fabienne

thank you guys! @Ginger's Mom: I am not in school anymore, graduated in nursing 7 years ago and work in the emergency room now. So I will have to arrange all this by myself)-:

Hello everybody, I am turning to you guys with a question I have about volunteering at a US hospital. I am a RN from Switzerland and I am interested in doing an internship/volunteer work at a US hospital for one or two months. I know I won't be allowed to do much as I am not registered as a nurse in the US but I am still interested in doing some volunteer work so I get to see a little bit about what it is like to work in the health care field in the US. I was wondering if anybody on this site has ever done something like that and what your experiences are. Does anybody know a hospital that offers something like that to foreign trained nurses? I would be very glad to hear from you guys and I hope someone can share their experience.Thanks! fabienne

Hello everybody, I'm turning to you guys with some questions that I have about volunteering in a US hospital. I am a RN from Switzerland and I have worked here for 6 years as a nurse. My finacé is American. He is currently living in Switzerland with me but we are moving back to the US( Washington DC area) because of his job. I don't have a licence to practice nursing in the US yet which means I can't work in the US in the nursing field. I am wondering if I could still volunteer in a American hospital so I get some idea what it is like to work as a nurse there.I know I wouldn't be paid for that. Has anyone experience with that or knows if that would be possible for me? Also, do you know if I could enter the US on a tourist visa and then volunteer at a hospital if I don't have any contact with patients? Your help would very much be appreciated...you guys have helped me several times before(-: Thank you all....

we need nurses here in Switzerland...you have to be fluent in German though...also,people here speak Swiss German,not even easy to understand for a foreigner who speaks fluent German

I am a nurse in Switzerland and I have never heard of nursing schools where they teach you in English. Not in in Austria either. They have international schools in Geneva, so I am not sure what the situation is like there.

as I stated before I am thinking of trying to get a licence in New York as this seems to be faster than doing the CGFNS route. I would like to work in Virginia though and I am not sure if I would be eligible to be licenced by endorsement there or would I have to take the CGFNS for Virginia even if I pass the NCLEX-RN and get a licence for NY?does anybody know? thank you so much...

does anyone know how long it takes for the New York BON to get back with you once CGFNS sends your papers to the BON?

Hey everyone, I have been an RN in Europe for 5 years and I am looking into possibilities to eventually be eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN. My boyfriend lives in Washington,DC so that's where I eventually would like to work. Virginia requires the CGFNS for internationally trained nurses and I know it's a long process to get where I want to go...I was looking into the requirements for New York State too...The CGFNS is not required there. Has anyone experience doing all this through New York State? What would you guys suggest?? Thank you very much!!

I am a Swiss citizen and I work there as a RN. Nurse practitioners( or Pflegeexperten as we call them ) usually don't work in immediate patient care here. It's mainly in management, research,etc...Living in Germany( border area) and working in Switzerland is a pretty good thing if you can do it. You pay less tax in Germany and also the costs of living are not even close as high as they are here....BUT you get a Swiss salary every month that you can live off.I would do that too...(-: You can contact me anytime you want and hopefully I can help you with some of the questions you have.

No, I still work in Switzerland. I am in Virginia at the moment but will be going back to Switzerland this weekend. i haven't started the NCLEX process yet..I still have a long way to go... I live in the German speaking part of Switzerland so the system in Geneva might be different, I am not quite sure...there have been major changes is the nursing education system over the last three years. Are you sure you would have to attend the whole 4 year program for a Bachelor's? just wondering because you already have another Bachelor's and Master's degree.

I am a Swiss citizen and I went to nursing school here...it's true,i didn't have to pay to go to nursing school as the government pays for a lot of the expenses. I would assume though that it is not free for international students. feel free to email me with any question you have...

thank you guys for your feedback.I actually don't plan on coming to the US on a fiancé visa so as you all told me, the situation looks much more difficult then. I am a little confused,not sure what's the best thing to do...

So I would basically have to find an employer that sponsors my visa if I don't come to the US on a fiance visa, is that correct...?Sounds pretty much impossible as there's enough CNA's who wait to get hired I guess... it might still not be a bad idea to go for a Certification as a Nurse Assistant. I could imagine it still gives me more options in the long run? I was also wondering about the type of visa I would need to take CNA classes. As it usually only takes about one or two months to complete the course would it be possible for me to do this on a visitor visa or do I need a student visa for that too?

hi everybody, I am a RN with 5 years of experience and I was trained in Switzerland. I am looking into possibilities to start a career in nursing in the US, most likely in Virginia as my boyfriend lives there. I know that the process of getting licensed to practise as an RN in the United States is very time consuming and can take up to two years. Therefore, my idea that I have been thinking of is that I would like to get certified as a Nurse Assistant and work in that position for a while if I can find a job while preparing for the NCLEX-RN. I know that most hopitals don't hire Nurse Aids without Certification so I think I have to get certified and sit through the test even though I am an overseas trained nurse. The question I have is, does anybody know if it would be possible for me to just take the CNA test without having to actually take classes, so I wouldn't have to pay for classes ? Thank you guys already for your response...

thank you very much for your response...I was actually thinking the same thing.it's probably worth spending the 1000 Dollars on the course as it might also make it easier to find a job...