About Flathead Valley Community College
Kalispell, Montana, is home to Flathead Valley Community College, a public college serving roughly 1,200 undergraduates, and about 49% of them attend part time. The federal student-to-faculty ratio is about 15 to 1.
Nursing programs at Flathead Valley Community College
The nursing offerings tracked in federal data here are the practical nursing (LPN/LVN) certificate or diploma and associate degree in nursing (ADN). Recent annual completions came to about 5 practical nursing completers and about 20 associate-degree nursing graduates. Programs at this level are the faster, lower-cost way into the profession: an ADN typically takes about two years once prerequisites are done, and many graduates later add a bachelor’s through an RN-to-BSN program. That is a relatively small annual graduating class, so ask how many seats open each year.
Cost and student outcomes
Published tuition and fees are about $5,000 a year for in-state students and $12,000 for out-of-state students. The average net price (what students receiving federal aid pay after grants and scholarships) is about $9,900 a year. About 22% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Students who finish the associate level and borrow leave with median federal loan debt of about $15,600. Federal earnings data puts median pay for those associate-level nursing graduates at roughly $67,700 one year after finishing and $80,300 four years out. These are estimates for graduates with reported earnings, not a promise. Schoolwide, about 38% of first-time, full-time students finish within 150% of normal time and 63% return for a second year.
Applying and licensure
The federal data does not report an overall admission rate for this school, which is typical of open-access colleges. Expect the nursing program to have its own application, prerequisite courses, and limited seats. Our guide to getting into nursing school explains what programs typically look for. After graduation, the path to a license goes through the state board of nursing in Montana and the NCLEX exam. Ask the program about its accreditation (ACEN or CCNE) and state approval, and see how it stacks up against other nursing schools in Montana.
Figures come from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and can change. Confirm current details with the school.