Overview
Career outlook
Employers hire licensed practical nurses to provide basic patient care such as monitoring vital signs, administering medications, and assisting with daily needs under the supervision of registered nurses and physicians.
Getting in
What Colorado Mesa University asks for, taken from its own admissions page.
ACEN accredited Practical Nursing Technical Certificate with Grand Junction and Montrose cohorts. Selective admission; application deadline is January 15 every year by 11:59pm, classes begin in August and finish in May; students must show college-level proficiency in reading and writing, Essential Learning and foundational courses must be in progress or complete, sciences accepted within 10 years. Applicants not enrolled at CMU complete the CMU application first, then the DHS Undergraduate Nursing Application (downloaded form) emailed to healthscience@coloradomesa.edu; PN Eligibility Criteria and PN Checklist PDFs on the How to Apply page. Five-year average PN-NCLEX pass rate 94.6% (no single-year figure stated).
Checked Oct 2026 on the school's site. Requirements change each cycle, so confirm before you apply.
Paths
Routes into LPN. The first step is where you enroll today.
Medication Aide to LPN
Your medication administration experience counts. Bridge from certified medication aide into practical nursing and full LPN licensure.
CNA to LPN
Step up from nursing assistant to licensed practical nurse. The fastest license upgrade in nursing, and the standard bridge toward RN.
People
Acceptees whose paths lead to this program, and how they got in.
Find your next step.
Getting in starts with a path. Pick one, then follow the people who already did it.