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Eight students complete Blinn College online-blended Vocational Nursing Program

Blinn's online-blended format is designed for individuals balancing a job and nursing studies

Blinn's online-blended format is designed for individuals balancing a job and nursing studies

October 11, 2021

Eight students have completed the Blinn College District’s online-blended Vocational Nursing Program.

Graduates are Anthony Drake, College Station; William Fox, College Station; Lane Hudson, College Station; Emily Jennings, Deanville; Brittany McPaul, East Bernard; Juanita Paz, Bellville; Joshua Pinkerton, Somerville; and Alicia Schehr, Hearne. A pinning ceremony was recently held at the Dr. W.W. O’Donnell Performing Arts Center on the Brenham Campus.

The Blinn College Vocational Nursing Program offers traditional face-to-face and online-blended formats. Both formats begin with the fall semester. The traditional format is 10 months long and the online-blended format continues for 12 months. The program consists of classroom, laboratory, and clinical experiences.

Designed for individuals balancing a job and their nursing studies, Blinn’s online-blended Vocational Nursing Program was launched in 2018 and was the first of its kind in the state. Students taking the online-blended program complete online coursework during the week and attend face-to-face clinical and laboratory experiences during the weekends.

Pinkerton said Blinn put him on solid footing as he begins his career, and the blended format allowed flexibility for the students.

“This program gave us some flexibility to work and go to school at the same time,” he said.

Program graduates are eligible to take the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-PN) and the Nursing Jurisprudence Examination. They are considered licensed vocational nurses after passing both exams.

Graduates of Blinn’s Vocational Nursing Program consistently post first-attempt passing rates well above the Texas and national averages. From 2016-20, 97% of Brenham Campus program graduates passed the NCLEX-PN on their first attempt. The statewide average during that same period was 88%, and the national average was 84%.

Graduates who pass the state board exams are qualified to work in a variety of settings, including home health care, dialysis, hospitals, clinics, and physicians’ offices.

The 2020 annual median pay for a vocational nurse was $48,820, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment is expected to rise 9% between 2019-29, creating 65,700 new jobs, according to the bureau.

For more information on Blinn’s Vocational Nursing Program, visit www.blinn.edu/vocational-nursing.

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