New Pinoy RN planning to apply New Mexico + take NCLEX. HELP please.

Home Health Columnist / Guide · Oct 11, 2012

NM BON Regulations: 16.12.2 - Nurse Licensure

16.12.2.10 LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS FOR REGISTERED AND PRACTICAL NURSES: Licensure with the New Mexico board of nursing is mandatory and is the responsibility of the individual nurse, pursuant to the Nursing Practice Act. For states who are a part of the nurse licensure compact, licensure in New Mexico can only be issued to applicants who declare New Mexico as their primary state of residence.
A. Prerequisites for licensure of RNs and LPNs by examination in New Mexico.
(1) Completion of and eligible for graduation from a board approved course of study for the preparation of registered nurses or practical nurses, or an acceptable level of education as determined by the board or graduation from a program which is equivalent to an approved program of nursing in the United States.
(2) RN and PN graduates from non-U.S. nursing programs:
(a) shall have an evaluation of their nursing education credentials sent to the New Mexico board directly from a board recognized educational credentialing agency
(i) the credentialing agency must be a member of a national credentialing organization and must be monitored by an external committee of credentialing experts and nursing educators;
(ii) the credentialing agency must demonstrate the ability to accurately analyze academic and licensure credentials in terms of U.S. comparability, with course-by-course analysis of nursing academic records;
(iii) the credentialing agency must manage the translation of original documents into English;
(iv) the credentialing agency will inform the board of nursing in the event of fraudulent documents;
(v) the credentials report must state the language of nursing instruction and language of textbooks for nursing education; and
(vi) the credentialing agency must only use original source documents in evaluating nursing education and must compare the foreign education to the U.S. education standards.
© successful completion of any one of the approved English competency examinations with:
(i) a minimum score of 540 (207 on computerized version) on the test of English as a foreign language (TOEFL) or TOEFL internet-based test (TOEFL IBT) minimal passing standard of 84 overall, with a minimum speaking score of 26, a minimum score of 725 on test of English for international communication (TOEIC) or a minimum score of 6.5 overall with a 7.0 on the spoken portion on the academic version of international English language testing system (IELTS);
(ii) completion of a nursing program given in English in another country;
(iii) a passing score on a nursing licensure examination which is given in English; or
(3) Completion of the required board of nursing application for licensure by examination according to instructions and including the required fee.
(4) Completion of NCLEX application for the testing service according to instructions.
(5) Graduates who have compact state addresses or who declare another compact state as their state of residence on their application will have their application for examination, fingerprint cards and appropriate fees returned to them
Rules hearing being held Oct 13,2012 to add the following #6 language:.
(6) The board shall not approve an application for a license until the applicant provides the following information:
(a) demographics, including race, ethnicity and primary and other languages spoken;
(b) practice status, including but not limited to: active practices in New Mexico and other locations; practice type, practice settings, such as hospital, clinic or other clinical settings;
© education, training and primary and secondary specialties;
(d) average hours worked per week and the average number of weeks worked per year in the licensed profession;
(e) percentage of practice engaged in direct patient care and in other activities, such as teaching, research and administration in the licensed profession;
(f) practice plans for the next five years, including retiring from the health care profession, moving out of state or changing health care work hours.
B. Nationwide criminal background check. Applicants for initial licensure in New Mexico are subject to a state and national criminal background check at their cost....
C. Complete application for licensure by examination, certification of eligibility for graduation completed by nursing education program or official transcript, fingerprints and fee must be received by the board office prior to being granted permission to take the national licensing examination (NCLEX). Certification of eligibility for graduation completed by nursing education program or official transcript, indicating date requirements for graduation from the nursing program were met and certificate or degree awarded [or to be awarded,] must be received in the board office directly from the registrar's office.
D. Results of the examination shall be reported to the individual applicant within four (4) weeks following the applicant's examination date. Examination results shall be released to the applicant's nursing program and boards of nursing unless otherwise instructed, in writing, by applicant.
E. An initial license shall be valid for two (2) years.
F. Applications containing fraudulent or misrepresented information could be the basis for denial or revocation of licensure.
G. If the licensure process is not completed, the application becomes null and void one (1) year after date of the application being received at the board.

First time I've visited NM BON nursing regulations -see link for entire regulations.

NM gives you one year from data of application to have everything completed. Since your documents must be reviewed and approved by CES + that can not occur until status of Philippine license determined in next 6 months, then you should wait to apply for NCLEX.

During this time, focus on taking and passing English proficency exam.

Please see the information BON is considering adding to license regs. Appears these are being added to avoid being a "pass thru" state were one applies for license but never intends to practice in NM. You may want to consider another state if no plans to live and work in NM .

steppybay · Oct 11, 2012

Yes, I think NRSKarenRN is correct in that NM just implemented this new 2012 ruling as a direct result of the tidal wave of many foreign applicants being denied in CA and the other popular States with the concurrency rules and or lack of clinical hours. So many are trying to find an "easier and faster" State to apply into and then try to endorse-transfer into another State, but it's not going to work by trying to "go around" the system.

Here is NRSKarenRN findings:

Rules hearing being held Oct 13,2012 to add the following #6 language:.

(6) The board shall not approve an application for a license until the applicant provides the following information:

(a) demographics, including race, ethnicity and primary and other languages spoken;

(b) practice status, including but not limited to: active practices in New Mexico and other locations; practice type, practice settings, such as hospital, clinic or other clinical settings;

(d) average hours worked per week and the average number of weeks worked per year in the licensed profession;

(e) percentage of practice engaged in direct patient care and in other activities, such as teaching, research and administration in the licensed profession;

(f) practice plans for the next five years, including retiring from the health care profession, moving out of state or changing health care work hours.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Unquote: so all this flood gate of mostly international applicants signing up in NM, then wanting to leave the State as soon as poosible is only putting more stress and strain on the NM BON evaluators and slowing the process down for those applicants wanting to really work and stay and raise a family there.

Mark my words, guys, the other States where this is happening (HI, MI, FL and the other "easy and fast" State) will one day, follow NM's lead and make it even tougher and rougher for international applicants to get approved.

I can see this can turn into a "conditional

RN

license", meaning if you break "your promise" of not staying the 5 years or telling a little "white lie", your NM

RN

license may be considered invalid and unable to endorse-transfer it over to any other State or even revoked and or suspended. They may add a little contractual item to their rules and regulations that they have the right to do so and by signing for a NM license, you agree to their terms. You could not want to sign, but then, you're not going to get your license.

I'm pretty sure that whatever written statement you make and provide to the NM BON it is your "word of honor" and if you so much as stray from that within reason, bye, bye nurse, it was nice to know you, but hand me your nursing badge (license).

Then try to get another license in another State and truthfully, on the application say "NO" to the question: "Have you ever been denied or had your

RN

license terminated, revoked or suspended?" FAIL

Remember, guys, as in any of the States, it's a privilege, NOT a right to being a nurse. So that privilege can be taken away at any time and for any reason.

steppybay · Oct 11, 2012

Ok the next question is this: Where's the EASIEST, THE FASTEST, THE CHEAPEST STATE to get eligibility, to AVOID the different English reading and writing requirements, who doesn't need to have their curriculums reviewed and evaluated, etc....here's what I've been trying to tell you guys for months!

Kabayans, you have to look at the "bigger picture".

To everyone asking of the same question: just pick whatever state you wish to work in for the next 3-8 years or more. With the strong possibility, this State is where you will plant your roots and watch your babies grow from an infant till they go to college.

-- First and foremost, you must now have a valid SSN to apply into CA and into most states and one day soon, ALL states will require a SSN and for future renewals. There are zero to a handful of hospital sponsorships in the whole country now, don't count on those, you will have better luck winning the lottery odds.

-- It makes NO sense to get a license in one state, when you really WANT to work in another, as you need to still PASS that state's requirements you wanted to work in the FIRST place.

-- You will be spending more MONEY by hopping around one state to another in extra fee$ and possible extra money for certain testing$ and wasting more months waiting and waiting, instead of looking for a job. Why pay double $$$ ??

**** The FASTEST, the EASIEST, the CHEAPEST state to apply into is the State you feel you will put your roots down for many years, the MINUTE you pass the NCLEX! If that state doesn't meet their requirements AND your needs and desires (weather, salary, etc) now then move on and research and travel to that state if you can. ****

-- Avoid the 14-15 states that are enforcing the concurrency now, The list of them are mentioned a few times on this forum. Here you go: [COLOR=#003366][COLOR=#003366][COLOR=#003366]https://allnurses.com/nurse-registrat...me-760249.html NV was recently enforcing it and it was mentioned NY was enforcing it, but not 100% on that State, but quite possible. Don't be surprised if FL and TX join the concurrency bandwagon one day, it's a very old requirement from years ago before most of us were born (25 plus years).

-- Forget about trying to ENDORSE-TRANSFER any out-of-state license into CA or ANY of the current mentioned 14-15 other states that are enforcing the concurrency rules, it's NOT going to happen as again, you MUST submit the same college transcripts that already DENIED or will DENY the application, there's no way around to go around this! It doesn't matter if you have 2 years or more of US RN experience, my PH friend tried to endorse her FL into CA and was denied the licensure, citing the same concurrency issue. Same thing with our friend with her NY license, same bad fate.

-- As you may know or should know, that jobs for us international students are becoming very hard and pretty difficult to get our foor thru the door, as many hospitals even many clinics are hiring their own students that did their clinical time in that hospital or hiring more of that local students or those from the same State. It's known as hiring the "internals". So getting approved and passing the NCLEX-RN is nothing, compared to finding the real thing......a nursing job.

-- To find out what state you are interested in, the bottom of each page is the list of BON's and you can easily Google...STATE's name followed by "board of nursing"....BINGO! It's all there for the state's requirements, including every one of the Board's has a special ""INTERNATIONAL"" section.

Good luck, everyone, we can do this, but allow a lot more time than originally planned, be prepared to work in a State you really don't want to be in for several years, take any kind of nursing job someone hires you for and smile:yeah:

mikayjesther · May 8, 2013

Is the SS# required for applying to new mexico?

aicefaith · May 22

Hello I just want to ask, do I need to process my school credentials and should I send it to New Mexico Board of Nursing? Are there any forms that I need to fill out and send it to them?