EUmaleRN

That's exactly what I was thinking. Thank you guys and gals for your help and sorry to be a pain in the neck with all those stupid questions!

Thank you very much!

Yes, that's exactly what I was saying Silverdragon102. In case I win a GC and move to US I would like to know if I qualify for work as a nurse (LPN). For sponsorship I know I need to be a RN. It's just that I'm 24 now and 4 more years just sound so LONG and FAR AWAY. If I knew back then what I know now, I would definitely proceed with my education but now I see myself as an old guy who should have family by now and not go to school and waste my time anymore (I am finishing my Associate's from Informatics this year).

Thanks suzanne4, I'm aware of everything you wrote up there. By searching through the web I came to a conclusion that I probably qualify as a LPN and to be recognized as a RN I would have to complete addition 2 years of studying or 4 years for BSN degree. I'm aware of the situation in the US and I know I won't be able to find a GC sponsor just like that and that's not the problem. The thing is, I want to know what my equivalent is in the US but looks like obtaining a CES report is not a piece of cake because I just got a reply back from NY BON saying they don't accept CES reports and that I should rather go with CVS for NY state. Now please understand that I'm not looking for a job right now, I just want to complete the CVS in case some day I get an offer so that I won't need to go through the whole process because that takes too much time, as you said yourself. I might even win the GC, who knows. I don't understand why this has to be so complicated, why do I have to be eligible for examination. It's not like I'm asking them for a personal favor, it's just a service. Everyone should be eligible for a CVS exam, don't you think? Now I have to contact NYSED and ask for a permission to be examined, then they have to verify whether I'm eligible for a CVS exam or not.If I'm a CNA, LPN or something else, I'm okay with it. I just need to know where I stand, that's all. IF I qualify as a LPN, two more years of education are enough for a RN license but if I don't than I'll have to go with BS. That's the reason why I want to examine myself. Thank you all very much for your patient with me, I know I'm somewhat annoying. You have helped me very much. If anyone has any more tips or advice, please share your knowledge with me. I could use anything.

I already contacted CGFNS and they said I should go with the CES Course-By-Course Report to see where I stand within US standards first and then upgrade my education if necessary. I can't order a CES Report for myself I need someone to ask for it, a recipient, like an institution, employer or immigration attorney. That's why I was thinking of hiring an attorney to be my recipient so I could apply for the report. After I recieve it I will see what my equivalent is in the US and if I'm not eligible for a Nurse Visa I'll either play the Green Card lottery again or just proceed with the education until I'm qualified RN. I'm aware of the retrogression and I'm not in a hurry or anything. Thank you for your replies.

So what should I do? Honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing or what I'm supposed to do. I need the CES report but I can't apply for it. I could hire an immigration attorney to be my recipient so that the report would be sent to him and to me but that would cost too much. I'm not worried about NY because all I need right now is an evaluation of my European degree to see where I stand and after I get that I'll go on with the rest of the stuff. My priority right now is the CES report.

I'll go with the CGFNS report to see the equivalent title for the US and work from there. I'm so down right now. Thanks for your help guys. EDIT: Can I have a CES report done only for myself? No. CGFNS International requires you to have an official recipient for the report, but you will receive a copy. Why's that? What should I do to get that report? Any suggestions?

Yes I was just looking at the fees, it's $378 for a Course-By-Course report. So is a 2-year (Associate's) degree enough to be recognized as a RN in US or do you need at least Bachelor's?

So if I'm not a RN, what am I? I must have some title since it says "nurse" on my diploma and I worked in hospital as a nurse. So what's my equivalent in US? EDIT: If I attend a nursing school at Kaplan University which has online Associate Degree's from Nursing, is that enough or do I need Bachelor's?

But that's what I was talking about in my first post. Our school system is different from yours. You can go to 4 year nursing school and become a RN and after that if you want you can attend a high nursing school and become bachelor's of nursing. That's it for the nurses in Europe. You're either RN with a High School diploma or RN with Bachelor's. So that means no job for me in the US :). I'm checking out the CVS (CGFNS) website. I'll ask them about degrees and my qualifications for a US job. Thank you all!

So for NYC I have to take both CGFNS and NCLEX? Thank you guys for your answers. Looks like I'm playing GC Lottery this year.

I'm from Slovenia. I just got fired, unemployed since Jan 1st 09 due to "international crisis". Yes I've found a place in my country where I can go for IELTS but what about NCLEX or CGFNS? Do I take those after I come to US? They do hire you for one unit only but they usually send rookies all over the place. So if I apply for a job I'm not sure what to write in my job application.

Hello nurses from all around the world! My name is Daniel and I'm a 24y old RN from European Union. I'm currently studying Informatics and will most probably finish somewhere in July 09 (Engineer of Informatics, Associates Degree). I finished a medical high school (4year program), have a diploma, a license to work and 3years of experience working in a local hospital. Recently I was thinking of moving to New York because that's my wish since I was a little kid, to live in USA. I started gathering information about visas, green cards and whatnot and I came to a conclusion that moving to US is everything but a piece of cake. Apparently they don't give away GCs just like that . So after spending few days intensively reading this board I learned the following. To successfully migrate from EU to US as a RN I would need: - a diploma (check) - license to work (check) - CGFNS or NCLEX (none) - TOEFL or IELTS (none) So where can I apply for these exams in Europe? Can I do them online? All I could find online were testing locations in US and nothing in Europe. So can anyone help me out here? There's one more thing that bothers me. I found this website that sponsors international nurses for US green cards and they say that you need to graduate from a nursing program (Bachelor or Associate degree). Now here in Europe we have totally different school systems and titles usually don't match those in US. In US you have high schools which last 12 grades all in one part and then you move on to colleges but we in Europe have elementary schools (8 grades) and then you choose what you want to do in your life and go to that high school. Now I've chosen nursing and I went to medical/nursing high school (4 grades) and by the age of 19 I was a RN and fully qualified for work. I don't have a Bachelor's or Associate's Degree but I'm still a RN. Is that a problem? Am I not qualified for a nursing position in US? The other thing I've noticed at US employers is that they look for RNs specialized/licensed in different fields like RN-ICU, RN-ER, RN-OR and so on. Here in Europe nurses in hospitals work wherever they put them to. I worked in a hospital for 3 years and few months I was working at a Hematology department, then they transfered me to Cardio ICU room, sometimes I would be working at a department of Dialysis and so on. We're more like general nurses and not specialized in one field only. So when I apply for a job, what position to choose? One more thing, how do they treat foreigners in US? Is the staff friendly and willing to give a hand in the beginning or do they just put you somewhere and expect you to work fully individual? How are these relations between nurses and superiors? I'd very much like to work in US but I'm not sure what to expect. So basically: - what exams and where - degrees and titles - relations nurse/superior-nurse I would be very thankful if someone could answer my questions, I would really like to pass those exams first and then look for a job. I hope I'm not spamming this forum so if these questions were answered earlier I apologize in advance and hope someone could point me to those threads. Thank you very much and all the best to nurses, our job is really not appreciated enough.