes 56 weeks to complete, and a 101 week Associate of Applied Science LVN degree program. Graduates of both programs are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-PN exam.
Both programs are offered in a "hybrid" format. The general education courses can be completed online. The clinical rotations must be done in person. All "online" LVN programs in California must have in-person clinical rotations.
HDMC has many other healthcare certification programs, including: Ultrasound Technology, Medical Billing & Coding, Pharmacy Technician certification, Dental Assisting, and more.
The San Joaquin Valley College(SJVC) LVN program is 2 years long. Graduates of the program are awarded an Associate degree.
After program completion, graduates are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-PN nursing board.
Cerro Coso Community College(CCCC)'s LVN program takes 3 semesters to complete. Graduates are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-PN.
There are more qualified applicants than there are seats available. CCCC does not have a waiting list. That means that anyone who is not accepted must reapply the following year.
There are 4 prerequisite courses that must be completed prior to enrolling:
The Kern River Valley campus in Lake Isabella is a part of Cerro Coso Community College. Their LVN program is approved by the California Board of Vocational Nursing. It is a 3 semester program, with a total of 1660 hours of combined lecture and clinical rotations.
There are 6 prerequisite courses which need to be completed prior to applying:
The cost of the vocational nursing program is currently $35,344. This includes tuition, lab fees, application fees, books, technology fees, registration fees, and the fee for California’s license application.
When reviewing a program's cost, keep in mind that most students receive financial aid. This financial aid comes in the form of student loans, scholarships, and grants.
There is also the CSAC for students in California. The California State Aid Commission administers the Cal Grant program. The Cal Grant program exists to help students meet the financial requirements of a college education. Any payments from the Cal Grant program are used to help cover any outstanding fees, such as tuition, supplies, books, and associated fees. Eligibility for Cal Grant is based on the information from the student’s FAFSA application.
There are a few things to consider when looking at the cost of tuition of accredited LVN programs. First of all, the average LVN salary in California is now at $63,676 annually. This fact alone may justify the cost of a vocational nurse program. Secondly, many colleges, including Unitek College, offer LVN to RN programs. So if a relatively new LVN took their education to the next level and became a Registered Nurse, their salary would be substantially higher. And third, the need for experienced, competent vocational nurses is increasing every year.
The projected job growth for the next 10 years is outstanding! According to the BLS, vocational nursing will grow at least 16% through 2026. One of the biggest reasons for this is the ageing of the baby-boomer population. Skilled nursing facilities will need more LVNs to keep up with the demand. Most likely, this increased demand will be coupled with an increase in pay.
Five steps need to be completed in order to begin the vocational nursing program at Unitek:
7 of Unitek College campuses offer vocational nurse training:
Unitek's Bakersfield campus offers a 3 year Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. Courses include:
Unitek students are offered 3 different pathways to a BSN degree:
The first pathway is for students with no nursing experience. This is the full-time 3 year Bachelors of Science in Nursing program.
For current LVNs, Unitek offers advanced placement.
For current Registered Nurses with an Associate Degree, Unitek offers the RN to BSN route.