Career Atlas USA

Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses

Median salary
$64,400
Average salary
$67,050
Employment
648,410
Projected growth
2.6% growth
Annual openings
54,400
Typical entry education
Postsecondary nondegree award

What Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses Do

Care for ill, injured, or convalescing patients or persons with disabilities in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, private homes, group homes, and similar institutions. May work under the supervision of a registered nurse. Licensing required.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience
None
On-the-job training
None
Self-employed
0.3%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 3 of 5

Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed

Experience
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations.
Education
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Job training
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

  • Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 4.0/5
  • English Languageimportance 3.9/5
  • Psychologyimportance 3.7/5
  • Medicine and Dentistryimportance 3.7/5
  • Administration and Managementimportance 3.3/5
  • Education and Trainingimportance 3.2/5
  • Therapy and Counselingimportance 3.1/5
  • Mathematicsimportance 3.0/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

  • Contact With Others4.8/5
  • Telephone Conversations4.7/5
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.7/5
  • Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.7/5
  • Physical Proximity4.7/5
  • Exposed to Disease or Infections4.7/5

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

  • Service Orientationimportance 4.1/5
  • Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.0/5
  • Coordinationimportance 4.0/5
  • Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.6/5
  • Time Managementimportance 3.6/5
  • Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.3/5
  • Instructingimportance 3.1/5
  • Systems Analysisimportance 3.0/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Hot Technologies

Other Software Used

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

  • Dependability
  • Attention to Detail
  • Cooperation
  • Empathy
  • Cautiousness
  • Integrity
  • Social Orientation

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

  • SocialHigh
  • RealisticMedium
  • ConventionalMedium
  • InvestigativeMedium
  • EnterprisingLow
  • ArtisticLow

Specific Interests

A more detailed breakdown of this occupation’s interest profile, per O*NET.

Military Backgrounds That Lead Here

Military occupations commonly matched to this career, per the DMDC Military Crosswalk.

This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

  1. 1Monroe, LA3.11× national avg
  2. 2Springfield, OH2.88× national avg
  3. 3Lafayette, LA2.81× national avg
  4. 4Alexandria, LA2.76× national avg
  5. 5Shreveport-Bossier City, LA2.71× national avg

Possible Career Moves

A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.

See the full career path from Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses →

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.

Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants, Other

Full salary data & percentiles →Best states for this career →Highest-paying states →