Toefl??

Silverdragon102, BSN · Apr 24, 2008

Not all BON's require an English test but it is a requirement from the Government if English is not your main spoken language. I think you need to put things in perspective. Using the sentence you use about grammar when one of your patients is dying... How would you feel if you was dying and the person looking after you was not able to communicate appropriately with you and understand what they are saying. I have worked with some Filipinos who spoke very poor English and a lot of patients had problems with understanding them, I have also worked with Filipinos who had a good grasp of English but what most English speaking countries are ensuring that you can work safely and understand what is being said to you and that you can communicate back. Plus documentation is important and as a legal document it is better to use proper grammar as it may end up in a court of law

Silverdragon102, BSN · Apr 24, 2008

Also If you are so confident in how the Filipinos speak English how come we see some posting on how they are struggling to pass English exams?

suzanne4, RN · Apr 24, 2008

You are not exempt by the US government from having to pass English exams to be able to work here.

And if the skills were that good over there, then there would not be so many posting that they are having difficulties in passing the speaking section of the exam. And please be aware that more than 300,000 call center jobs have been lost in your country in the past several years because of language skills.

If your skills are that good, you should be able to pass the first time, so no worry. Remember that you need a Visa Screen Certificate to be able to get a visa for the US, and that requires the full set of English exams, not just the basic TOEFL.

Daly City RN · Apr 25, 2008

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Many Filipinos wrongly assume that the Philippines is the "Third Largest English Speaking Country" in the world. I say that is no longer true, or the Philippines was never an English-speaking country in the first place. I grew up in the Philippines (I immigrated to the U.S. in 1978) and the vast majority of the people I knew over there never spoke fluent English.

Sure, the educated elite spoke grammatically correct and fluent English but they are in the minority. This tiny group of people has gone even smaller in the last decade or two as many professionals have left the Philippines for greener pastures outside the Philippines. What we are seeing in the Philippines right now is akin to the Irish potato famine of the past that led to many Irish leaving their homeland.

When I was in nursing school in the 1970's many of my classmates spoke broken English, yet they considered themselves English-speaking people. I didn't think so.

I recently read that 80% of Filipino teachers failed their English test given to them by the Philippine government. These are teachers, for crying out loud!

Even one past Filipino president became the butt of jokes for his poor command of the English language. And many Filipino senators and congressmen are struggling with their English when speaking in front of the t.v. cameras. How embarrassing is that? The Philippines, an English-speaking nation? I don't think so.

Then this question begs to be asked: Is it any wonder the U.S. Federal government requires an English language test for foreign-grad nurses?

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lawrence01 · Apr 25, 2008

Not all BON or BRNs require it and most often times if they do, they can waive it upon request after explaining that the nursing program you attended used English as the medium of instruction and the books used are written in English as well.

If you are a US Citizen or a GC holder, and if your chosen BON or BRN does not require or will waive it for the cited reason above then you may not need it at all.

If you are not a US Citizen or a GC holder then you are required to apply for a Visa Screen Certification and that requires an English Proficiency exam as well (either TOEFL or IELTS) and that is mandatory for countries that do not use English as their native language.

suzanne4, RN · Apr 25, 2008

But one is still going to need to have the English skills to get a visa for the US, so one can get it all done at once.