Working as a nurse in the US?

uk nurse working in us

• Hello. I am about to start my 3 years of general nurse training in the UK. I know that I want to work in the USA as a nurse once I have graduated and I wondered if you could tell me the process you went through and how early I would need to start applying or whatever. I did look into training in the USA aswel, however I think it is going to take quite a while to get through paperwork etc which will put the start of my studies on hold and I want to get trained asap. I would appreciate you emailing me about your experience to give me a bit more knowledge in this field. Many Thanks Becky

• Answer:

  Hi Becky, Thank you for addressing this question to me. In order to work in the USA as a UK nurse you must have completed the 3 year course first. It is unlikely that you will be able to complete any of the legal/immigration work until you are a fully qualified RN (unless you decide to train in the USA - unfortunately I have had no experience of this route). Once you have finished your training you have to decide whether you are going to complete the immigration paperwork yourself or you may prefer to work through an agency and have them complete the paperwork for you. There are pro's and con's to each choice: As an independent nurse you will command a higher salary, but the paperwork is extremely labour intensive. As an agency nurse you will work for a lot less, but the paperwork will be handled for you (as will training for the NCLEX examination, travel to and from the States to take the exam etc). No matter which route you take, there are some things you will be required to fulfill; a criminal background check, a copy of your training transcripts etc. At this point in the process it is very difficult to identify things you should be doing except 1) keep out of trouble, 2) complete the UK course, and 3) try to look up some of the agencies that may be able to help you. One other piece of advice I have for you is to check out www.allnurses.com and head to the international forum. Keep an eye out for the 'sticky' threads by Madwife and Suzanne as they will contain lots of info for you. Good luck Becky. If I can be of help further into the process please do not hesitate to get in touch.