Graduated BSN,from a college that is not NLN accredited..what are the consequences?

[littleone17]

Hi guys!

First things first, I earned my Bachelors Degree in Nursing last March 2011 in the Philippines. I took the NCLEX-RN in January and thank God, passed on my 2nd try. I have been researching the net for job openings for RN's in the US and just learned recently that US hospitals are strict with hiring RN graduates that come from NLN accredited colleges.

Here are the questions I'd like to ask:

1. What are my disadvantages graduating from a school that isn't NLN accredited?

2. Do I have to go back to school again and start ALL OVER, in a BSN program that is NLN accredited?

3. If I do not have to start all over again, can my college units be carried?

4. I plan on getting my Master's in Mental Health soon. And this time around, I am enrolling in an NLN accredited online course so I won't regret anything later. My question is, can I get a Masters even if my Bachelors degree wasn't NLN accredited?

Wow, if only I did my research long ago. Now I am worrying that those 4 years of studying will only go to waste. My parents have spent so much in those long 4 years and it seems very unfortunate for me. I want to start a job in the States asap but with my college being non NLN accredited I'm fearful of being rejected by the hospitals I plan on applying in. Please help me out guys, I would really appreciate a bit of your time :)

[ArtisticNurse]

I don't think it really matters. I checked NLN's roster of accredited schools and I didn't find Philippines. That is most likely why we go through screening with CGFNS. They check if our education is at par with theirs here.

Besides, Filipino nurses have long been working with the US healthcare system for decades.

Don't worry and never give up! You'll find work soon enough.

[littleone17]

Thanks for responding @yamkins :) Do you know of any kababayans that were able to become successful nurses in the hospitals in the States? I mean, UP Manila isn't NLN accredited I believe?

[ArtisticNurse]

Oh definitely...a lot! None of our schools in the Philippines is NLN accredited. I'm from UST and it isn't accredited as well.

There is a Philippine Nurses Association of America that we could join. I am pretty sure that UP has an alumni nurse association here as well because we have ours. I believe it's called UPNAAI.

These are good communities to start with. They provide updates and resources such as continuing education credits and even gatherings so you can network with other professionals in the field.

[ArtisticNurse]

We actually have an advantage since our education prepared us with a BSN. Magnet hospitals seem to prefer to hire RNs with a BSN degree instead of the ADN that most RNs have here. No offense to ADNs.