Nursing in the Philippines

I've been trying to get this message out to other discussions but this website doesn't allow me to use the same message over and over again because it is detected as a "form of spam" although, it was not my intention for it to have been "spam". I just wanted to inform my fellow Americans about the dangers of going to the Philippines for nursing.

I just recently finished my nursing education in the Philippines. I'm a U.S. citizen hailing from the state of Illinois. The Department of Professional Regulation of the state of Illinois will not allow me to take the Illinois nursing board exam because I do not have a license from the Philippines. This is due to the fact that the law of the Philippines discriminates against foreign citizens from taking the Nursing Licensure Exam. The PRC & the BON of the Philippines are responsible for such laws which is sad to say because the Philippines should be a place of opportunity and equality but, the longer I stay in the Philippines the more I realize that it is a country that doesn't believe in these values and promotes INEQUALITY & INOPPORTUNITY.

Now, I'm left to search for a different state where I can take the NCLEX and practice as a nurse and I must continue to be financially supported by my parents even to the point of asking them to pay for my board and lodging, etc.

I'm very upset with the Philippine government and its officials. I hope that my fellow Americans will not make the same mistake that I have!

Yes they won't give you a license but, did you know that you can take the exam? You can probably just ask PRC to issue a letter saying that your school checked out, you went to a 4 year nursing school in campus, completed all your clinical hours at affiliated hospitals, etc, passed the national licensing exam but won't be issued a license.

Is it a discrimination when the State of California and other states require Social Security Number to issue a license?? US states will allow foreign students who graduated in the US to take the NCLEX, but some states won't issue a license unless you are a permanent resident or US Citizen (or on a working visa with an SSN). Very similar, if not the exact same rule, in the Philippines, but I don't hear foreign students here or foreign grads calling it a discrimination.

Ok, I see your point but, it would have been more helpful if the Philippine government did the job that they were tasked to do and warn me about the situation which I was getting into. I consulted with my school in the Philippines and the Bureau of Immigration of the Philippines but neither organization warned me of the fact that I would not be eligible for licensure.

At least, when you go looking at a board of nursing site established by a U.S. BON then the requirements, regulations and restrictions are already listed there for all to see BUT when it comes to the Philippines you have to waste your time, effort and money for four years just for them to tell you that you're not eligible to take the test and be licensed.

By the way, I've asked the Philippine PRC if I could take the nursing licensure exam and they said, "only one foreigner has taken it in the past and it required him to go through lots of paperwork, approval forms, and interviews." It's not exactly a walk in the park...

P.S. If you're a Filipina/o and are now working abroad from your home country, then I understand why you left...

May I also add,

You can find the rules and regulations on the Philippine BON website but you need to go searching for them...

Also, when I was confronted with my current situation I asked several well established Filipino lawyers to look at the law of the Philippines and all of them interpreted the law to be in my favor but, as it turns out, it is not.

It is not the job of the BON or the government to "warn" you about these issues - it was your job to find out, as the consumer of a service, to see if it meets your needs.

Ok, I see your point but, it would have been more helpful if the Philippine government did the job that they were tasked to do and warn me about the situation which I was getting into. I consulted with my school in the Philippines and the Bureau of Immigration of the Philippines but neither organization warned me of the fact that I would not be eligible for licensure.

If i was on a student visa and taking nursing in Illinois, Would I go to the Immigration office in the USA and ask them, or expect them to tell me if, lets say, my Nurse practitioner certificate/degree from this state will be accepted in the Philippines? The USCIS will know NOTHING about that stuff and you wouldn't expect them to warn you that there is no Nurse Practitioner in the Philippines.

By the way, I've asked the Philippine PRC if I could take the nursing licensure exam and they said, "only one foreigner has taken it in the past and it required him to go through lots of paperwork, approval forms, and interviews." It's not exactly a walk in the park...

P.S. If you're a Filipina/o and are now working abroad from your home country, then I understand why you left...

Four years you lived in the Philippines, you must have known that customer service there sucks, you ask 4 different people from the same front desk, and they'll have four different answers. My point is, you asked someone at PRC, and they said only one foreigner took their exam. Another person would have said 10 or a lot of people have. Plus, you should've taken into consideration that the "local board" requirement only started recently, and the MAJORITY of the people doesn't know that they can actually take the exam, but not get licensed. I lived in the Phils 10 years knowing that i can't get a license, it was only a few days ago that I found out from CA Board of Nursing that they allow us to take the test.

No info on their website? Lots of paperwork to register for their exam? What did you expect when you go to an underdeveloped country??

And no I'm not a Filipina/o. Went to school there, went through a lot of disappointments, but I learned early on that the country is not the US of A, and that they're a little behind on Information Technology:)

Yes they won't give you a license but, did you know that you can take the exam? You can probably just ask PRC to issue a letter saying that your school checked out, you went to a 4 year nursing school in campus, completed all your clinical hours at affiliated hospitals, etc, passed the national licensing exam but won't be issued a license.

Is it a discrimination when the State of California and other states require Social Security Number to issue a license?? US states will allow foreign students who graduated in the US to take the NCLEX, but some states won't issue a license unless you are a permanent resident or US Citizen (or on a working visa with an SSN). Very similar, if not the exact same rule, in the Philippines, but I don't hear foreign students here or foreign grads calling it a discrimination.

You say that this type of policy is similar in the Philippines and the U.S.A. but the fact is it's NOT. Obtaining a social security number in the United States is much easier than gaining your citizenship! Foreign students who attend schools in the U.S.A. aren't complaining about such things because they have been legally issued a social security number upon arrival within the U.S. precisely because they have a "study visa" in the U.S. In the Philippines on the other hand, they do NOT issue a social security number after a person has been approved for "student visa" status. But even worse, they go so far as to make it a law that you must be a citizen of the Philippines in order to take the nursing licensure exam, when in the U.S., all you need is a social security number.

So, is this discrimination, YES it is. Simply because, the U.S. does NOT discriminate a person's citizenship when applying for the NCLEX-RN exam. BUT, the Philippines does the opposite, they discriminate your nationality!

P.S.

Please list what states do NOT issue licenses unless you have permanent residency or a U.S. citizenship. To my knowledge this is NOT true. Every state allows a foreign graduate to take the NCLEX as long as they have obtained a degree from an accredited U.S. nursing school and a social security number.

A classmate of mine who is US citizen took the recent NLE.

To D Bajamonde

'The most popular program is the associate's degree in nursing, which takes an average of two-to-three years to complete. One of the perks associated with this path is that once you've obtained the degree, you can apply for an entry-level position that offers benefits including tuition reimbursement and college credit toward your two-year bachelor's in nursing degree. This choice also provides valuable hands-on experience in the field while earning an education. Going straight for the bachelor's program takes four years, and a nursing diploma can take three-to-five years...' - taken from http://www.allnursingschools.com

You are an American citizen who decided to study Nursing in the Philippines...you were happy to give up all the benefits that you could have had as mentioned above so you can study in the Philippines. I am sure you are not the only foreigner who has studied nursing in the Philippines and I'm very sure that if you read some of the threads from allnurses you will find that all you needed was a letter from PRC stating you are not allowed to take the NLE because YOU are not a Filipino citizen...remember Nursing Jurisprudence and Ethics when you studied Nursing in the Philippines? Unless you have dual citizenship like those other foreigners who managed to take the NLE then by Philippine Law you won't be able to take the NLE.

I don't think there would be any American who would go out of their way to study nursing in a foreign country to practice it in the good ol US of A. Your warning does not have any audience. I think you should contact the Illinois BON and make the proper enquiries. I have a sister-in-law who studied in the Philippines but did not take the NLE but took the NCLEX - she too is now an American citizen.

The Philippines is not a perfect but which country is? You blame the country that thought you how to become a nurse. How come it took you 4 years or so to finally decide that you should not have been there?

I have lots of American Citizens friends/classmates who took the Phil Nurse exam and Passed!! then being allowed to take NCLEX and got registered as an RN in the US...

I have lots of American Citizens friends/classmates who took the Phil Nurse exam and Passed!! then being allowed to take NCLEX and got registered as an RN in the US...

Hi. im chinese citizien who study B.S nursing in philippine. i will graduate next year. may i ask if i can take the nursing board exam in philippine? and can i get licence of nurse? thank u so much. hope someone can give exact answer. i will really appreciate that.