Moving from Scotland to USA

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Hi All,

I am looking for some advice, myself, husband and 2 daughters are looking to relocate from Scotland, UK to Utah, USA or Dubai. I am a RMN and have over 4 years experience working with adults with severe mental health issues and my husband is in recruitment. Can someone please point us in the right direction in what to do first, second, third lol in getting the ball rolling for a move????

I have no idea what should be done first and what needs to be done.

Thank you in advance xxx

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Welcome to allnurses! :balloons:

Is your nursing education specifically in mental health? (I believe that's what the "RMN" designation means, but I'm no expert. :)) The first thing to know is that the US educates and licenses all nurses as generalists. Plenty of us specialize in psychiatric nursing in the US, but our education and license cover all areas of nursing. In order to be eligible for RN licensure in the US, your school transcripts will need to show that your formal nursing education included didactic (classroom) and supervised clinical experience (whatever number of hours the specific state requires) in adult med-surg, pediatric, OB, and psychiatric nursing. It has to be formal education; work experience doesn't count.

You'll need to apply for licensure in whichever US state you are planning to settle in (sounds like you're looking at Utah). All the information and forms you need to apply should be available on the Utah BON (Board of Nursing) website, and there will be some kind of process you have to go through to have your education evaluated for equivalency to US nursing education (which varies somewhat among states -- I have no idea what Utah's process is). There is a link at the bottom of every page on this site to all the US BON websites.

Are you going to have a visa which will allow you to work in the US? That is another hurdle. Are you coming because your husband has a job opportunity, or just wanting to relocate to the US?

There are a lot of existing threads here about UK nurses seeking licensure in the US, and about the "trials and tribulations" of getting legal authorization to work here (it can take a long time). I encourage you to look around the site and read the information that's already here.

Best wishes for your journey!

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Moved to the International Nursing forum

check out the Nurse Registration forum on issues UK nurses face with the US as many as deficient in Obstetrics mainly and unless you take the 18 month midwifery course there is no other way in the UK to make hours up.

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