Anatomy and Physiology 2
Self-paced online Anatomy and Physiology 2 course (Biology 212). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
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LPN to RN in Kentucky: prerequisite checklist and time limits
By the team. Checked 15 Nov 2026.
The short answer
Going from LPN to RN in Kentucky means completing a board-approved registered nursing programme. Under 201 KAR 20:320 an RN programme is at least two academic years, which may include prior articulated academic credits, and each programme's faculty sets the curriculum. Ask your programme which prerequisites it needs, whether your LPN study counts, and whether science credit has a time limit.
What the Kentucky rule sets
201 KAR 20:320 sets the minimum length of prelicensure programmes. A practical nursing programme runs at least one academic year. A registered nursing programme runs at least two academic years, and that may include prior articulated academic credits. The rule also lets an RN programme, with board approval, mark a point where students can exit and become eligible for the NCLEX-PN.
The rule does not list prerequisites or say how much LPN study an RN programme must count. Each programme decides that, so two Kentucky programmes can treat the same LPN student differently.
Prerequisite checklist
Get your programme's current list and tick off each line in writing with the admissions office:
- Anatomy and Physiology I and II, and whether labs are required.
- Microbiology, and whether a lab is required.
- Chemistry, college algebra or statistics.
- Psychology, including lifespan or developmental psychology if listed.
- English composition and any other general education.
- Minimum grade for each course and minimum GPA.
- Any entrance test the programme uses.
Time limits on science credit
Some programmes only count science courses taken within a set number of years, and others have no limit. The Kentucky rule does not set one, so this is a programme policy. If you took A&P during your LPN training several years ago, ask whether it still counts or whether you must retake it.
Ask, too, whether a time limit applies to the date you finished the course or the date you apply.
How your LPN study may count
Because the rule lets an RN programme include prior articulated academic credits, some programmes give LPNs credit for part of the first year. Ask whether yours has an LPN-to-RN track, what it counts from your practical nursing programme, and whether you need a current, unencumbered LPN licence to enter it.
Bring your practical nursing transcript and course descriptions to that conversation. A programme can only give credit for what it can see, and a written answer on which courses carry over tells you how many terms remain before you can sit the NCLEX-RN. If two programmes give different answers, compare the total time and cost, not just the tuition rate.
Where UPI Study can help
If your programme agrees, UPI Study's NCCRS-recommended A&P I and II with labs, Statistics, Chemistry and Introduction to Psychology can fill prerequisite or general education slots. UPI Study has no Microbiology, Nutrition, Lifespan or Developmental Psychology, Organic Chemistry or Pharmacology course.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited; courses reach a programme only via a college transcript. TESU and UoPeople are partner colleges that consider ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit. ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities. Take only the courses your programme has agreed in writing to count.
What to ask in writing
Before you enrol
Ask your nursing programme's admissions office in writing which courses it will count, at what grade and from which college transcript, before you enrol.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
Questions people ask
how long does lpn to rn take in kentucky
201 KAR 20:320 sets an RN programme at a minimum of two academic years, which may include prior articulated academic credits. An LPN-to-RN track may give credit for some of that, so ask your programme how much of your practical nursing study it counts.
do lpn to rn programs in kentucky have a time limit on science classes
Some programmes do and some do not; the Kentucky Board of Nursing's curriculum rule does not set one. Ask your programme in writing whether your A&P and other sciences still count, and from which date the limit runs.
can i take lpn to rn prerequisites online in kentucky
Possibly. Each programme decides whether it counts online courses and labs taken before admission. Ask the admissions office in writing, naming the course, its credits and the college transcript it will appear on, before you enrol.
Courses that fit
ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended courses, studied online at your own pace.
Anatomy and Physiology 2 Lab
Self-paced online Anatomy and Physiology 2 Lab course (Biology 212L). NCCRS recommends 2 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
Introduction to Psychology
Self-paced online Introduction to Psychology course (Psychology 110). ACE and NCCRS recommend 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →Start when you have it in writing
A&P I and II with labs, Statistics and Psychology, once your programme agrees in writing to count them.
Sources
- 201 KAR 20:320, Standards for curriculum of prelicensure registered nurse and practical nurse programs (Kentucky Legislative Research Commission) (official)Kentucky Board of Nursing regulation: the board approves each programme's curriculum plan; development, implementation and revision of the curriculum is the responsibility of the nursing faculty; a registered nursing programme is at least two academic years, which may include prior articulated academic credits; a practical nursing programme is at least one academic year; an RN programme may let students exit as eligible for the NCLEX-PN with board approval; distance learning courses must meet the same standards as other courses. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.
- KCTCS: Tuition and Costs (2026-27) (official)2026-27 tuition $198 per credit hour for Kentucky residents plus an $8 per credit hour mandatory fee. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.