Practical Nursing
Practical Nursing
The Practical Nursing program at Highland Community College Technical Center in Atchison, Kansas prepares students for employment as a Licensed Practical Nurse. Students will obtain the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to succeed in passing the National Licensure Examination (NCLEX-PN). Students will complete a nine-month course of study.
Licensed Practical Nurses play an important role in performing tasks in a variety of settings including
- long-term care facilities,
- doctor's offices,
- correctional facilities,
- hospitals, and
- many more medical venues.
Licensed Practical Nurses work under the direction of Registered Nurses, advanced
practice personnel and physicians. Some LPNs choose to continue their education toward
Registered Nurse (RN).
The Practical Nursing program aligns with the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES). CIP Code 51.3901: Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training. A program that prepares individuals to assist in providing general nursing care under the direction of a registered nurse, physician, or dentist. Includes instruction in taking patient vital signs, applying sterile dressings, patient health education, and assistance with examinations and treatment.
Certifications: Students who successfully complete the Practical Nursing program are eligible to register for the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses (NCLEX-PN) certification exam.
HCC Nursing Programs are approved by the Kansas State Board of Nursing (KSBN). The curriculum for both the Associate Degree of Nursing - ADN (LPN-RN Bridge) and the PN Program support the statewide alignment as outlined by the Kansas Post-secondary Technical Education Authority (TEA) under the auspices of KBOR as approved by KSBN.
Helpful Resources:
- Certificate C | Degree Map
- 2022 Wage Survey
- Kansas Promise Scholarship
- Wage Survey & HCC Completer Employment
Available at These Locations
How to Apply:
Students are required to have an active CNA (Certified Nurse Aide) Certificate and take the following hours prior to entering the PN Program. Nursing program prerequisites may be completed at any Highland Community College location (including online). However, the Nursing Program itself is physically located and held in Atchison at the Technical Center.
Pre-Requisite Courses:
*These courses have a 7-year expiration date. If it's been over 7 years since you've taken this course, please contact the Nursing Department.
3 Credit Hours
This course focuses on human development using normative scales for physical, intellectual, emotional, language, social, and personality development. The process of human growth and development across biological beginnings, infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and end of life will be presented. Environmental and biological influences that affect development are also reviewed.
4 Credit Hours
This course is an anatomical study of the systems forming the human body. Emphasis is placed on the organs forming each system, the embryonic development of the system, and the functions of the tissues and organs of each system. The course includes a brief physiological review with each system and will consist of three hours lecture and one and one half hours of laboratory work per week.
5 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: BS 101, BS 105, or TST 117
This course will provide a study of the morphology, physiology, and classification of microorganisms associated with disease. The course will also focus on methods of disease prevention through sanitation, disinfection and sterilization, sources and means of infection, and body defenses.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Assessment
This course provides instruction and practice in the principles of written composition. The major emphasis is on improving the ability to organize and express thoughts clearly and effectively. Students will be expected to write coherent essays that declare and support a thesis, as well as use and document research material. A reading text is used for criticism and discussion. This course is required for all degree programs.
See your advisor for information about computer literacy courses.
Practical Nursing program admits students at the Technical Center in Atchison, Kansas twice a year—during the Fall semester (August) and the Spring semester (January).
There are 40 seats available annually for the PN program.
Practical Nursing Application Form
Application Materials Deadline
Fall Admission
Program Start: August
Program Completion: May
Application Deadline: May 1
Spring Admission
Program Start: January
Program Completion: December
Application Deadline: October 1
Applicants must be at least 18 years old by the time of graduation from the Practical Nursing Program and must be able to perform the physical and mental tasks required of a nurse.
Application Materials Due before Enrollment:
- Nursing Program Application,
- Test results,
- Transcripts, and
- Other required documents (see information packet for more details).
Admission to the program is determined using a point-based system designed to identify the most qualified applicants. The selection criteria are weighted as follows:
Applicants with the highest overall scores will be offered admission and sent official letters of acceptance.
Accepted applicants must confirm their intent to enroll by the deadline stated in the acceptance letter. Failure to respond by the specified date will result in forfeiture of their spot in the program.
Students who are accepted into the nursing program will receive an official acceptance
letter outlining the next steps. This letter will include a list of additional required
forms that must be completed and submitted to the Nursing Office in Atchison, Kansas
no later than the time of orientation.
Instructions for completing a criminal background check and drug screening will also
be provided in the acceptance letter. These requirements must be completed according
to the directions given to remain eligible for enrollment.
A mandatory orientation will be held for all accepted students. Orientation provides
important program information and expectations, and attendance is required to secure
your place in the program.
Practical Nursing Courses (33 Credits Total):
2 Credit Hour
Prerequisite: Admission to PN Program
This course provides orientation to the program and promotes student success. Students are introduced to the student role, end-of-program student learning outcomes, college and program resources, learning and learning styles, test taking strategies, use of credible resources, wellness, and self-care strategies.
4 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to PN Program
This course provides an introduction to practical nursing and roles of the practical nurse as well as profession and client related care concepts. Emphasis is placed on the knowledge and skills needed to provide safe, quality care. The theoretical foundation for basic data collection and nursing skills are presented and an introduction to the nursing process provides the student with a framework for decision making.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to PN Program
This course provides an introduction to the principles of pharmacology. Emphasis is placed on nursing care related to the safe calculation and administration of medications to clients across the life span.
5 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course focuses on the care of adult clients experiencing common medical/surgical health alterations with predictable outcomes. Emphasis is placed on the care of clients with alterations in cardiac output and tissue perfusion, oxygenation, regulation and metabolism, and integument. Principles of pre-and post-operative care, pharmacology and IV therapy are also addressed.
1 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course provides an introduction to the skills required to practice nursing. The theoretical foundation for basic data collection and nursing skills are presented and the student is given an opportunity to demonstrate these skills in a clinical laboratory setting. Students are also given the opportunity to apply the nursing process to client-related situations.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course focuses on the care of adult clients with common medical/surgical health alterations. The clinical laboratory experience gives students the opportunity to apply theoretical concepts from Nursing Care of Adults I and implement safe client care in selected settings.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course is designed to explore issues related to aging adults. Course content addresses the impact of ageism, alterations in physiological and psychosocial functioning, and the role of the practical nurse in caring for older adult clients across a continuum of care.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course explores basic concepts and trends in mental health nursing. Therapeutic modalities and client behavior management are discussed. Emphasis is placed on using the nursing process and meeting the basic human needs of the client with a mental health disorder.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course provides an integrative, family-centered approach to the care of childbearing women, newborns, and children. Emphasis is placed on care of the pregnant woman and newborn, normal growth and development, and common pediatric disorders.
5 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course focuses on the care of adult clients experiencing common medical/surgical health alterations with predictable outcomes. Emphasis is placed on the care of clients with alterations in cognition and sensation, mobility, elimination, immunity and hematology, and reproduction. Principles related to pharmacology and emergency preparedness are also addressed.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course provides orientation to leadership roles of the LPN and related responsibilities. It also introduces issues to students that they will encounter in the workplace.
1 Credit Hour
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course provides an integrative, family-centered approach to the care of childbearing women, newborns, and children. Students observe the uncomplicated birth process and practice postpartum care as well as care of the newborn in the clinical laboratory setting. Common pediatric diseases and the growth and development process is the focus of child-related clinical laboratory experiences.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the PN Program
This course focuses on the care of adult clients with common medical/surgical health problems. The clinical laboratory experience gives students the opportunity to apply theoretical concepts from Nursing Care of Adults I and II and implement safe client care in selected settings. Students are also given the opportunity to practice leadership skills while managing a caseload of clients.
1 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to PN Program
This course provides a review of the NCLEX-PN blueprint, NEXGEN test items, and test taking strategies over the courses offered in the LPN program.
What's New at Highland
Practical Nursing Program Achieves 100%...
For the second year in a row, Highland Community College Technical Center's Practical Nursing students have achieved a remarkable 100% first-time pass rate on the NCLEX-PN assessment for licensure as Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs). As of December 2023, the national pass rate for first-time...