Vocational Nursing School: Where "Touchy-Feely" Meets "Perfectionist"

Good nurses combine kindness and an obsession with details. They comfort patients physically, mentally, and spiritually--but they're also sticklers for precision, making sure that treatments and medication are administered exactly on time and as prescribed. If you're both "touchy-feely" and a perfectionist, the rapidly growing field of nursing needs you.

Nurse training possibilities are numerous:

• With just one year of vocational nursing school training classes, you can earn a certificate or diploma and become a licensed vocational nurse or LVN (sometimes referred to as a licensed practical nurse or LPN). More than 1,500 state-approved programs offered LVN classes and courses.
• If you want further nurse training, a wide choice of degrees awaits you. You can become a registered nurse (RN) through a 2-to-3-year associate degree in nursing program, or by earning a 4-year BSN (bachelor's degree in nursing).
• BSN degrees enable nurses to pursue a master's of science degree in nursing (MSN). With an MSN, you can enter a nursing specialty such nurse practitioner (NP). An NP can prescribe medication and diagnose and treat minor ailments, just like a doctor.

LVN and RN Courses Launch You into the Rapidly Growing Field of Nursing

Dramatic growth characterizes the current nursing field. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were about 749,000 LVN jobs and 2.5 million RN jobs in 2006. BLS predicts that 100,000 new LVN jobs and nearly 600,000 new RN jobs should open up between 2006 and 2016. In 2008, the median annual earnings of LVNs were $39,030 and the figure for RNs was $62,450.

Whether you earn a certificate or diploma to become a vocational nurse or go all the way to a master's degree, nursing offers a satisfying way to combine your gentle side with your perfectionist side.