Psychiatric-Mental Health Certification

I recently took and passed the ANCC exam. I did use the book provided by ANCC, but another nurse suggested the review manual by springhouse publishers. It is quite a bit cheaper than the ANCC manual, and I felt it was very useful. I ordered it through BarnesandNoble.com. I really liked the questions at the end of each chapter and the post-test at the end of the book.

International Trained Mental nurse
Would you have information regarding international trained psychiatric nurse job opportunities in Alberta. Qualified 2 years ago and has been practicing since. Need to relocate to Alberta re: hubby's job. How do I go about getting job? I know i need to register with the nursing board.

I have taken (and passed) the exam. I thought it was worse than the nursing board exam. IMO they ask many questions that are outside the scope of practice of an RN (questions about steps to be taken in behavioral therapy and so forth).

I am curious about your motivation for taking the exam. I took it for professional satisfaction and potential advancement. I found that most employers don't care about certification, and they do not pay for the test or give additional salary for it. I found ANCC certification to be of no value professionally, and I did not renew at expiration time.

I took it about a year ago. I thought it was pretty easy and probably "over studied" for it. It was a lot of theorists if I remember correctly. But a lot of it was common sense stuff you use every day. I used the ANCC book, and followed the outline on the website.

I work at a magnet hospital and certification helps if you want to move up the clinical ladder. And my hospital reimburses too.