CNA certification

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Kobethegoat24

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To those who have taken being a certified Nursing assistant as a way of helping people and gaining clinical experience, how long did it take you to get certified? Are the classes flexible such that I can take one class a week? Thank you


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I've taken a CNA class in Washington State, not sure if the system varies between states or regions. I took a weekly class the summer between my senior year of high school and freshman year of undergrad that met four times a week that finished in about a month, and was able to receive certification about a month after due to testing and paperwork processing.

Most schools have a flexible array of class types to fit people's schedules that usually fall under three categories: daily (like "regular school"), nights, and weekends. The trade-off is the less classes you take per week the longer it will take to finish the class; daily classes can be completed in one month whereas weekend classes may take two to three months to complete. I don't think there are any schools with one class per week, however. The least you can probably get away with is two.
 
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Completed the course in 2 weekends (8-7) and took the exam a couple weeks later. So total about a month. Call around and explain what you're looking for but like @Miss Anatomist said, the fewer classes you go to per week the longer it takes.
 
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This is entirely dependent on the state in which you want to be certified. My cert was 5 weekends, 8 hrs each on Sat and Sun. The same course was offered Mon-Fri for two weeks. In a neighboring state, it's like a two month full time course, but I believe they have a slightly broader scope of practice due to it being a very rural state.
 
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I took my classes Monday-Friday for 3 weeks and my clinical for 1 week and went to school 5 hours daily this summer. Maybe you should see if weekend classes are an option. Evening have shorter class days but lasts longer than a typical morning class.
 
In IL theres a junior college thag has aboit a 6 week class where you meet like 3 times a week for a couple of hours and go to clinicals once or twice a week.
 
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