FORT MILL, S.C. -- If you've been laid off, you may be considering going back to school as your best option. But tuition can be pricey and you may be going without a paycheck for a while. 

So, NewsChannel 36 has been searching for programs where you can be trained and back in the job market in less than a month.

Walking into one particular classroom at York Technical College, you can see beds, dummy patients and blood pressure cuffs in use.

"I was a stay-at-home mom. I watch three children," said Jennifer Howze. "My husband lost his job in July."

It's the start of a new career path for Howze.

"I want to be a doctor," she said.

But first, she's training to become a certified nursing assistant, or CNA, at York Technical College.

Instructor Linda Bolick said, "They can make a career out of a nursing assistant in itself or it is a good stepping stone to go on to become a surgical technician, radiography technician, an RN,  LPN." 

Student Tiffany Lee wants to be a physician's assistant.

"It'll take anywhere from two to three years," said Lee.

But the CNA program only takes about three and a half weeks.

"Certified nursing assistants work in nursing homes, hospitals, doctor's offices," Bolick said. "It might not be the shift they want, it might not be the place they want, it might not be the days they want, but they will get a job."

And a paycheck of about $10 an hour.

"It gives them the opportunity to work in the field and make sure this is really their calling, as well as they can work in the field while they're going to school," Bolick said.