personal opinions - does the school matter once applying for work?

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Sep 14, 2012

Since you mentioned "CVS/job in the States", I'm assuming you eventually want to go back to New York to work, is that right? I've never heard of CVS (a CGFNS service) granting denials from graduates of any nursing school in the Philippines. Once you get your CVS, you will be eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN and be licensed in New York should you pass the board exam. Qualifications for being hired include a nursing degree and a license as an RN so if you have both you will qualify for a job. However, the bigger issue is the fact that there are many nurses (both US-trained and foreign-trained) looking for jobs all across the US and your chances are not as favorable given that (A) you will be a new grad with no experience, and (B) you have a disadvantage as a foreign grad who never were able to network with employers since you did not do your clinicals here in the US nor worked as a nursing assistant in the US.

lovelyanne · Sep 18, 2012

thank you so much for your help :) i really do appreciate it. its cleared up my anxiety a bit.

But speaking of CVS, my I ask another question? Since I'm foreign-educated, it would still take about 6-8 months (as of now) in order to process my papers am I correct?

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Sep 18, 2012

Yes 6-8 months is the typical wait time. That seems to factor in the time it takes for CGFNS to gather all the necessary documents from your school and make an assessment of your educational credentials.

steppybay · Sep 20, 2012

I looked around the forum under this area and I don't think I saw it, but here we go... I hope that this is alright.
I'm currently studying in CNU but I plan to move to SWU.. though I hear reputations about the school. I am not trying to downgrade the school for any matter, but once I suggested the idea, my peers told me not to go there because I won't be hired at all once I return to the US (I'm a born and raised citizen form the US studying here in the philippines).
Is that true? I know that we all talk about how it doesn't matter because our grades will be looked at, but with SWU, will their clinical rounds/etc be enough so that it won't be a problem once I apply for my CVS/for a job in the States?
im just worried about this :| And the peer that told me, by the way, was a Clinical Instructor. I'm not very knowledgable on matters such as these so I wanted to get me records straight before making ultimate decisions.

I worry more about if your school or any PH school are currently making the necessary curriculum adjustments so that by the time you graduate, you're in 100% full compliance with the CA BON minimum educational requirements, as so far there are 14-15 other States that's enforcing the concurrency rules set forth in 1987 and I think more and more States will be doing the same over the next year.

You also need to watch out for schools that are offering too many hours in certain subjects which I think is the CHED, PRN and PNA justifications to make up for clinical and theory courses that are very tough to take both courses and in the same exact semester, not months later, not a year or two later.

There have been some posters here who are now being denied their application in other States due to this "excessive hours". Just hope the CHED, PRC and PNA know what they are doing, as in reading the many posts here, ALL the dean's office, the 3 nursing agencies have been bombarded and flooded with 1,000's of complaints, because they have not complied with the US standards.

People say well, who cares about meeting the US State's BON requirements if you're educated in the Phils, well, it does make a heck of a hugh difference, when over 33% of PH grads wants to make CA their destination to work in and who knows what the percentage is of those that want to work in other popular states: NY, VA, TX, WA, it may be a smaller number but if only 5% goes times say just 3 States, that's another 15%, making nearly 48% wanting to cross the big pond.

As Juan mentioned, as a international student, we're now at disadvantage over a US educated nurse grad as many hospitals and medical facilities are hiring those that did their clinicals in the respective place and many hospitals hire the "internals", those that may have done some experience but not on an RN level, but may have been CNA's or LVN's. There's always now a higher priority to hire the local students who obtained their degree within the same state. Or the hospitals hire from nearby area schools and colleges.

But at same time, currently in CA, there's a near 50% unemployment rate of the new grad RN rate as cited in the CA BON survey of 2011 and it's probably worse this year when they come out with the new survey results. Many many other states also have high unemployment rates of just the US educated nurses.