U.S. RN BSN moving to UK

allnurses Guide · Dec 16, 2018

I think you'll be lucky to get through the process in time for you to benefit from working in the UK is your only here for 12 months

samkasper1, BSN, LPN, LVN, RN · May 7, 2019

Hey smitty

Did you decide if you were going to work in the UK or not?

kaitfinder, BSN, RN · May 13, 2019

As above, a 1 yr stay is not very long. I moved in January and it took me roughly 10 months from start (interviewing for a job, then taking tests, getting all paperwork, etc) to just moving here. Then the hospital that hired me trained me to take the OSCE, a program which took approximately 1 month before I could even practice as a nurse (mostly just shadowing before then). Roughly a 4-6 month learning curve to get adjusted to how nursing is different over here. 12 months is probably when you'll finally feel on your feet again as a nurse, and by that point you said you're planning on heading back. Your licensure in the UK will be good for 3 years iirc, and the registration fees for the license, not to mention testing fees (like $125 for CBT, $1200 for OSCE? though my hospital paid for my OSCE) you may as well stay longer if you're going to dedicate that much time, money, and effort. It's not an extremely difficult process from a nursing standpoint if you're USA trained, but it is still a significant amount of time and energy.

Why are you only planning on staying 1 year?

alainamarieowens · Jul 31, 2019

Hello !

I am in the same boat. I am a US RN who is moving to Glasgow, Scotland and in the midst of NMC registration. @kaitfinder can I please ask how you were offered a job with a hospital before taking the OSCE? That is my biggest challenge right now because I can't seem to even apply to jobs without having an NMC pin number? I really don't want to pay and train for this test on my own without having a job lined up...

thanks for your advice!!

Alaina

kaitfinder, BSN, RN · Jul 31, 2019

3 hours ago, alainamarieowens said:
Hello !
I am in the same boat. I am a US RN who is moving to Glasgow, Scotland and in the midst of NMC registration. @kaitfinder can I please ask how you were offered a job with a hospital before taking the OSCE? That is my biggest challenge right now because I can't seem to even apply to jobs without having an NMC pin number? I really don't want to pay and train for this test on my own without having a job lined up...
thanks for your advice!!
Alaina

Hey!

Yeah for sure you want to be lined up with a hospital before taking the OSCE because it’s a huge pain of a test and you really need training for it, which most hospitals will provide.

I went through an international agency that works with a specific hospital I wanted to work for (I wanted to work in a specific hospital in Oxford and this agency worked with that hospital, among many other hospitals). I applied to the agency online (having literally just googled “XYZ Hospital Oxford international nursing agency”) and they interviewed me, then talked about job positions, THEN took CBT, passed, then the agency set up an interview with the hospital etc. then I was offered a position, signed some preliminary paperwork, applied for a work visa, moved, trained with the hospital as pre-OSCE nurse, took and passed OSCE, then got my NMC Pin and now operate as a fully licensed UK nurse.

I have heard of some people approaching the hospital they want to work for directly (recruiting department) and letting them know they’re international and going through it that way, but I didn’t do that so idk how that works exactly. You can literally just google “international Glasgow Scotland nursing agency” and go from there.

Feel free to email me at [email protected] if you have any other questions!

-Kaitlyn