Frequently Asked Questions

At California Preparatory College, we are committed to helping aspiring and experienced medical professionals take the next step in their careers. Our CNA to LVN program is designed with flexibility, affordability, and comprehensive NCLEX-PN preparation to support your success. Whether you’re exploring program details, application requirements, or student resources, our FAQ section provides answers to the most common questions. If you need further assistance, our team is here to help!​

​How long is the CNA to LVN program?

Semester 1: Pharmacology – 10 weeks 
Semester 2: NCLEX-PN Review – 12 weeks 
Final Exam and Application Seminar - 1 week 
23 weeks total (6 months)​
 
How much is the CNA to LVN Program?

Payment Plan Option:
$2450.00  
$400 due at registration 
 
Payments of $200 every 2 weeks until $2450 is paid in full. 
No Interest, No Credit Check. 

Payments are automatically debited from your credit or debit card. 
Payments are processed on Saturdays. 
  
-or- 

Pay in Full Option:
$2050.00 due at registration
Save $400! 

How does the flexible schedule Online Program work?
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Assignments are posted online in prerecorded video format every Saturday at 8 AM Pacific time for you to access at your convenience. You do not need to be available on Saturdays to attend class. So, you can make any day of the week your class day. Our students love receiving the information in video format because they can watch it as many times as they want, watch it in the middle of the night, or break it into sections.

How does the In-Person Program work?
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Physical In-Person classes are held every Saturday from 8 am to 2 pm in Riverside California by reservation.
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​When are weekly quizzes due?
 
Quizzes should be turned in every Friday. There is no penalty for turning work in late if you provide advanced notice. If you do not complete 1 module per week, the program will simply take you longer than 6 months to complete. 
​ 

​When does the next class start?
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New student classes commence every Saturday. Registration must be completed by 3:00 PM Pacific Time on the preceding day. Our online program offers flexibility; therefore, your availability on Saturdays is unnecessary. Saturday marks the release of the new module, ensuring you receive the week's materials promptly.

​Don’t want to read the fine print, or confused? We are happy to review your experience with you in detail over the phone to see if meet the requirements.  Call Us Today at 909-534-4812.

​​What are the requirements of the Board to be able to take the NCLEX-PN Exam?

• 54 Hour Pharmacology class 
• High School diploma / GED / Equivalency from another country
• Live Scan Fingerprinting, DOJ & FBI Background Check​
• Completion of application, including confirmation that you have completed the following work: 
  • 51 months of paid general duty inpatient bedside nursing experience including: 
    • 48 months medical/surgical nursing (This can be a combination of acute, sub-acute, and Skilled Nursing Facility work, but a minimum of 40 months must have occurred in an acute care facility.) 
    • 6 weeks maternity or genitourinary nursing (If you have patients with foley catheters you have genitourinary experience, so you DO NOT need maternity.) 
    • 6 weeks of pediatric nursing. 

    Proficient in the following knowledge and skills:  

• Ambulation techniques
• Bedmaking
• Urinary catheter care
• Collection of specimens
• Diabetic testing
• Administration of a cleansing enema
• Feeding patient
• Hot and cold applications
• Intake and output monitoring
• Personal hygiene and comfort measures
• Positioning and transfer techniques
• Range of motion exercises
• Skin care procedures
• Vital signs assessment
• Communication skills (verbal and written), including communication with patients with psychological disorders
• Infection control procedures, including:
  • Asepsis
  • Techniques for strict contact, respiratory, enteric, tuberculosis, drainage, universal, and immunosuppressed patient isolation

​ 
What do I do if I am missing some of the requirements? 
 
The requirements can be very confusing. Please call our office to review your experience to confirm it counts or determine what you are missing.  Very often, people can receive more credit for their work and education history than they first realize. You can still take this program now if you are missing requirements, but you will need to meet all the requirements for the Board to approve your application. Once you send your application to the board if you are missing requirements the board will send you a letter that gives you two years to complete the missing requirements.   

​Will my work experience outside of California count?
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The Board will accept work experience completed outside of California provided the proper forms are filled out. Please keep in mind that the Board of California has no control over whether your employer in another state will fill out the forms. Therefore, getting the forms filled out will rely on your relationship with the employer. 

Can I use my California LVN license in another state?

When you use your experience as a CNA to qualify to take the NCLEX-PN exam in California the license that you earn is the exact same license that every other LVN in California has because you have shown the state in the exact same way that you know how to be an LVN by passing the exact same exam. However, every state issues their own LVN or LPN licenses and makes their own rules about what you must do to transfer a license from California to their state. Many states have reciprocity agreements, also known as compact agreements. We recommend that you check the Board website and or contact the Board in your state to find out what you must do to transfer an LVN license from California.
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How do I prove to the board that I did the required work?
 
During second semester you will attend our application seminar online. At the application seminar we will go through the application line by line and show you how to fill it out. We will also be checking your application before you send it to make sure you have done everything correctly. For every employer that you want credit for towards the four years and three months of experience required there are two forms that must be filled out: 
    1.  HR Letter 

• This letter must be on a company letterhead and include your basic contact information, dates of employment, departments worked in, total number of hours worked, and your job title.  

    2.  Employment verification of nursing experience 

• This form breaks down all your work hours by department and it has information on different skills that you have completed on the job such as bedmaking and personal hygiene. This form is completed and signed by the RN supervisor. 

To help explain, If you've worked with one employer for four years and three months, you'll need to fill out two forms. However, if you've had five different employers, you'll need to fill out 10 forms.

​​What do I do if I am missing pediatrics experience?

We recommend completing all in-person experience before applying. If you lack pediatrics experience and the option is available from the CA BVNPT, we can provide a list of facilities offering pediatrics positions for you to apply to. Some individuals complete their pediatrics training while still in class, while others may be too busy and finish after graduation. This is perfectly fine! The board will take several months to respond to your application, giving you time to complete your pediatrics experience. If the board informs you that you need pediatrics experience, you can respond once you have completed it. In the worst case, the board's letter will give you two years to fulfill the pediatrics requirement.​​

​Do I have to complete clinicals when I am using my experience as a CNA to qualify to take the NCLEX- PN exam?
​
No, you do not need to complete any additional clinical training. In effect, all your years of experience as a CNA are your clinicals. What we must do is make everything that you have seen over the years make sense. This is what we do in second semester in NCLEX-PN review, where we go over the nursing interventions that you need to know to pass the exam as well as the test taking strategies that you need to know to pass. 

Can I start working on my application now?
​​
We recommend that you wait to complete your application until after you have attended the application seminar. The forms can be confusing. You do not want to submit incorrectly completed forms to the board or must request employment verification forms from your work more than once. Do not assume that your supervisor knows how to fill out the forms simply because he or she is a nurse.

What happens if I am not ready to pass the NCLEX-PN exam at the end of the program?
​
Each week you will be completing a test and at the end of the program you will be completing a final diagnostic exam. The results of those tests will show us whether you are ready to pass the exam. If the data shows us that you are ready to pass the exam, great! If you are not ready to pass there is no reason to waste your time, money and heart going to take an exam that you were not yet ready for. If the data shows us that you are not ready to pass the exam at the end of the program, but you have been doing your classwork every week consistently and trying the best you can we will allow you to stay in class and repeat as long as necessary without any additional charge. We require that you continue in class without stopping. If you give up or disappear there’s nothing, we can do to help you. But if you keep putting in the effort, we will work with you until you are ready to pass. We do this because we know that everybody can learn the information and pass the exam. But people learn at different speeds and people start with diverse backgrounds, different educational history, and different work experience. You are not in competition with anybody else. If you make the effort, we can get you ready to pass, it’s as simple as that. 
​

​How long is the Pharmacology Diploma I will receive from this program valid?

Your diploma is valid for 10 years from the date of graduation.  
  
What do I do if I went to high school in another country? 
​
If you went to high school in another country, then the transcripts will need to be evaluated to give you credit in California. The way you do that is to send the transcript to a company accepted by the Board to complete the evaluation. If the transcript is not in English, it will first need to be translated by a certified translator before it can be a valuated. If you are a registered student of the program or have already graduated, please call our office for assistance in getting the evaluation completed. 

Will registry work count?

Registry work can count. In this instance the HR letter is done by the registry, and they list the facilities they sent you too. The employment verification is done by the RN supervisor at the facility.  

I completed part of an LVN or RN program. Will the board give me credit?

You can combine your work experience as a CNA with your prior education and submit both on your application. The only way to find out how much credit the board will give you for your education is to submit the application to them.
 
It has been a long time since I have been in school and I'm nervous. I was never good at math. Will I be OK in class?

For most of our students it has been many, many years since they were in school. We take things nice and slow to help you through the material. The online class is especially helpful because you can watch the material as many times as you need to. Your instructors have all been helping students just like you through this program for many years. Don’t let the math scare you. We take it nice and slow, and we will work together until you know it. Your instructors are only a phone call or video chat away for help if you need it. 
​
I speak English as a second language. Will I be OK in class?

Over the years many people from all over the world have taken our course. We respect you and the diversity you offer our program, and we will help you through the program. We take things slowly. You will also be able to watch the class materials as many times as you like if you need to. Class is taught in English. Our academic advisor is a fluent Spanish speaker and is available Monday through Friday 9 AM to 5 PM Pacific time for tutoring sessions by phone or video chat.
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​What do I do if I have a question about the class material or need tutoring? 
​
Your instructors are available to you Monday through Friday 9 AM to 5 PM Pacific time to help you with your classwork if you require assistance. You can talk with them on the phone, video chat, or text.

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Do you still have questions?
​Call us at (909) 534-4812

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