NCLEX/CGFNS confusion

caliotter3 · Jan 31, 2011

Have you tried calling the CA BRN just to see what they tell you? Or you can look on the CA BRN website. Also, this info is talked about frequently in our international forum.

Silverdragon102, BSN · Feb 1, 2011

Moved to the International forum

She can not apply to CA BRN until she is in the US and has a US SSN. If she applies to CA BRN and this may be the same if she has a license in another state she will be required to send her transcripts from the Philippines as CA make their own judgement based on transcripts. If she applies to Vermont then she only needs CES from CGFNS as do a lot of other states. Only a small handful require the CGFNS exam

http://www.vtprofessionals.org/opr1/nurses/international_forms/NU_RN_International_Application_CES.pdf

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Feb 5, 2011

Now, what she's been told is that to take the NCLEX in London (or anywhere) she needs CGFNS documentation (certification?) at a cost of $350 and that it could take many, many months for that to arrive. Furthermore, I read that Vermont requires you to pass CGFNS before doing NCLEX (which she failed, 10 years ago). Should she even be applying for VT when she has no intention of working there, what with the costs and times of transferring the license to CA?
All so confusing... which probably makes for a confusing post.

How feasible will it be for her to come to the US and get an SSN knowing that she will get a visa through marriage anyway? The reason I ask is although California is slow in processing applications, our nursing board here does not require any form of credentials evaluation from CGFNS whatsoever, just an official transcript and another document (downloadable from the board of nursing website) directly sent form the school of nursing in the Philippines. If her plan is to work in California, I think it's a lot less hassle if she directly applies for a license in California. What has been an obstacle for many foreign nurses who wish to apply for a license in California is their requirement that the applicant should already possess a US-issued SSN.

GeoffM · Feb 5, 2011

By the sound of it then, she should simply wait until she arrives in CA then, and hope that I will have a job for when (if!) we arrive. Given that the SSN arrives a couple of weeks after arrival, what kind of time frame are we talking to getting licensed? From the CA RN site it seems to suggest 8-12 weeks from the time all information has been received, assuming that an NCLEX exam can be scheduled within a few days of the ATT - is that realistic?

Thanks everybody.

GeoffM · Feb 6, 2011

How things can change with a little urine... she's pregnant! This puts it around the time we were hoping to move so, given the health insurance issues in the US when arriving pregnant, I guess we'll have it in the UK and move sometime afterwards. Her RN status can wait a few months at least - though that does lead to another issue of continuous employment / up-to-date experience or whatever other factors a potential employer may have.

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Feb 7, 2011

By the sound of it then, she should simply wait until she arrives in CA then, and hope that I will have a job for when (if!) we arrive. Given that the SSN arrives a couple of weeks after arrival, what kind of time frame are we talking to getting licensed? From the CA RN site it seems to suggest 8-12 weeks from the time all information has been received, assuming that an NCLEX exam can be scheduled within a few days of the ATT - is that realistic?

8-12 weeks sounds a little short, it took me about 2-3 months to get licensed in California. However, I endorsed an RN license from out of state and though I already have a license in 2 other US jurisdictions, California still required my undergraduate nursing school in the Philippines to send my official transcript and the document that is downloadable from the BRN website. I endorsed an NP license as well (which I trained for here in the US). I still think that your wife is better off bypassing all the requirement Vermont imposes when she really has no desire to work there. BTW, congrats on the pregnancy.

PABrit · Mar 9, 2011

Don't underestimate the time it takes to get a SSN:

I am a UK citizen married to a US citizen and they would not process my SSN application until my Permanent Resident status was approved which took about a year (using a lawyer and we'd been married 20 years so quite straightforward). SSN was very fast once I had that (10 days).

I have friends from UK who have come over with husbands who only have visas to work here and they stayed two years and never got it all processed before they went back to UK.

My advice is to do everything possible to be very sure your immigration status will allow your wife to work straight away before you leave the UK.

My biggest problem, however was accessing my transcripts: I trained 30 years ago, the school of nursing had been taken over by two different universities and no one knew where the records or the microfiches were stored! It took a year to find them and only now can I start working towards the requirements of the board.

I'm a nurse and a midwife and it definitely slowed things down trying to process both at once. I wish I'd applied for the RN first and tried to do the midwife bit later!

Congratulations on the pregnancy!

GeoffM · Mar 11, 2011

With the type of visa I'm hoping to get (currently in RFE) we should be able to arrive and apply for SSNs after a couple of weeks, and receive them shortly afterwards. At least, that's what I've been told. Actually, I think I may have a SSN from years ago when I did J1 work for three years.

We've decided that she will take a career break for a year at least while she does the housewifery thing. During that time she can study for the NCLEX at a more relaxed pace and when we're both ready, she can start the process of getting back into work part time - mostly as a back-up to keep her hand in, in case I end up being unemployed for whatever reason. If that takes another year to do the various applications, get transcripts, sit the exam etc, then so be it!

Thanks for the advice and well wishes.