General Discussion about Filipino RNs currently working in the U.S.

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for filipino rns currently in the us whether still undergoing the proper documentations or already working please kindly share your experiences on this thread.

topics maybe from experiences at the workplace, impact of the new culture to you and your family, general do's and dont's, and others.

this thread would serve, hopefully, as a general resource thread for would-be u.s. nurses in the near future and to dispel myths and rumors and of course general advice coming from those already in the u.s.

...thank you RNHawaii34. this has been a good info..more power!

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any couples here who are both nurses? i'm just curious because me and my wife are both future US RNs (hopefully...if we pass nclex).

i want to know how you take your shifts? do you still see each other?

we have a kid and that means we won't be able to take shifts of the same time. someone has to be on the graveyard and the other on AM shift.

just wanted to see stories of people with this situation. thanks. :)

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Specializes in Medical-Surgical.
any couples here who are both nurses? i'm just curious because me and my wife are both future US RNs (hopefully...if we pass nclex).

i want to know how you take your shifts? do you still see each other?

we have a kid and that means we won't be able to take shifts of the same time. someone has to be on the graveyard and the other on AM shift.

just wanted to see stories of people with this situation. thanks. :)

I have several friends who are couples, usually the shifts here are 12 hours a day and three times a week. So to take care of the children, the one will work for the first three days and then the other will work the next three days.

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hello... i have a friend whose moving to chicago (an immigrant, petitioned by her husband). she's also from the philippines, by the way, and a bsn graduate. problem is that she has not taken our local nursing board exams yet so she doesn't have been issued a license. what i'd like to ask, if just in case she doesn't make the exams this coming june, what would be her options once she's in chicago? is it possible for her to get a job in a hospital working her way up? taking exams required in that state? or does she really need to pass the local board exams in our country first? i'd really appreciate any advice... any possible options she might take. thank so much.

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Specializes in MedSurg.-Tele, Home health, LTC.

hello... i have a friend whose moving to chicago (an immigrant, petitioned by her husband). she's also from the philippines, by the way, and a bsn graduate. problem is that she has not taken our local nursing board exams yet so she doesn't have been issued a license. what i'd like to ask, if just in case she doesn't make the exams this coming june, what would be her options once she's in chicago? is it possible for her to get a job in a hospital working her way up? taking exams required in that state? or does she really need to pass the local board exams in our country first? i'd really appreciate any advice... any possible options she might take. thank so much.

nope, since she is an immigrant, she don't need a local rn license..if she can, tell her to skip the nle. have her check the rn licensure requirements in chicago. go to www.ncsbn.org. her immigrant status will make it easier for her to get her rn license. she can apply for nclexrn exam right after graduation if she likes. pls. have her visit the allnurses.com. there are tons of informations here for her to read.

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Hello everyone! Oh I really love this thread!!!! Gets me excited.... Actually I am a Medical Technology graduate but I did not practice it because salary for Medtechs was way way too low (back in 1994). We are not that rich so I can not really afford to have a low salary. I opted to work in a pharmaceutical company. And I tell you, salary was really really good! Plus I had commissions, I was able to travel abroad c/o the company I worked for. I got to work in a pharmaceutical company for 10 years but I just realized that even though the salary was good, my friends (my batchmates way back in highschool), who studied nursing are now richer, they are by the way all over Europe, USA, Canada. Some of them have acquired assets, invested on these and that both here and abroad, they got to travel more in other countries. In short, I was left out. I really want to get out of the Philippines. With the economic situation here, I will not be able to achieve my dreams. And reading all your posts really gets me more excited to enroll this coming school year.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.
Hello everyone! Oh I really love this thread!!!! Gets me excited.... Actually I am a Medical Technology graduate but I did not practice it because salary for Medtechs was way way too low (back in 1994). We are not that rich so I can not really afford to have a low salary. I opted to work in a pharmaceutical company. And I tell you, salary was really really good! Plus I had commissions, I was able to travel abroad c/o the company I worked for. I got to work in a pharmaceutical company for 10 years but I just realized that even though the salary was good, my friends (my batchmates way back in highschool), who studied nursing are now richer, they are by the way all over Europe, USA, Canada. Some of them have acquired assets, invested on these and that both here and abroad, they got to travel more in other countries. In short, I was left out. I really want to get out of the Philippines. With the economic situation here, I will not be able to achieve my dreams. And reading all your posts really gets me more excited to enroll this coming school year.

Hi galapcp! Yeah this forum is a wealth of information for nurse wannabes and practicing nurses as well. Good luck to you. But just wanted to remind you that while nursing salaries in the US are higher compared to those in the Philippines, there is a big difference in the cost of living between the two countries. A big perecentage of our salaries go to paying rent for an apartment or mortgage for a home, utility bills, necessities, etc. Also remember that beginning nurses with little nursing experience will also naturally earn less than seasoned and established nurses. As a Filipino, I fully understand our quest to make a decent living for us and the families we plan to rear. I also understand the situation in the Philippines and do not blame our fellowmen for wanting out. This comment is not specifically aimed at you in particular but if we can all just be careful with what we say in this forum about wanting to be rich and all that. We are much misunderstood as evidenced by a few anti-Filipino threads in other forums in this website and the last thing we want is for our American peers to think that we are a materialistic lot (which I honestly believe we are not!)

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I would like to say H E L L O...... to everyone as I am just a new member of this forum. Reading the posts was fun with a lot of informations from different experiences...also very helpful for those who are thinking of having the opportunity to work in America.....where I consider myself as one of them! I actually enjoy reading valuable experiences from the time you set foot at the immigration office up to this time that you are already harvesting the rewards of all your efforts in settling your lives in America.

all the best to everyone!!!!

pink111

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Good luck to you galapcp. If you truly have the heart for nursing, go for it. Nursing can truly be a rewarding and exciting profession.

Hello everyone! Oh I really love this thread!!!! Gets me excited.... Actually I am a Medical Technology graduate but I did not practice it because salary for Medtechs was way way too low (back in 1994). We are not that rich so I can not really afford to have a low salary. I opted to work in a pharmaceutical company. And I tell you, salary was really really good! Plus I had commissions, I was able to travel abroad c/o the company I worked for. I got to work in a pharmaceutical company for 10 years but I just realized that even though the salary was good, my friends (my batchmates way back in highschool), who studied nursing are now richer, they are by the way all over Europe, USA, Canada. Some of them have acquired assets, invested on these and that both here and abroad, they got to travel more in other countries. In short, I was left out. I really want to get out of the Philippines. With the economic situation here, I will not be able to achieve my dreams. And reading all your posts really gets me more excited to enroll this coming school year.
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Specializes in Medical-Surgical.
Hello everyone! Oh I really love this thread!!!! Gets me excited.... Actually I am a Medical Technology graduate but I did not practice it because salary for Medtechs was way way too low (back in 1994). We are not that rich so I can not really afford to have a low salary. I opted to work in a pharmaceutical company. And I tell you, salary was really really good! Plus I had commissions, I was able to travel abroad c/o the company I worked for. I got to work in a pharmaceutical company for 10 years but I just realized that even though the salary was good, my friends (my batchmates way back in highschool), who studied nursing are now richer, they are by the way all over Europe, USA, Canada. Some of them have acquired assets, invested on these and that both here and abroad, they got to travel more in other countries. In short, I was left out. I really want to get out of the Philippines. With the economic situation here, I will not be able to achieve my dreams. And reading all your posts really gets me more excited to enroll this coming school year.

Nursing will not make you rich unless you want to work three full time jobs. But a nurse's salary can make you live comfortably, own a home, buy a car or two, and have some savings but it will not make you rich.

Good luck to your dreams. And by the way, nursing is a very demanding job. Here is is different unlike in the Philippines.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/Med-Tele/SDU/ED.
And by the way, nursing is a very demanding job. Here is is different unlike in the Philippines.
Rep, I think this comment is the meatiest of all.

what you wrote as an afterthought is very crucial.

our nurses had been given so much pep talk about how easy it is to work in the US, about how easy it is to earn money...that it's a big shock when they actually get to work in a US hospital.

I have some friends in CA, and they confided that they had been crying when they got home, because of the workload. we're talking grown women, second coursers, women who had been successful in their first careers.

I also know of 2 cases where the RNs were fired because they could not cope with the workload.

one was an MD/RN, the other was an experienced RN from our country.

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Specializes in MedSurg.-Tele, Home health, LTC.
hello everyone! oh i really love this thread!!!! gets me excited.... actually i am a medical technology graduate but i did not practice it because salary for medtechs was way way too low (back in 1994). we are not that rich so i can not really afford to have a low salary. i opted to work in a pharmaceutical company. and i tell you, salary was really really good! plus i had commissions, i was able to travel abroad c/o the company i worked for. i got to work in a pharmaceutical company for 10 years but i just realized that even though the salary was good, my friends (my batchmates way back in highschool), who studied nursing are now richer, they are by the way all over europe, usa, canada. some of them have acquired assets, invested on these and that both here and abroad, they got to travel more in other countries. in short, i was left out. i really want to get out of the philippines. with the economic situation here, i will not be able to achieve my dreams. and reading all your posts really gets me more excited to enroll this coming school year.

hi galapcp, it is nice to see another person like you to be interested in studying nursing. however, i hope you want to join this profession because you want to take care of the patients, and especially the sick ones...i often asked by many new nurses in the philippines if how much i make, and they told me, "so, rich ka na pala?", and i don't know if i wanna laugh or i want to get offended. honestly, we nurses here in the u.s. has to work really hard to earn that money, and having money means you have to pay your monthly bills, mortgage, car payments, childcare, etc. i know some of our fellow nurses back home thinks that if you work here in the usa, means we are are rich, but to tell you honestly, we are not. i can admit working as a nurse here in the u.s. will make your life less uncomfortable, that means you get paid better than any one who didn't have a college degree. nurses cannot be like donald trump rich, or oprah winfrey rich...its not about the money you make, but its all about how to handle your finances..any nurse who claim they are rich, maybe need to do a reality check...yes, you can travel all around the world, it is possible, but you need to work harder in order to finance your trip. even coming home to the philippines is expensive too, airfare, pasalubong, etc. i think rep and pinoynp can relate to that..lastly, even if you work 2-3 jobs, you are still not gonna make that much, because at the end of the year, irs will go after you! :lol2: i think i will stick with one job for now:monkeydance:

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