Let me start of by saying that I intend to make this a thread to help others (more on Filipinos but can be used as a general guide) who want to pursue their nursing career abroad, specifically the United States, and need an unofficial guide. We can turn this into a one stop thread so others don't end up shooting in the dark when applying for licensure by examination.
Disclaimer: I am not an expert nor do I work for/represent CGFNS. I am writing this guide through experience and it may or may not contain all of the information needed. Use this only as a reference since I will not be held responsible for any mishaps this may ultimately cause. With that said, let's start it off!
Before you consider choosing the state where you intend to practice make sure you do a little research on the requirements since every state has their own rules and guidelines. Also, keep in mind that most of the states to date require a SSN so even if you are approved for the CES you may not be able to continue to apply to that state.
CERTIFICATION EVALUATION SERVICE
The CES is intended to analyze your credentials and see if they are up to par with the standards in the United States.
Application for the CES starts here:
https://www.cgfns.org/cerpassweb/intro.jsp
THE APPLICATION FORM
The first step in applying for the CES, assuming you've already chosen the state you wish to apply to, is to fill up either there application online or printed of the internet. The application itself contains your basic information like name, address, schools attended (primary - elementary/middle school, secondary - high school, and post-secondary - college/university), license, and etc. You will also be required to create a login account and make sure you use your main e-mail account just to be sure that you receive all of their e-mails.
Once you've gone through inputting your information you will then reach the part where you choose your service. Assuming you've done your research, this is where you apply what you've learned about the your state's requirements in choosing the specific service you want to avail. For instance, Virginia is a state that requires the CES Professional Report. Most of us will opt for the Professional report since we've already completed our BSN and are looking for a license. If you're still not aware what your state requires then click here to view each state's required service.
The fees for the service can be easily accessed by clicking here. The basic fee for the CES will be $335 and you can opt for the expedited service which promises a report within 10 business days assuming all of your requirements are submitted and complete for an extra $150. An extra payment will also be needed if your state requires an English exam. After the payment has been received you will then be assigned a CGFNS ID which I suggest you memorize since you will need it when filling out forms and when inquiring about your application
STEP1.
When the fees have been submitted you will then be directed to the forms, which can also be accessed by clicking here. If you are applying for yourself and currently hold a license in the Philippines then you will need to worry about 2 forms.
Request for Academic Records / Transcripts form
- This form will be submitted to your college/university where you graduated from. The first part will be filled out by you while the second and third part will be filled out by both the registrar and/or your dean/secretary of your college. You will also need to request for an official transcript from the registrar which will then be submitted along with the filled out form to CGFNS. The forms will need to be mailed by the school and make sure it is in an officially sealed and stamped enveloped.
Request for Validation of License/Registration/Diploma form
- This form will be submitted to PRC. Visit any of the PRC offices to have this filled out. Like the previous form, this form needs to be mailed by PRC in an officially sealed and stamped enveloped. Keep in mind this is only submitted IF YOU HAVE A LICENSE. IF you do not have one for any reason then DO NOT submit this form and make sure you provided a VALID explanation in your application.
Authorization to Release Information form
- If, for some reason, you have a third party to represent you then this form will be needed to give that person the authority to access and make changes to your account.
STEP2.
While waiting for your forms to be mailed since we can safely assume that in most cases it will take a couple of days for your university or prc to complete you can take this time to photocopy your high school diploma which you in turn will send directly to PRC. This is the ONLY time you will ever mail anything to them directly. It's optional but you can also include a cover letter to formally introduce and give whoever is receiving your document a run down of your information.
STEP3.
Once everything has been submitted you can visit the order status page to check the progress of your report by logging on here. Nowadays CGFNS has been quick to complete the reports specially if you've opted for the expedite service. The whole process will ultimately depend on how soon they receive their documents and their completeness.
Here is an example of the order status page and their checklist:
PAYMENT IN FULL
APPLICATION
SIGNED ATTESTATION
SECONDARY SCHOOL DIPLOMA
LICENSE VALIDATION FORM
TRANSCRIPT VALIDATION FORM
PASSING ENGLISH SCORE
ISSUED REPORT
CGFNS will send you an E-Mail when they receive the required documents and in turn will also change the status on this page. Assuming you've completed the application correctly and paid in full then the first 3 will be checked off.
Please be patient and give CGFNS enough time to both receive the documents and review them as well. It can take a minimum of 4 weeks to 4 months depending on how smoothly everything goes and/or how lucky you are. Personally, mine only took less than 4 weeks for my report to be mailed to my state.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION (I will add more to this section later on)
Please visit the CES FAQ.
What if I don't have a license in the Philippines?
That is totally fine. There is a part in the application where it asks for your license and if you choose no then you can provide an explanation why you currently do not hold one. Personally, I do not hold a license in the Philippines mainly due to citizenship issues.
How can I take the English exam?
Please visit TOEFL for further information on how to take the exam.
Can I be exempted from the English exam?
Yes. You can be exempted from the english exam assuming that you've held a job in the United States for a year (customer service, retail, sales, etc), your primary language in your university was English, and/or if you've attended school here in the United States.
That's it for now! I'll edit this further in the future and PLEASE IF YOU HAVE MORE TO CONTRIBUTE THEN PLEASE DO SO!
PS
Yes, apparently typing in all caps can sometimes get the point across :).
