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If you want to start a career in nursing but have no means of paying for a training course that will make you become a certified nurse assistant.
There are many options available in Florida that offer these programs at a low cost or even at no cost at all.
There are nursing homes and health institutions that offer free programs with a promise of employment after a candidate successfully completes the program.
If you are in Florida, you would be surprised to find that a lot of facilities offer free training programs to individuals who want to become a certified nursing assistant.
To start your search for these facilities, you can make inquiries in hospitals, residential care facilities and nursing homes in your community.
You can also make inquiries at the Job Corps Centers in cities all over Florida to find out where these programs are available to people who are in need of employment.
Article Table of Contents
Requirements to Be a Certified Nursing Assistant
To become a certified nursing assistant in Florida, there are certain course requirements that you need to fulfill before you can qualify to sit for the state exam.
Before you can work as a certified nursing assistant, you should know that all potential students are expected to have completed these mandatory requirements.
It is expected that all training programs offering a certificate to students as certified nursing assistants must inform prospective students of all that is expected of them before they can work in all types of licensed health institutions such as nursing home health agencies, nursing homes, hospitals, hospices and intermediate care facilities.
The requirements which are expected of prospective students seeking to be approved as certified nursing assistants to fulfill include:
Background Check
It is mandatory that all candidates who intend to be issued a certificate as a certified nursing assistant must undergo a thorough background check.
Training Program
Most training programs for certified nursing assistants are held for 120 hours which includes classroom lectures, laboratory and a supervised clinical training of at least 40 hours in a clinical facility.
Students must undergo initial classroom training for 16 hours before going to a clinic under supervision to practice on residents.
After a student has attended the classroom training, he can then be employed with a condition that he has covered topics on communication, safety, infection control, resident’s independence and resident’s rights.
Taking Qualifying Examinations
After training, a nurse aide candidate is expected to sit for the National Nurse Aide Assessment program (NNAAP).
The candidate is expected to successfully pass both parts of this exam at their first sitting.
This exam should be taken within 1-2 years after completing the CNA training program before they can be fully registered under the Florida Nurse Aide Registry.
If an applicant fails NNAAP exam after three sittings, the applicant will not be allowed to sit for a re-examination unless the applicant retakes an approved training program.
Foreign Students Applying for Certification
An applicant who has completed a certified training program outside Florida and is applying for a certificate must have been registered in the out-of-state nurse aide registry.
The certificate must be from a reputable institution and it should not have any reports on patients’ abuse or neglect.
The verification of the CNA program should be from the out-of-state registry or must have come directly from the certification program to the Florida CNA Certification.
Florida Certified Nursing Assistant Salaries
*Salaries Updated for 2024.
| Location | Avg. Salary |
|---|---|
| Boca Raton, FL | $31,498 |
| Bradenton, FL | $29,942 |
| Brandon, FL | $30,545 |
| Cape Coral, FL | $29,751 |
| Clearwater, FL | $30,132 |
| Daytona Beach, FL | $28,513 |
| Fort Lauderdale, FL | $31,085 |
| Fort Myers, FL | $29,751 |
| Gainesville, FL | $28,894 |
| Hialeah, FL | $30,608 |
| Hollywood, FL | $31,085 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $30,481 |
| Melbourne, FL | $28,640 |
| Miami, FL | $30,799 |
| Orlando, FL | $30,164 |
| Palm Bay, FL | $28,640 |
| Pembroke Pines, FL | $30,577 |
| Pensacola, FL | $28,703 |
| Pompano Beach, FL | $31,085 |
| Port Saint Lucie, FL | $29,878 |
| Saint Petersburg, FL | $30,164 |
| Sarasota, FL | $30,196 |
| Spring Hill, FL | $30,100 |
| Tallahassee, FL | $28,799 |
| Tampa, FL | $30,545 |
| West Palm Beach, FL | $31,212 |
CNA Training in Florida
The Certified Nursing Assistant Certificate will only be issued to applicants that have completed the training program approved by the state and have passed the competency examination.
Florida approved training classes held for at least a minimum of 100 hours.
The program cost around $300 to $1,200.
If a candidate cannot afford to pay for these type of programs, they can choose the few available options that offer free training to become certified.
They can also get a reduced price on the courses at the Job Corps Center locations that help students that are eligible pay for the training program.
Here’s a list of CNA programs approved in Florida:
Florida Coast Career Tech (North Campus)
The Florida Coast Career Tech (North Campus) offers 5.5 credit program.
The program is for 165 hours, which includes a supervised clinical experience of 40 hours in hospitals, sub-acute/long-term care facilities, and nursing homes.
Students must complete HCP 0001 – Health Careers as well as the HCP 0102C – Articulated Nursing Assistant Contact classes.
For more inquiries about this program, call (904) 766-6585.
Santa Fe Community College
This CNA program holds for 165 hours.
The Santa Fe Community College offers its students clinical experience in local nursing homes.
The training program costs a total of $945. The costs cover payment for tuition, supplies, textbooks and other fees.
The classes are held during the day and this includes classroom lecture as well as clinical instruction.
For more inquiries about this course, call (352) 395-5732.
Pasco-Hernando Community College
The Pasco-Hernando Community College offers a 4-technical credit hour program.
The course can be completed in just one term for full-time students but part-time students will require more time to complete the course.
After completing this program students will qualify to take the state examination.
The total cost of this program for residents of Florida is $765.
The cost covers the application fee, CPR course, physical exam, textbooks and background check.
For more inquiries about this course, call 727-847-2727.
College of Central Florida
The College of Central Florida offers a CNA program that runs for 6 weeks.
The program is a 120-hour certification program that holds its lectures at the Levy Center.
Students will be expected to complete 80 hours of class lecture and laboratory.
The clinical training runs for 40 hours to prepare students for the state exam.
The students are posted to nursing homes for their clinical training.
The classroom lecture holds from Monday through Thursday at the Levy Center from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
The training program fee is $450.
For more inquiries about this course, call 352-493-9533.
Gulf Coast State College
This CAN training program ensures that students are given the necessary tools to qualify for the state exam.
The training runs for 4 months and offers two courses.
The program is for 165 hours and is held at the Gulf-Franklin Center in Port St. Joe, Florida.
They also offer distance learning classes.
The total fees cost $1111 which covers the cost of tuition, textbooks, uniforms, immunizations, and supplies.
For more inquiries for the course, call 850-913-3311.
Florida Medical Prep
This CNA program is a small class program for 12 to 20 students.
The program runs for 40 hours.
Students have the option to choose day, evening and weekend classes available between 1 to 2 weeks.
The Florida Medical Prep provides all materials and textbooks for learning.
The cost of the fees is $279 and it covers textbooks.
They offer the state CNA exam through Prometric.
The exam fees are $161.25 with the use of headphones.
The fees include the cost of FBI background check, the clinical skills test, and the written exam.
For more inquiries about this program, call 727-231-4539.
Read the full guide: How to Become a CNA
CNA Training by City
CNA Training by State
I want to be a patient care technician or Certified nursing assistance. and I need a free training program. Here in Tampa Florida