The process towards Nursing Licensure in the United States of America and Immigration for a Nigerian can be real complex, and somewhat discouraging to start with. There is the cumbersome credentialing process, the overwhelming hassle to pass the Board exam ‘NCLEX’, the Immigration shortcomings; USCIS unfathomable disapprovals, NVC delays and so on. Each of these challenges comes at different stages during the transition process and can be real frustrating. However, with a proper guide you can bypass most of these.

You might wonder why we still have Nurses threading this path despite the ill outcomes. Truth is the great opportunities you are exposed to as a Green card holder or Citizen of the United States Of America is immeasurable. I don’t need mention how much an average RN earns in the USA, the career advancement opportunities, the standard of living, job satisfaction,the great hope you perceive immensely for the future that lies ahead of you and your family and most of all having to be citizen of the worlds most powerful nation. Nothing Beats this!!!

The USA is currently battling a high shortage of Nursing staff and it has been projected that in 2030 there would be a massive decline in the availability of Nurses as compared to now. You might wonder why we still have it tough with immigration, despite their increased need for us each day. Well, there are different views about this, and I choose not to dabble into that right now. The most important thing to key into is we have Nigerian Nurses deploying each day to the states to start a new life for themselves and their family and the remark has been awesome.

We have so many articles online on steps to take towards licensure, credentialing and immigration for the US. It came to my notice we have none specific to Nigeria as we have difficulties we face at each stage that are unique to us. I decided to put out a well-defined write up on how to go about Licensure as a Nigerian without an agency to guide you. This is born out of my personal experience and I hope you find this useful.

It could be real difficult getting recruited by most of the US Nursing Agencies; this is due to their requirements. Most times it could be because of the facility you work in (they prefer you work in Tertiary level hospitals, with over 100 beds), some agency requires you have at least 2 years of clinical work experience, Some turn you down due to your specialty or Academic Qualification.

I was turned down by Avant, OGP and Shearwater Health for different reasons that were out of my control. I had to find a way to get licensed to practice in the US as this was a lifelong dream I couldn’t afford to let go. As the ambitious lady that i am i had to find a way out . This has been the best decision I have made so far in my life. Here was how I went about it;.

SUMMARY OF STEPS.

STEP 1 - APPLY FOR CGFNS (CES) CREDENTIAL EVALUATION SERVICE. (350$)

STEP 2 - APPLY TO A STATE BOARD OF NURSING. TEXAS (100$)

STEP 3 - CRIMINIAL BACKGROUND CHECK ( 37 $)

STEP 4 - JURISPRUDENCE EXAMINATION.(FREE)

STEP 5 - REGISTER FOR THE NCLEX (200$ )

STEP 6 - RECEIVE ATT / SCHEDULE YOUR TEST (150$)

STEP 7 - APPLY FOR VISA TO TEST (N15,600).

STEP 8 - TRAVEL TO TAKE THE NCLEX

STEP 9 - PASS THE TEST.

STEP 10 - APPLY WITH AN AGENCY

BREAKDOWN STEP 1 -
APPLY FOR (CES) CREDENTIAL EVALUATION SERVICE. (350$)

This has to do with an accredited body evaluating your credential to see if it meets up with the standard of the nursing education in America. The Board accepts CES from the: Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) www.cgfns.org Educational Records Evaluation Service, Inc. (ERES) www.eres.com, or the International Education Research Foundation, Inc. (IERF) www.ierf.org. So far CGFNS and ERES are used more by candidates here in Nigeria.

CGFNS poses some kind of delay due to the bulk of work they have to deal with however it is still the best to go for as your CGFNS Credential Evaluation Service (CES) report would be needed for your VisaScreen. Visa Screen certificate is needed for your exit interview.

CGFNS Offers three main Credentialing Report.

• Credential Evaluation Service.(CES)
• Certification Program.(CP)
• Visascreen.(VS)

Back in the days, nurses opted for the Certification Program, where they had to write the CGFNS examination in chosen centers in Nigeria, get certified, apply with an agency, get their Visascreen, get petitioned, get an approval from the USCIS, then the NVC stage, exit interview, before they eventually deploy to the states to take the Board Exam itself, pass and get employed to work as a Nurse.

Well this isn’t a bad idea but it is a longer process and to me simply “old school”. As of now you hardly find agencies to recruit CP holders, PassportUSA did at a time, but not now again. Agencies either want you to have Passed your NCLEX or they take you up from scratch to help you pass the NCLEX.

Now this takes me to my method; I implore you follow this as it is faster and totally acceptable with agencies.

YOU APPLY FOR THE CREDENTIAL EVALUATION SERVICE WITH CGFNS.(350$)

www.cgfns.org
You first create an account with CGFNS Connect (For Applicants), you get your Username and Password.

After this you purchase the Credential Evaluation Service (CES), Professional Transcript. You fill all the required information carefully, ensure you don’t make mistakes. The CGFNS site can be real complex and confusing especially for starters. Don’t be discouraged, this is entirely normal. If you desire a one on one guide on this, contact us as we will guide you through the entire process.

After you fill in your information, you get to the last page where you are required to make payment for the CES. This costs 350dollars. After this payment is made you’d be able to print out 5 forms.

• License Validation Form. (for Nursing and Midwifery Council Nigeria).
• Request for Professional Transcript (for your university or School of Nursing).
• Supplemental form.( for any additional information).
• Request For Secondary School Diploma / Examination Certificate.
• Authorization to release information.

LICENSE VALIDATION FORM ( N54,000)

If you don’t reside in Abuja or Lagos state, this might be difficult for you and also more expensive considering the cost of transportation. During my time I had to travel all the way to Abuja to get this done, I remember taking a night bus to and fro. It was really a stressful process.

If you don’t stay in the above mentioned states, Saaj Academy can have this done for you. License Validation typically takes 1 month to be updated on your CGFNS page, after the receipt of document. When NMCN completes the Validation process, they have this sent to CGFNS and after 28 days it reflects on your CGFNS account as received.

PROFESSIONAL TRANSCRIPT (Cost is unique to each school).

This is to be taken to the school where you had your Nursing Education. It would be filled and completed by the school and sent to CGFNS by the school authority. 28 days after receipt of document, it should reflect on your CGFNS page as received.

SUPPLEMENTARY FORM

This is filled to include any additional information or changes you want to make to your Bio data. This could be a name change. This is sent by you to CGFNS, as opposed to License validation and your professional Transcript that has to be sent by the authorities themselves.

SECONDARY SCHOOL DIPLOMA.

Your O’ Level result and Testimonial from secondary school would be sent by you to CGFNS. You make a photocopy of this and have it notarized by a notary lawyer. This can be uploaded via your CGFNS account using the Contact Us Wizard. Saaj Academy can also help you with this service. Sometimes CGFNS requests for the Result Check Scratch Card too.

Note: your secondary School Diploma can be waived if it’s over 10 years since you had your diploma, this doesn’t happen in all cases though.

After all Documents have been sent to CGFNS, you track your progress by checking the status of your application on your CGFNS page. It typically takes 3 to 6 months for CGFNS to issue a CES report, with all other modalities included. This seems as a very long time but the trick is to use this period to study immensely for the NCLEX.

STEP 2
APPLY TO A STATE BOARD OF NURSING. TEXAS (100$)

As opposed to our country Nigeria, you cannot be licensed to work in all the states in the USA, you have to choose a state and tender your application. Each state have their requirements, you should ensure you don’t choose a state based on things such as the popularity of the region or even your dream work destination. Rather, consider the requirements of the state’s board of nursing for foreign nurses. If a board requires any of the following, you may consider not applying for NCLEX with that state board because it could delay your application:

• IELTS or TOEFL results
• CGFNS Certification Program.
• Social Security Number (SSN) to issue a license (You will have issues later if you apply to a state that will not issue a license if you don’t have a SSN).

It is important to know that the state board of nursing you apply with doesn’t necessarily mean you would eventually be employed to work in that state. Agencies tend to post you to states according to the availability of job in that region for you. Most of the time we are made to endorse new states where there are job openings for us. This is the reason it isn’t smart to pick a state BON based on reasons as mentioned above but their requirements and how feasible it is for you to meet them.

So far, it has been more like tradition amongst Nigerian Nurses on this journey to apply with the TEXAS Board of Nursing. This is cause they don’t require the IELTS and SSN asides this we have a huge number of the population with the BON, its always easier to trash out problems when it arise as people are familiar with their methods. Board of Nursing Illinois, Colorado, New Mexico is great too. Application to Texas BON costs 100 dollars.

As foreign students without SSN we are to go for the Paper Application, do not make the mistake of going for the Online Application as that is for candidates who have their SSN and also who had their education in the US.

You print out the said form from the website www.bon.texas.gov and fill all required information, attach a money order of 100 dollars and then you send to the BON’s address.

The major hassle we Nigerians have with this stage is the Money Order payment of 100 dollars. This can only be done in the USA, wouldn’t be a problem if you have someone in the states who could have this done for you, however this person has to be able to run this properly without mistakes. Saaj Academy has helped solved this problem as they take up the responsibility for you. All you need do is fill the forms have it scanned to the office and it is taken up from there.

After 7 working days you officially would have been registered with the BON. You can at this time access your page on the Texas BON website. This way you get to track your progress.
www.bon.texas.gov/forms/applstatus.asp
3 basic things are required of you with the Texas BON before you register with PearsonVue for your NCLEX.

• CES (Credential Evaluation Service)‘Remember this is already ongoing, from step one’
• Nursing Jurisprudence Examination.
• Criminal Background Check.

This leads us to the next stage of the entire process.

STEP 3
CRIMINIAL BACKGROUND CHECK ( 39 $)

Texas Board of Nursing works in affiliation with Identogo Morphotrust for the Criminal background check. www.identogo.com You are required to submit 2 fingerprint cards with your prints taken by the police. You make payment of 39$ to Identogo, send the receipt of payment with fingerprint cards to the Morphotrusts Address. This could be quite easy but getting the standard FBI print cards could be a hassle.

Texas BON takes about 3 months to have it delivered to Nigeria, thats a very long time. This cards however are sold by Saaj Academy and you could purchase it at a very affordable rate. The mode of payment of 39$ to Identogo also poses as a problem. Payment has to be made with a credit card, we mostly operate with debit cards here in Nigeria. Decency Academy helps to secure this payment. Proper guidance is given too to ensure mistakes are curbed.

After 7 days of receipt of your documents. Identogo sends the result of the Criminal Background Check to Texas BON. You could track this by visiting the BONs website www.bon.texas.gov

STEP 4
JURISPRUDENCE EXAMINATION.

To qualify to register for the NCLEX with Texas BON, you should have taken the Jurisprudence examination and passed it. There are 50 items on the nursing jurisprudence examination (NJE). You must correctly answer 75% of the questions to pass the NJE. You will have two (2) hours to complete the NJE. Displayed in the upper right hand corner of the computer screen will be a digital clock and the question number so you can monitor your progress throughout the NJE.

You are permitted to access the Board of Nursing (BON) website and other resource material throughout the exam to locate the answers to questions. The NJE will run in another window, thereby leaving this window open to access reference materials on the BON website. A Passing Result will be posted and recorded to the BON system when all 50 questions are answered and a minimum of 38 questions are answered correctly. A certificate will be available for printing at the end of the examination process. Once a passing result is recorded, Board Staff will be notified and the jurisprudence exam requirement will be updated as completed in your BON file. Keep the certificate for your records. Do not mail the certificate to the BON.

A Failing Result will be posted and recorded to the BON system if 13 or more of the 50 questions are answered incorrectly, or the exam is not completed in the allotted amount of time, or the connection to the exam is closed, terminated or lost. You may NOT reconnect to the test to return to the last question answered. You may, however, retake the exam after 24 hours have elapsed. Read each question carefully. There is only one correct answer for each question. You are not allowed to use the back-button to check/change a previously answered question.

The BON offers a Prep Class for the exam which costs 25$. I didn’t enroll for this and I had a pass mark on my first attempt, same with my protégés. It is safe to take this examination without paying that amount. However the process of registration could come with a little complexity, if you have such issues do contact Saaj Academy. You will be guided properly on how to register for the examination, study and effectively use the resource material provided for you.

STEP 5
REGISTER FOR THE NCLEX (200$ )

Once you have the entire requirement for the BON. (1) CES (2) Criminal Background Check (3) Nursing Jurisprudence Examination, you can now register for the NCLEX.

STEP 6
RECEIVE ATT / SCHEDULE YOUR TEST (150$)

Within one week, you get the ATT ( Authorization To Test). Once you have this you can call PearsonVue to schedule your examination or do this via their website. www.ncsbn.org. For test centers outside the USA, you would have to pay an extra charge of 150 dollars. Nigerians often take the test in the Philippines, hence the extra charge for us. The ATT expires after 90 days.

STEP 7
APPLY FOR VISA TO TEST.

You might be wondering why Nigerians choose to go to the Phillipines to take the NCLEX and not the US, UK, Canada and the likes. This is because you are hardly given a visa to these countries on the basis of writing the NCLEX, this is unique to Nigerians though and can be different in other countries.

You can choose to write the NCLEX in these countries if you already have a valid visit visa at hand, otherwise you are advised not to, as a denial with the US embassy might affect you during your Immigration phase. However the Philippine Embassy grants you visa fast and without any hassle for the NCLEX.

STEP 8
TRAVEL TO TAKE THE NCLEX

It is best to schedule your examination fast enough after receiving your ATT, so you can apply for the visa, and book your flight early enough to cut cost. You make hotel reservations, pay for a cab to pick you up at the airport and also be sure to eat right, might be hard feeding on the Filipino diet for that short space of time, and remember you need glucose for your brain to function properly. All these should be arranged prior. For a good guide on this too, You can contact us.

STEP 9
PASS THE TEST.

You can receive your unofficial results two business days after the exam with NCSBN. This cost 7.95$. Though there are other ways to go about this;

• PVT (Pearson Vue Trick) with this you can know your result within an hour after your test. www.pearsonvuetrick.com Though this isn’t 100 percent reliable, it helps calm the nerves down.
• Texas BON website, you can do this by trying to verify your license.
• www.Nursys.com

You should save the 7.95$ for unofficial result.

STEP 10
APPLY WITH AN AGENCY

First of; Congratulations on your pass, you are officially a United State Registered Nurse; USRN TBON!!! This feeling is indescribable, it is the greatest feeling ever, and I do pray you get to feel that too.

At this point you’ve got all what it takes to get that Nursing Agency to recruit you, well coupled with other factors as your Clinical experience, Specialty and Academic qualification; You are the boss right now. There would be so many alternatives, as you will meet the criteria of virtually all the Nursing agencies there is. This is the beauty of having sponsored yourself. You get to choose the best. You tend to get the best offers. However be careful when you make your decisions, there are always pros and cons. I would address this in my next discourse.

People ask this question though, why can’t i just go about it on my own without the agencies like I did for my NCLEX, well….. if I could, I would have done just that too, if I was in the US, there would have been a better chance to start work right away and start earning salaries equivalent to the regular RN , but no, I don’t have that. Hence, I can’t.

The reason you have to apply to an Agency is because they have to file the i140 petition on your behalf with the USCIS, as they are the only one eligible to do that, without this you cannot get the Greencard to work.

This covers all there is with the Pre Nclex phase of the US AMERICAN DREAM!!!

You can direct your questions to SAJPOINTE HEALTH.

We would be happy to address them.