Dual Citizen from Philippines to US

1. The RN programs in the Philippines are now five years in length. Second courser programs are going to take over three years to complete and this is if you have a Bachelor's degree in another field. As well as the fact that the government there is trying to close many of them down.

2. You will be required to remain there and take and pass the NLE exam since you will not be exempt from it. The PRC will not grant you a waiver from it since legally you can sit for it.

3. States here are now requiring that you write it before they will permit you to sit for the NCLEX exam.

4. It is usually going to be six months after you write the NLE before you will have the license in hand. You need to have that before you can even apply over here for licensure, then you can expect another four to six months before you will get approval to sit for the NCLEX exam.

5. Not sure if you are aware that there are over 500,000 unemployed RNs in the Philippines right now. Those that can find work actually have to complete a volunteer or training program where they actually have to pay the hospital to do, and then they only have a chance of getting hired there as an RN.

I would recommend that you take the time to do some reading on the Philippine Forum about what is also happening with quite a few of the programs there. You also need to be aware that it is going to be much harder for you to get hired in the US when you return since you will have trained out of the US, new grads that trained in the US are having issues all over the country with getting hired.

Best of luck to you.

But if your goal is to work in the US, you would be much further ahead by going to school here. Even though you are a US citizen, you will always be considered as a foreign grad and will have to meet all of the additional requirements.

No, You don't need work experience in PI before you can work in USA. I have noticed a lot of Filipino's seem to think this.

I would wait until it's time for you to graduate, and check the state or states you plan on living/working and see if it necessary for you to take your NLE in order to get a license from that state.

My wife didn't bother getting her local licenses from PI when she graduated last year, she is now eligible to sit for NCLEX thru the Texas BON.

I personally find the "Additional Requirements" to be just a few more sets of paperwork to submit, and the amount of money you will save by going to school in PI will outweigh that.

As far as finding work, it will be far easier in USA vs PI.

The locations that he mentioned happen to both require the local license.

We are also expecting more and more states to require this as well as it is being talked about that the US government is going to require it for all foreign nurses wishing to get visas to work in the US.

What is being done now or what was done recently, is not going to necessarily what is being done when the person graduates from school.

And when you add on the approximate year that it is going to take, then that is one year without work as a nurse.

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And as we have mentioned repeatedly, you may see jobs posted, but they usually are for those with experience. And if you see a new grad job posted, chances are that it was required to be posted by HR, but the managers already know who they are going to select ahead of time for the job. We are seeing more and more new grads that trained in the US have issues trying to get hired now.

Please let us know what happens with your wife after she actually applies for an RN job once she sits for the NCLEX exam. Wish her the best on it, remember that she was going to be writing it the end of February.

US educated nurses pass the NCLEX at almost double the rate of internationally trained nurses. If you are a US educated nurse changes are you will pass the first time ( 87%). If you are an internationally trained nurse changes are you are going to fail (45%).

Airfare to another country is thousands of dollars. Permission to test will take months instead of days ( 30-60 days).
Premier employers require " graduation from accredited program". US students practice in modern Joint Commission Approved Hospitals that must follow National Patient Safety Goals. Nursing License is transferred from state to state with minimum of hassle. Job opportunities are easier to find. Opportunity to join National Nursing Honor Societies. Opportunity for Student Loans. Easier to get admitted to US based MSN programs. Most US students don't take a review program and pass NCLEX, no lengthly reviews.

I am basing this on facts and personal nursing experience.

If you are looking for a budget program go to a State or Community College, it will be cheaper in the long run. My home state cost is $24 a credit hour.

Good Day,
Apply only in schools that have 85-100% in NLE. The list is found on the PRC website.Take the NLE.Since you are a dual citizen you can go back to the US easily without immigration problems.You can work in the US while waiting for your application to sit on the NCLEX. Check the states that allow a temporary permit. If you are not allowed, you can still find a job a unit secretary or a non licensed staff. I have co workers who started as a CNA, Unit secretary that are taking up nursing and eventually became nurses. The transition will be smoother.
Goodluck!!!

Hi,
I am from Philippines and I already started my nursing degree here in my country and I wanted to continue it in US.Would it easy for me to be admitted in the school of nursing in US?
I badly need your help

Are you a dual citizen? If not, you ask in the wrong thread.
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