LAKE AREA TECHS PRACTICAL NURSING E-DEGREE

The LPN program is fully accredited by the National League of Nursing Accrediting Commission and approved by the South Dakota Board of Nursing. LATI’s Practical Nursing program is the only NLN accredited practical nursing program in South Dakota.

Lake Area Technical Institute’s (LATI) Practical Nursing E-degree is available to individuals residing in South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, and Nebraska.

The nursing courses offered through the internet will be the same as the courses offered in the traditional classroom. Students will receive a quality education in preparation for the licensure examination. 

While LATI offers all the courses required to graduate from the LPN program on campus, not all of them are available online. Composition, math, anatomy and psychology can be completed at any accredited technical school or college. Online courses that are approved for transfer by the program advisor may also be taken.

Online nursing students perform required supervised clinical hours in Watertown in the following courses:

Some of these hours are during the week, others may be on weekends. Additional clinical hours in these same courses and in PN117 will also be required in the students’ community.

The online practical nursing program is offered in two pathways. One pathway is a full-time program with students beginning classes in August. Students in the full-time program can expect to spend approximately 40 hours a week studying and in the online classroom depending on one’s learning style. Full-time pathway students complete the practical nursing program in 11-months of intense education.

Lake Area Tech will begin taking applications for the August 2011 full-time class September 1, 2010. The application process must be completed by March 4, 2011 to be considered for the fall 2011 class. All completed applications will be reviewed for acceptance after this date. Up to 20 students may be accepted to the fall 2011 class. Enrollment in the full-time online nursing program is contingent on successful completion of all pre-requisite courses prior to starting the program.  See Full-time Outline for list of pre-requisite courses.

The other pathway is a part-time program with classes beginning in January. Part-time students can expect to spend approximately 20 hours a week in coursework. Part-time pathway students complete the practical nursing program in 23 months.

Applications for the part-time online program will be accepted from April 1, 2010 until October 1, 2010 for the class starting in January 2011. After this date all completed applications will be reviewed for acceptance. The spring class may hold up to 24 part-time students. Completion of some or all of the recommended courses is in the students’ best interest to maintain a reasonable credit load during the course of study.  See Part-time Outline for list of recommended courses.

IS NURSING FOR YOU?

Those who want to pursue a career in nursing should have a sincere desire to help people and must be sympathetic to the needs of others. Nurses need to be able to accept responsibility and direct or supervise the activity of others. They must have initiative, good judgment and be able to respond appropriately to critical situations.

ADVANTAGES OF THE PRACTICAL NURSING E-DEGREE

Students complete their training in 11 months (full-time option) or 23 months (part-time option).
Allows students to continue working while attaining their diploma.
Students receive their training in their hometown.