You must be enrolled at WCC and have an active ctcLink number to apply to the nursing assistant program and pay related fees.

Apply to WCC online, or visit Orca Central for assistance, or request a WCC application by email at outreach@whatcom.edu. Once you receive your ctcLink number, proceed to Step 2.

Students must pay the application fee ($25) and the background check fee ($11) on or before the application deadline to be considered for the nursing assistant program (total fees $36). The Washington State Patrol background check will be run by WCC. 

Note: The application fee is non-refundable. If you are not admitted to this program with your initial application, there will be no refund of the fee. If you reapply to this program within one year, you will not need to pay the fee again.

Payment instructions

Fees may be paid in person at the cashier or by mail. Stop by in person (cashier is on the first floor of the Laidlaw Building) during business hours or mail one check for $36 ($25 application fee and $11 background check) made payable to "Whatcom Community College" to the below office:

WCC Business Office
ATTN: Nursing Assistant Application Fee
Laidlaw Building
237 W. Kellogg Rd.
Bellingham, WA 98226

Include a completed application fee payment form with your check. Note your ctcLink number and "NAC program" in the memo line of your check.

Submit the completed nursing assistant application and all supporting documents in one packet to sdunn@whatcom.edu OR mail to:

Nursing Department
Whatcom Community College
237 West Kellogg Road
Bellingham, WA 98226

All materials must be received at the nursing department by the deadline to be considered for the nursing assistant program. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Late applications will be considered only if there is space available.

Your packet should include:

• TB (tuberculosis) test results¹ - TB tests can be done at walk-in clinics, any physician's office, or Whatcom Occupational Health (360.676.1693)

¹TB test guidelines

Applicants need a two-step tuberculin skin test (TST) performed one to three weeks apart. Two negative test results are required to be considered negative (a QuantiFERON-Gold or TSpot test is also acceptable). If any TSTs are positive, a chest x-ray with written results and physician's statement of no symptoms of TB is required. Tuberculin skin test must be repeated every 12 months unless a test has shown 10 or more mm of induration. Tine test is NOT acceptable. If the TST expires during time in a clinical facility, the student must update the test prior to the beginning of the quarter in which it expires.

Background checks

Acceptance into the nursing assistant program requires a Washington State Patrol background check to support clinical placements. Students need to pay the fee to the WCC business office to start the process and submit the attestation of payment within their application. Results of the background check will be provided to the nursing program director and all findings will remain confidential to WCC administration. Background check results for program applicants are considered valid for six months.

How to navigate a criminal history is a challenging exercise. It takes open, persistent exploration. Contact WCC's BFET program coordinator Tess Winds Johnson (twindsjohnson@whatcom.edu or 360.383.3183) and ask for a planning appointment. This may be your first step in uncovering the impact a criminal background may have on your professional path.