Looking for advice: Philippines to California?

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Hello Allnurses,

i found this forum while looking for some help, but honestly I feel stuck in mud. My fiancé (well, Hopefully, soon to be fiance, but I digress...) is currently in her third year of nursing school. I would like her to be able to come over to California after she is done and have the best chance to find work. So, I have some questions, and I'm really looking for some guidance so that I can best help my fiancé to navigate the process.

Do you suggest taking the board exam in the Philippines? My thought is that she doesn't need to, and only the US exam matters, since we'll be here for a while.

How does one take the test? Does she have to apply beforehand? Is it a national test or is there a specific test or department in California?

what kind of things should I be looking out for? I've already said for her to keep all her documentation, transcripts, cases, hours, etc. but I really don't know how to help beyond that.

Not sure if this is even the right board or place to ask, but I figured it's worth a shot. Thank you for reading, and thank you for helping (if you try)

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

she needs to make sure any cases/clinicals she does are done at the same time as her theory. Very hard for International nurses to get registered in CA. Once she graduates she needs to send in application to the BRN and wait to see if she is eligible to sit NCLEX. She can not sit the exam without approval from the state nursing board

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Look over the minimum requirements to be licensed as an RN in CA, it's all stated on their website.

One of the documentation needed is a copy of the local country's nursing license, but some have been able to use the excuse that's currently being accepted by the CA BRN of being exempted from that document if they explain in writing they are either of US or dual citizenship.

But there could be one day, the CA BRN will no longer accept that reasoning, as it will go against their own written policy that needing to provide the nursing license if applying from out of the country and could simply be enforced without further notice since it's already mentioned on their application.

It will NOT be a new regulation or rule as it's been disclosed to all applicants upon signing the actual application.

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Silver:

Thank you for the response! I think she may have a couple cases that weren't fully completed, but I'll check. If so, I'll try to have her work with the school to see how they can remedy it correctly. That really makes me nervous, but we'll see... Also, she'll be in California anyway, she might as well be trying to register properly to work here. I imagine she can always get a job doing something related while she waits... Or, at least, that's what I'm assuming.

Steppybay:

And thank you for the response! So, to be safe, it would be best for her to get her nursing license in the Philippines? she wants to, anyhow, so I suppose that will make her happy.

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Most we are seeing is CA requiring courses mainly obstetric and I think med/surg courses to be completed and issue has been finding schools in CA or accepted by CA that will do the courses. Couple of threads do discuss this issue very well

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It doesn't hurt to have taken the PH NLE and pass it.

Come job time, if there was two candidates from the PH and everything all being the same (whatever that is), but had a PH nursing license and the other didn't have anything to show, maybe it could sway the hiring person in charge to lean a bit more to the licensed person.

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It doesn't hurt to have taken the PH NLE and pass it.

Come job time, if there was two candidates from the PH and everything all being the same (whatever that is), but had a PH nursing license and the other didn't have anything to show, maybe it could sway the hiring person in charge to lean a bit more to the licensed person.

Hi steppybay! Im a 2007 graduate and based from what Ive read, Ca Board might just decline my NCLEX application. Is it for everyone or is there a chance that I might be eligible even tho Im a philippine 2007 graduate? I home someone can help me. I feel so alone and frustrated. Thank you...

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Hi steppybay! Im a 2007 graduate and based from what Ive read, Ca Board might just decline my NCLEX application. Is it for everyone or is there a chance that I might be eligible even tho Im a philippine 2007 graduate? I home someone can help me. I feel so alone and frustrated. Thank you...

The only ones that have expressed they had little to no problems in getting their ATT or licensed endorsed into CA are those that graduated prior to 2004-2005.

You are not alone by any means, there have been several thousand applicants from PH alone in CA left with the disappointments and frustrations from being granted either the ATT or the license via the endorsement process.

Just remember this is nothing new from the CA BRN strict enforcement of the concurrency rules (from 1987) and this is something that needs to go back to the main source” of the problem: CHED, PRC and the PNA who have known of these regulations and simply hoped the CA BRN would never enact them as they allowed for more open schools and greatly impacted the system which has so put every PH student into a tailspin.

All you can do is to apply for the RN exam, get the declination letter from the CA BRN, try to retake and complete (with a final transcripts) of the deficiency courses before the third year of your application date before it's considered to be abandoned” and risk the losing the non-refundable application fees.

You also go the LVN-RN route but just know that it comes with its own set of situations and not as easy as it sounds.

Going out of state to get the RN license and even working in a paid nursing job for many years will not be credited a single unit towards any deficiencies at all since it's all based on your original school transcripts.

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