CA BRN New Requirements For NCLEX RN international students

pogingnurse · May 16, 2012

@silverdragon102 actually i do if theres any chance but if not then i will just reside in that state where i will be able to work as RN.i like california but if thats the only chance that i can work as RN then i will do it.pls give me some advice.

Silverdragon102, BSN · May 16, 2012

If you plan on living in CA then even with endorsing you will find the same problem will arise. I can't advise you where to work but you will have to meet BON requirements which will be listed on their website

Caezel · May 16, 2012

You can take your exam in nevada, thats the nearest state in california.. :)

Kuyafern · May 17, 2012

Hi Caezel, i just graduated this march in the philippines, and instead of feeling relieved all of these new requirements adds so much stress. Isn't it possible to take the board in another state and then transfer my licence to another state?

ceridwyn · May 17, 2012

No, please read just some of the discussions, just above yours.

Silverdragon102, BSN · May 17, 2012

Hi Caezel, i just graduated this march in the philippines, and instead of feeling relieved all of these new requirements adds so much stress. Isn't it possible to take the board in another state and then transfer my licence to another state?

Endorsing from one state to another generally you still have to go through process and meet requirements so transcripts will be assessed. Some requirements may be bypassed like taking CGFNS exam but others like English will still be required if required

retetestis · May 17, 2012

Others are saying PRC and PNA will be coming here in calif. They may help us in some way.

Home Health Columnist / Guide · May 17, 2012

You can find the list of all US state Boards of Nursing link at the bottom of every allnurses page.

Search the state board of nursing website for information regarding "initial license application" (if you do not have a license issued by a US state yet and do not have a license from country where you were educated and graduated from a nursing program. Some states have specific section for "Internationally Educated Registered Nurses or Internationally Educated Nurses (IEN) Outside US"

If you HAVE a license from country where you received initial education, then you are looking for

"Licensure by Endorsement With Exam for Internationally Educated Registered Nurses".

NCLEX is a standardiized national exam--there is no state were it is "easier" to take exam. Requirements for licensure DO vary from state to state with some easier to obtain than others. Look to where you want to live and to obtain a nursing position is the best place to apply for license. From reading postings at allnurses, too many IEN are getting licenses in one state just because it's supposedly easy then applying again in one or two other states in hope of landing a position there -- this is a very expensive way of obtaining a license, and does not gurantee you will find work in that state as US job market is saturated , especially in California and New York City area.

Each country has immigration limit too for entering US. Less of an issue for European and Indian nurses to emigrate to US as less applying to come here compared to Philippines.

California, New York, New Jersey, Florida, and Illinois have the highest density of foreign-educated nurses, with foreign-educated nurses comprising as much as 29 percent of the nurse workforce in California and 24 percent in Florida. These are all states with surplus of nurses at this time with US educated RN's having issues obtaining employment.. I highly suggest that one looks at other states surrounding these ones to obtain employment.

See these articles:

CA BON 2008:

The Movement of Registered Nurses into and out of California

Canada 2012:

How to successfully hire internationally educated nurses -

McMaster University and the Ontario Hospital Association have released a guide--called Internationally Educated Nurses: An Employer's Guide--that highlights health care organizations that successfully executed IEN recruitment and training. Specifically, the guide covers topics including workforce diversity, cultural competence, recruitment strategies, screening processes, and hiring practices.

CROSSING BORDERS - International Centre on Nurse Migration

Hope this helps.

BennyRNCA · May 17, 2012

Others are saying PRC and PNA will be coming here in calif. They may help us in some way.

It would be interesting if they do come, but I think the PRC and PNA will get an earful. They may try to ask for a variance of those recently coming in, but I seriously don't think it will happen.

CA BON is very strict on their existing foundation: that the education is the primary stance they want and require. I think that the CA BON may make a slight variance if it can be shown that their colleges have a record (years) of those passing the NCLEX at least higher than 70% for the 1st time. If you take a look at the CA BON NCLEX passing rate chart of the CA schools, you'll find that true.

If the PRC and PNA plans to ask CA BON to accept those with the deficiencies, then it would toss the CA courts ruling of Excelsior colleges (a US based college) as Excelsior also falls into the same situation facing the overseas students.

What the PRC and PNA needs to do is look at their own courses and the way they conduct them. Like here in the States, there's a LIMIT of nursing students allowed per school, why is that? Partly due to any school budgeting issues, but also there's only so many hospitals here that can accept new students to be safely taught and learn, you can't have 121 students all at one time or even thru out the whole day, without compromising a patient's safety and well-being. Would you want a bunch of unexperienced students looking at your own family member who is ill or worse?

Here in CA and most States, it's a one-on-one student to hospital instructor or mentor if you will. You are asked to "shadow" the hospital nurse your whole time there.

I think the PRC and PNA will come out finding they did not meet the written policies that's been a CA BON requirement for the last couple of decades. That they do need to now LIMIT their student base and increase the educational standards to meet the 65-70% first-time NCLEX passing rate. They will need to find a way to give their existing students a way to make the concurrency problem no longer a problem.

I think if the PRC and PNA try to push the CA BON too much, CA BON will come back and fire back something that's even even more restricting by making other requirements needed before an application can be accepted.

I think the PRC and PNA will only open up a new can of worms and find they just created another set of problems.

I also find it ironic that a US citizen even those with a dual citizenship can not even apply for PH license. Not that one is really demanding to work overseas there, but what if they had a family or just wanted to gain some nursing experience, even if it's not possibly accepted in the States. You never know if some hospital or clinic could still accept that as experience. Talk about double standards.

retetestis · May 18, 2012

BennyRNCA. What I was hoping for is for the PRC/PNA to make a solution for us Phil graduates to help deal with our deficiency according to BRN, like what you mentioned. Obviously, they can not change the rulings here in CA. I don't think so if BRN will be more restricting just because of PRC/PNA.

About what you said that PRC and PNA will only open up a new can of worms, are you pertaining to the Phil nursing graduates?? I've been a member here in allnurses for just a few months but i've already encountered many negative comments about international nursing graduates here in US. Nobody is superior. Graduates outside the US has its own advantages and disadvantages, so do US graduates.

People here in this forum are miserable because of the existing problem in our eligiblity, if someone wants to criticize someone's education, pls don't do it here. Thanks.

BennyRNCA · May 18, 2012

BennyRNCA. What I was hoping for is for the PRC/PNA to make a solution for us Phil graduates to help deal with our deficiency according to BRN, like what you mentioned. Obviously, they can not change the rulings here in CA. I don't think so if BRN will be more restricting just because of PRC/PNA.
About what you said that PRC and PNA will only open up a new can of worms, are you pertaining to the Phil nursing graduates?? I've been a member here in allnurses for just a few months but i've already encountered many negative comments about international nursing graduates here in US. Nobody is superior. Graduates outside the US has its own advantages and disadvantages, so do US graduates.
People here in this forum are miserable because of the existing problem in our eligiblity, if someone wants to criticize someone's education, pls don't do it here. Thanks.

I don't know where you got any references about me mentioning a single word about the Phil nursing graduates? If you would re-read what I said is that I am ONLY referring and pointing the finger at the PRC and PNA on how they run their colleges and schools.

Because of their own short-comings to identify the real cause of what's making all the recent grads having to ask their schools, their colleges, their deans, their instructors for letters of explanation, the PRC and PNA plans to try to convince the CA BON on why the deficiencies should be either over-looked or excused or waived.

I earlier posted up what Geegeebaby's said in her thread about the "Who's to blame of the CA BON "mess" stems strictly from your CHED, already having knowledge of these issues years ago but did nothing about it for years. I never said or blamed the international students.

You guys (now I am referring to the international students) are THE ones that needs to put pressure on the CHED, PRC and PNA to meet up to US standards and if they're going to play the game, at least to CA BON minimum standards. I mean if the current students today still don't know what's going here in the States, you guys (yes, all the old and new grad student) should inform them, but has anyone done so? Don't let the future students think that it's still business as usual and everything is going to remain the same as their previous family members have known and that's there nothing in the world to worry about.

It's changed and changed a lot (the SS# requirements, the issue of taking the local exam there first before applying into CA, the hospital sponsors have all but disappeared in CA, the job market is so tight in CA where you get 1,000's upon 1,000's going after less than 1 (one) percent chance of landing a new grad job (I suggest you venture over to the CA nursing side and see how many can't find a job, many can't even get a single interview, no hospital is hiring unless you have one year of RN experience, but how do you that if no one wants you since you don't have the experience, etc)?

What I'm saying is that if the PRC and PNA plans to tell the CA BON to change their decades old written policy, it's not going to work. When I said it will "open up a new can of worms", it does NOT mean the students! It means that it's very possible that the PRC and PNA will bring up (open) a new set of distracting and wriggly mass of confusing topics(worms) in which they may try to put in more details than is needed and will only add more things that the CA BON will take offense to. Making the higher ups in any governmental agency upset is only going to cause more problems and they will find ways to do so, legally. It's the nature of the beast.

In the end, the PRC and PNA may do more harm than good. CA BON already fought and won a legal battle against Excelsior College and since it has set a precedent in that matter (concurrency), CA BON will simply show them the legal rulings and then it's up to the PRC and PNA to find a way around that. How? I don't know, but I guess the PRC and PNA could try to fight it in the courts here, but all that means is that the CA BON may just deny all Phil applications for years until the court case is settled. Excelsior I think took 3 years, lost the case and CA BON did not renew any of Excelsior's CA RN licenses after a certain year. Excelsior students from all over the States could not and can not get an endorsement from any state into CA under that ruling. The same thing could happen if there's a lawsuit against CA BON and if the PRC and PNA loses, guess what happens to any and all license holder come renewal time, CA BON will revoke or suspend those license and many nurses will be out of a job. No active license, no CA hospital or clinic or any health locations will allow one to work without a license.

With so many nurses looking for a job, it will not take long to find replacements.

Caezel · May 18, 2012

Me too.. I graduated last march and im still here in PI, waiting for my diploma.. For now im trying to get some cases that fits on my maternal and ms lecture while im still here., my school allowed me to change my cases but for me to be sure the only case that ill get was the one that i handled.. Coz BON might request for rotation plan.. Thats the last option that i think will work for us..