Two credentials, one ladder
Finish the first term with a nursing assistant certificate; finish the degree as a registered nurse.
Start here
Nursing Assistant certificate
1 term
$1,450 full program
- Financial aid eligible
- Day or evening
- Prepares you for the state nursing assistant exam
Most students choose
Associate degree in Nursing
2 years after prerequisites
$11,900 full program
- Financial aid eligible
- Day classes, clinicals on a hospital schedule
- Prepares you for the registered nurse licensing exam
Go further
RN to B.S.N. with a partner university
3 to 4 terms after the degree
Partner tuition
- Online
- Work as an RN while you finish
- Credits transfer in full
Illustrative costs for a fictional college: in-district tuition and fees for the whole program, before aid. Uniforms, a stethoscope, the background check and exam fees are about $900 more.
Photo: CDC on UnsplashWhat you’ll do
- Assess patients and plan their care on hospital floors from the second term.
- Give medications and treatments safely, practiced first in the simulation lab.
- Chart and hand off on the electronic record the valley hospitals use.
- Care for people of every age: pediatrics, maternity, mental health and older adults.
- Practice for the licensing exam every term, not only at the end.
Program map: Associate degree in Nursing
Full time, four terms after the prerequisites. Clinical days run 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
-
Term 1
- Foundations of nursing
- Pharmacology
- Skills and simulation lab
Earn the Nursing Assistant certificate
-
Terms 2 and 3
- Medical-surgical nursing I and II
- Mental health nursing
- Maternal and child nursing
- Clinicals: hospital floor, maternity, pediatrics
-
Term 4
- Complex care
- Leadership and transition to practice
- Preceptorship: 120 hours with one nurse
Earn the associate degree
Prerequisites, taken before you apply: anatomy and physiology, microbiology, college math and English composition.
Jobs this leads to
-
Registered nurse, hospital
Medical-surgical, emergency, surgery and intensive care units at the valley hospitals.
-
Clinic nurse
Family practice, pediatrics and specialty clinics, on weekday hours.
-
Long-term care nurse
Skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, often as charge nurse within a few years.
-
Public health nurse
Immunization clinics, home visits and school health with the county.
-
Nursing assistant
After the first-term certificate: hospitals, care centers and home care while you finish.
-
Travel or agency nurse
Short contracts in other regions, usually after a year of experience.
We don’t list wages here because they vary by region and employer. For current pay and job outlook, see the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook. Sample outcome for this fictional program: 93 percent of 2025 graduates passed the licensing exam on the first attempt. The figure is invented for the concept.