New Grad looking for advice

designer-mommy, BSN, RN · Oct 15, 2009

Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico:
Thanks Designer-Mommy! I was under the impression I might be able to start in clinicals in November...its very difficult to get clear answers over in PR. Not sure why everything is so slow..either understaffed or cultural differences. I have spoken with a wonderful woman over there. She is very helpful and on the ball.
Anyway, NYSOP implied that hospitals really care about where you graduate from and that it would be more difficult to get a job in NYS when graduating in PR. Has anyone graduated from there or know someone who has and gotten hired in a good NYC hospital?

I can see how hospitals might be picky about that. It's weird though, because there must be a high demand for bilingual nurses in NYC! I was just talking to a nurse about a month ago and she said that they still recruit heavily over here. She said that every week there are tons of "relocate to the United States" type of ads in the newspaper. She said if her mom wasn't here she would move to the US for sure. They pay CRAP here in Puerto Rico. My husband's cousin has been working in the same place for 25 years, she has a Master's degree and is in management, and she makes $14 an hour. Yes...Master's degree, 25 years, FOURTEEN DOLLARS. Wow.

I'd like to hear from others that have graduated from Interamericana and moved back to the states too. My best friend said that there are about 5 optometrists at her job that graduated from Interamericana's School of Optometry. So, the school has a pretty good rep over there in Orlando.

And yes...it is almost impossible to get answers to anything over the phone. I always physically go in any time I need to ask a question. I hate to deal with them over the phone. There is someone in the English Trimester office is AMAZING. He's a counselor and he is so extremely helpful. Every time I go in, I go straight to his office LOL

corjen1226 · Oct 17, 2009

You do not need to have your PR license to take the NCLEX here in CT if you graduated from an accredited university/college. If you did not graduate from an accredited university then you will need to apply as a foreign nurse. I graduated from INTER Metro and I had no problems here in CT.

diamondgirl · Oct 18, 2009

Thanks Corjenn...I was hoping you were still on the board bc I was really interested in hearing your response. Did it take a long time to get hired? NYS dept of Education is telling me it may take as long as 8 months to have all the paper work done. I told them it was NLN accredited but they still told me the same thing. Do you know anyone from NYC that graduated from there?

MidWest78 · Nov 18, 2009

Anyone know whats the average cost of a studio or 1 bedroom apartment in Humacao. I plan on attending school there and would like to know the average rent. Thanks much everyone.

corjen1226 · Nov 19, 2009

The whole process with applications, waiting on the school for the proper documents, and then getting my ATT from the board of nursing in NY took about 2.5 months. Not long at all. I tool the boards shortly after. I recieved a license endorsment from CT and now work in Connecticut. It took me about 2 months to find a job, and that was because I got great letters of recommendation from several physicians that are affiliated with the hospital I currently work with. I know of nurses that have been working as medical assistants because they cant get hired as new RN's. The job market for nurses is very bad right now, especially for new RN's. As for the other post about rent prices in Humacao, a studio with electric and gas included should not cost more than $350/month. Keep your eye on the news. Puerto Rico is facing very hard economic times and rents may be on the rise.

timmytdao · Feb 6, 2010

I just recently graduated from the Inter American University of Puerto Rico. I contacted the depatment of public health here in CT and I was told that as long as my school was accredited that I can apply for licensure and take the NCLEX without the P.R. license.

Hello Corjen 1226, i hope this message get you. I've read a lots of thread regarding nursing school in puerto ricco, and it seem like you have the most information. I'm really interested in gettin more information about nursing school in PR. And i would greatly appreciated if you can help. Which school did you go and which program did you apply for (ADN, ABSN, OR BSN)? How was your experienced down there? Would you recommended to other classmates? How was the professors? Were they nice and helpful? Where did you stay while you were down there and how much did it cost you? How did you apply to financial aid? And which website or where can i print out an application? Is it safe more my wife and 3 kids to live down there while i attend school. Please help, cuz i am lost and confuse. I do really want to be a nurse. I just don't where to start.

corjen1226 · Feb 12, 2010

Timmytdao,

This thread is 3 pages long. I posted answers to all of your questions in the first 2 pages of the thread. I believe you will find alot of the information you need there. As far as children, I do not recommend PR if you have children. The schools in PR are HORRIBLE and unsafe. Security is poor and the education is low quality. Unless you are able to afford private school for all your children it will not be good for them. Also, children middle school and higher are able to wander off campus during lunch and sometimes schools are grades K-9 in one school. Think twice, personally, I would never put my child in a school in Puerto Rico. It is also very, very hard to find a job. Many government employees have recently been laid off and unemployment is very high, even if you have a degree. If you were planning on going to PR and working and going to school it may take you months to find a job. If you dont speak Spanish it will be that much harder to find a job. Oh, and public schools are also taught all in Spanish. Only a small number of schools offer classes in English. Most private schools have the capacity to teach in English. Hope this helps.

timmytdao · Feb 21, 2010

Timmytdao,
This thread is 3 pages long. I posted answers to all of your questions in the first 2 pages of the thread. I believe you will find alot of the information you need there. As far as children, I do not recommend PR if you have children. The schools in PR are HORRIBLE and unsafe. Security is poor and the education is low quality. Unless you are able to afford private school for all your children it will not be good for them. Also, children middle school and higher are able to wander off campus during lunch and sometimes schools are grades K-9 in one school. Think twice, personally, I would never put my child in a school in Puerto Rico. It is also very, very hard to find a job. Many government employees have recently been laid off and unemployment is very high, even if you have a degree. If you were planning on going to PR and working and going to school it may take you months to find a job. If you dont speak Spanish it will be that much harder to find a job. Oh, and public schools are also taught all in Spanish. Only a small number of schools offer classes in English. Most private schools have the capacity to teach in English. Hope this helps.

Sorry for not getting back to you sooner. I really want to said "thank you so much". You mentioned there were three pages long, but for some reason, i was unable to locate the 1st and 2nd page. Can you please post it back up again, please. If you want, you can email to me directly. Tim

Silverdragon102, BSN · Feb 21, 2010

The first 3 pages are listed and you should be able to see a link to all pages just under this post or just at the top of these posts.

34914 · Sep 13, 2010

Hello,

I know this is an old forum, but I'm hoping that someone will be able to help me. I was accepted into this program for Nov and I'm having a hard time finding an affordable or public bilingual school for my daughter who is 2nd grade...

I tried some of the private schools and the prices are ridiculous!

Can any one help?

Thanks in advance

designer-mommy, BSN, RN · Sep 15, 2010

As far as Puerto Rico not being safe for kids, that's not the case for me. I have four children and I feel completely safe with my oldest two being at school. And 34914, do you speak Spanish at all? I ask because both my husband and I speak Spanish, but we never taught our children (bad, I know) and my kids are doing excellent in public school. The English teacher helped my daughter out a lot last year in 3rd grade, but this year they are leaving her to do things on her own more and it is AMAZING how much Spanish she is picking up. I'm so proud of her! My son just started school this year (he's 5) but he's doing excellent too. They actually bumped him up to 1st grade instead of Kindergarten because of the skills he demonstrated on the admissions test, and he's picking up Spanish very quick too. It's a struggle, because I have to work very hard with them when they come home, but that's what parents are for, right? LOL

Now, are the schools as good as they are in the states? Absolutely not. However, it will be a great asset for your daughter to learn Spanish. If you're going to be here for 2 or 3 years, she will learn. As for the public bilingual schools, there are a few. We have one in my town, but they didn't have spots available when we came, and now my daughter loves her school so I'm not switching her. If you call one of the public schools in the area you'll be living in, they should be able to tell you of any public schools that have a bilingual program. I'm trying to find a page for you that lists the different schools, but I can't find it. I'll post it once I locate it.

Good luck! I just started at La Inter Metro in August, and I'm loving it!!!

34914 · Sep 15, 2010

Hello designer-mommy,

We do not speak any spanish at all. I will be attending Universidad de Puerto Rico Metro area. I have tried calling the department of education in PR to get a list, but I did not get any answer. The english schools I've found are private and very expensive. If you don't mind me asking, what is the name of the school that your daughter goes to? Any information you can give will be helpful..... thank you!