Studying nursing in US, thinking of moving to the UK

babyNP., APRN · Jul 23, 2012

Hello, I'm currently starting my nursing career at a community college in the US. I've always loved England even though I've never visited. My plan is to become an RN and find a job here in the US for about 2-3 years then move to England and work there and visit my family in the US on holidays. But I've been reading that nurses in England don't get paid very well an the cities aren't safe. Should I start thinking of a different country to move to?

No one can tell you what the future is bringing, but the outlook for overseas nursing in the UK is not so great right now; not so great in most countries I would imagine. Keep in mind that if you work in another country, you'll need to be able to speak the language...

Silverdragon102, BSN · Jul 23, 2012

Cities are as safe as many other countries. Some cities safer than others. Nurses are paid approx £22000 a year not including differential like weekends and nights. Unless job is on the shortage list then may find it hard to get work permit as many employers are looking at UK then EU before rest of the world.

As mentioned who knows what will happen in the next few years but at the moment many NHS TRUSTS are struggling with some going bankrupt

VeggieBSN · Jul 23, 2012

I think you should first consider visiting the UK before actually moving there, living there will be very different than the united states (diff. taxes, housing costs, bills, etc). Not only is the UK expensive, nurses don't get paid as much as the US. I was there (for vacation) for 2 months last year and let me tell you, London is very very expensive, mostly all the bigger cities are. Besides that, it's also very hard to find a job and domestic nurses are more likely to hired than someone on a work visa. Unless you have some savings to live off of if you don't immediately find a job, I would not recommend it in this economy.