Henderson Community College Nursing Program Review

Henderson Community College (HCC), located in Henderson, Kentucky, is a two-year college that is part of the Kentucky community and Technical College System (KCTCS). Henderson was established in 1960. The college serves students in three counties in Kentucky, which are Henderson County, Union County, and Webster County. Approximately 2,200 students are enrolled in various programs at the college.

There are many programs offered, including adult learning and free GED classes. Many students complete two years of study at the community college and then transfer to a four-year program to earn their bachelor’s degree. There are student organizations and activities planned for students at Henderson, including the film series that features classic movies.

Nursing Programs

Practical Nursing

The practical nursing program at the college prepares students to provide bedside care and to provide care to patients. A Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) also supervises nursing assistants, applies dressings, gives medicine to patients, and takes vital signs. An LPN may work in a doctor’s office, school, clinic, hospital, long-term care facilities, or other facility. Practical nurses earn a diploma at Henderson Community College. Graduates of the program are awarded a diploma and they take the NCLEX-PN national exam to become licensed as a Licensed Practical Nurse.

To qualify for admission to the LPN program at Henderson Community College, applicants must carefully follow all directions and meet the deadlines for submitting their application and documents. The first step towards admission is to attend a Pre-Admission Conference. At that meeting, the Personal Data Form must be completed. Applicants must then submit an application with their high school transcripts or official GED score. All college work must be represented by an official transcript as well. Scores from either the SAT or ACT must also be submitted. The nursing program admits students on a competitive basis, so having a grade point average of 2.5 in at least 12 hours of college work is preferred. Also, a score of at least 18 on the ACT or a satisfactory score on the SAT, and a ranking in the upper 50 percent of the applicant’s high school class are desired. There are also some requirements that must be met to be considered for the program. One of these is completing a 75 hour nursing assistant course or equivalent. Applicants must also take a computer literacy course or test out of this requirement through a challenge exam. Kentucky and Indiana criminal checks are required, as well as the proper immunizations needed for working with patients.

LPN to ADN Bridge Program

Some Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) who graduate from Henderson’s LPN program or those who have worked in the community as nurses want to become Registered Nurses. The college offers a program that allows an LPN to enter the Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) program. The advantage to this Bridge Program is that LPNs can transfer many of their credits from their practical nursing courses to the Associate in Applied Science in Nursing (AAS). Students must follow the same procedure for admission to the program as the college requires for admission to the practical nurse program. This involves attending a Pre-Admissions Conference, completing a Personal Data Form, submitting an application with official high school or GED grades and a transcript from all college work. ACT or SAT scores must also be submitted.

Preference is given to those who graduated in the upper 50 percent of their high school class, who have an ACT score of 20 or above or an equivalent SAT score, and to Kentucky residents who live in the Henderson Community College area. Preference is also given to students who graduated from the Henderson PN program. Once accepted into the program, students must present evidence of an unrestricted current LPN license, proof of their computer literacy, results of Indiana and Kentucky criminal checks, CPR certification, and the proper immunizations. Students must maintain a 2.0 grade point average in the program that consists of 59 credits. When the program is completed, students take the NCLEX-RN for their license as a Registered Nurse.

Associate Degree Nursing

Henderson Community College’s Associate Degree Nursing leads to an Associate in Applied Science in Nursing (AAS). Students who complete the program are trained to work in hospitals, doctor’s offices, clinics, long-term care facilities and retirement homes, and other settings. They attain their licenses by successfully taking the NCLEX-RN. All of the general education requirements of the college must be met in addition to the nursing core courses and the clinical experience required by the nursing program. Admission to the nursing program is competitive, so it is important that applicants carefully follow the steps required to be considered. First of all, the interested candidate must attend a Pre-Admission Conference and complete a Personal Data Form at that time. An applicant with official high school or GED must also be submitted. ACT or SAT scores must also be submitted. Preference is given to applicants with a grade point average of 2.5 or higher on 12 hours or more of college work, to those who graduated from high school in the upper 50% of their class, and to Kentucky residents living in the area that the college serves. An ACT score of 20 or above is also considered when admitting students to the program.

There is financial assistance at Henderson Community College for students who want to become RNs. Besides paying for the cost of regular tuition and fees, nursing students have a substantial amount of other fees and charges that they need to pay. They must have some way to get to their clinical experience sites to complete this part of the course, and they also need to buy liability insurance, uniforms, and supplies. Nursing students are eligible to receive nursing scholarships and grants as well as federal loans and other loans from a variety of sources. There is also a work-study program at the college that provides jobs for students.

Students must meet certain requirements to enter the nursing program. They must have successfully completed a nursing assistant course of at least 75 hours, and they must be computer literate and able to test out of a proficiency test in this area. They need to have the required immunizations and pass the Indiana and Kentucky criminal background checks. Certification in CPR is also required.

Contact:
Henderson Community College
2660 S. Green Street,
Henderson, KY 42420
(800) 696-9958

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