Licensed Vocational Nursing Program Map

Award type:

AS Degree
Certificate of Achievement

The Licensed Vocational Nursing program is a state-approved vocational program which provides the curriculum necessary for an individual to qualify for the state board examination for Licensure as a vocational nurse. The curriculum includes prerequisite courses and the equivalent of three academic semesters of nursing theory and supervised clinical experience. The primary role of the licensed vocational nurse is to provide bedside nursing in a variety of clinical settings. The student will study common medical-surgical conditions, their origin, prevention and treatment, emphasizing the related nursing care. To help the student provide "individualized" nursing care, other courses provide basic psychology and sociology concepts relevant to the development, motivation and reactions of people both healthy and ill. The rapidly growing need for skilled health personnel provides good employment opportunities for the Licensed Vocational Nurse. Positions are found in acute care hospitals, skilled nursing and long-term care facilities, physicians' offices, private homes, community health agencies and in industry. Admission to the Program: Students are admitted by application only. In the event there are more qualified candidates than vacancies in the class, a computer lottery will select the individuals to be enrolled. Applicants that are not selected for enrollment must reapply if they wish to be considered for admission to a future program. Contact the Nursing Department or visit www.butte.edu/healthoccupations for application dates and materials. Requirements for Application: Age 17 or older with a 12th grade education or equivalent. Prerequisites: Must be completed with a C grade or better prior to application BIOL 20 BIOL 21 ENGL C1000 or ENGL C1000E FN 2 or FN 50 Applicants that have failed more than once from any nursing program (LVN and/or RN) are ineligible to apply. Requirements for Application beginning Fall 2026: Age 17 or older with a 12th grade education or equivalent. Prerequisites: Must be completed with a C grade or better prior to application BIOL 20 BIOL 21 ENGL C1000 or ENGL C1000E FN 2 Applicants that have failed more than once from any nursing program (LVN and/or RN) are ineligible to apply. Advanced Placement exam credit will only be accepted for AP English Composition and/or AP Psychology. Official test scores must be submitted to Admissions & Records. Remaining general education courses may be in progress at the time of application but must be completed before program begins. Persons with substance abuse issues or with conviction of crimes substantially related to the practice of nursing may not be granted a license by the California Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians. Fingerprints are a required part of the application for licensure. Records that are expunged or sealed, and juvenile records will be accessed and reviewed. For more information, please visit the following website: http://www.bvnpt.ca.gov/enforcement/enforcement_faq.shtml

Program detailsAward, code, department, CIP/TOP

Community of interest: HPS Health & Public Services
Award: AS Degree
Program code: 01340.00AS
Department: LVN
CIP code: 51.3901: Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training.
TOP code: 1230.20 - Licensed Vocational Nursing*

Map Class Schedule

Program Schedule Report Meet with a counselor

Licensed Vocational Nursing

AS Degree

The Associate of Science is typically awarded for Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) and Career Technical Education (CTE) programs. Like every Butte College associate degree, it has two parts: a general-education curriculum that gives you a broad base of knowledge, and an academic program where you specialize.

About General Education. GE is an integrated program of learning designed to foster intellectual curiosity, cultural understanding, critical thinking, creative reasoning, oral and written communication, and the capacity for ethical reasoning. By graduation, you'll have developed the ability to think critically, communicate clearly, apply quantitative reasoning, understand how the major academic disciplines ask their questions, comprehend diverse cultures and historical periods, and assess ethical problems — alongside the depth you build in your major.

See the 2025-26 Catalog for official program details

Semester-by-Semester Map

Term 1

Class Schedules

15–18 units

General Education: Area 1B

Oral Communication and Critical Thinking

Baccalaureate-level oral communication and/or critical thinking — speaking with structure to a live audience, analyzing arguments, identifying assumptions.

General Education: Area 2

Mathematical Concepts and Quantitative Reasoning

College-level mathematics or quantitative reasoning — the toolkit behind science, business, and informed citizenship.

General Education: Area 3

Arts and Humanities

How people and cultures, across time, respond to themselves and the world through artistic and cultural creative production. Visual and performing arts, art history, foreign languages, literature, philosophy, religion.

General Education: Area 4

Social and Behavioral Sciences

The systematic study of people as members of society — cultural anthropology, cultural geography, economics, history, political science, psychology, sociology — and the methods these disciplines use to ask their questions.

General Education: Area 6

Ethnic Studies

The histories, experiences, and contributions of the four autonomous disciplines: Black / African American / Africana studies, Native American studies, Chicano/a/x and Latino/a/x studies, and Asian American studies.

Term 2

Class Schedules

16 units

NSG 18

Fundamentals of Nursing

3 units

This course focuses on the client-centered study of fundamental nursing concepts applicable to all clinical areas in vocational nursing. Graded only.