Licensed Practical Nursing

 

Types of Degrees Licensed Practical Nursing Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many licensed practical/vocational nurse training graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Undergraduate Certificate	37,850
Basic Certificate	5,422
Associate Degree	1,743
Bachelor’s Degree	11

What Licensed Practical Nursing Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to licensed practical/vocational nurse training and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

Skills for Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training Majors

When studying licensed practical/vocational nurse training, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Time Management - Managing one’s own time and the time of others.

Abilities for Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training Majors

As you progress with your licensed practical/vocational nurse training degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

What Can You Do With a Licensed Practical Nursing Major?

People with a licensed practical/vocational nurse training degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses	12.3%	$46,240

Who Is Getting an Associate’s Degree in Licensed Practical Nursing?

This major is dominated by women with about 88% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of licensed practical/vocational nurse training majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	201
Black or African American	170
Hispanic or Latino	785
White	423
International Students	4
Other Races/Ethnicities	160

Geographic Diversity

Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training appeals to people across the globe. About 0.2% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Licensed Practical Nursing Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

The median salary for someone in a career related to licensed practical/vocational nurse training is $47,050. This median refers to all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Licensed Practical Nursing

Some careers associated with licensed practical/vocational nurse training require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to licensed practical/vocational nurse training have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	43.4%
Some College Courses	35.0%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	20.3%
Bachelor’s Degree	1.3%

Online Licensed Practical Nursing Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	950	3
Certificate (2-4 Years)	51	0
Associate’s Degree	98	2
Bachelor’s Degree	1	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	0	0
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Licensed Practical Nursing Worth It?

The median salary for a licensed practical/vocational nurse training grad is $47,050 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 18% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $143,000 after 20 years!

Trades Related to Licensed Practical Nursing

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to licensed practical/vocational nurse training.

Major	Number of Grads
Nursing Assistant/Aide and Patient Care Assistant/Aide	35,655
Other Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants	4,653

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.