Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Jobs Overview

As a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), you're a pivotal part of a healthcare team that tends to patients daily. Because the role is essential to caregiving, LPN jobs are found in many settings including skilled nursing facilities and residential care centers, hospitals, and home healthcare services.

LPN jobs are expected to grow by 6% over the next decade — an estimated additional 41,300 jobs — which would bring the total number of LPNs to nearly 700,000. If you're looking for an LPN job, now is a great time to explore the opportunities. LPNs are expected to be in high demand thanks to the aging of the baby boomer population, as well as the fact that outpatient centers are performing many of the procedures that were once exclusive to hospitals.

LPN Education and Skills

In order to become an LPN, you’ll need to graduate from a certified practical nursing certificate program, which typically takes a year to complete. In addition to nursing, your coursework will cover biology and pharmacology, and you’ll get hands-on clinical experience to help you prepare for caring for patients.

Upon completion of the program, you’ll earn a certificate, but you must pass the NCLEX-PN to receive your license, which is required in order for you to be legally qualified for licensed practical nurse jobs.

At this point, you’ll be able to assist RNs and provide basic nursing care, which includes:

Taking and monitoring a patient’s vital signs
Helping patients with eating, dressing, and using the bathroom
Preparing patients for diagnostic tests

If you’d like to learn more about what skills employers are looking for, check out this LPN job description sample.

LPN Resume/CV

In order to stand out from the competition when applying to the best LPN jobs, your resume should align your skills to the specific requirements you see in a job ad. For example, if an employer lists “experience with wound care best practices” at the top of their list of qualifications, you’ll want to be sure you include that very phrase in your LPN resume.

Interviewing for Licensed Practical Nurse Jobs

Employers use an interview as an opportunity to see what you’re like in person and gauge your verbal communication skills. At the same time, you have a chance to evaluate them — interviewing is very much a two-way street. Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the culture and priorities of the organization. The information can help you determine if the job is a good fit for you.

Ways of Working

There are many options when you’re pursuing LPN openings, not just in terms of the types of facilities you can work, but also the nature of your employment. You can work full time, part time, temporary, on contract, or per diem. You can work in a more traditional hospital setting, or in a long-term care community or a clinic. The nursing field has flexible options, so it’s in your best interest to find an employer who does too.

Salary for Licensed Practical Nurse Jobs

The average salary for LPN jobs is $55k+ per year. What you earn can depend on a variety of things, including your education level, the state in which you work, and the facility itself.

Demand can also play a role in what you can earn. For example, Texas and Florida are among the five states that employ the most LPNs, but the average pay in both locations is lower than in Alaska and Washington, which are among the five states that pay the most to LPNs.