It's a WAY bigger place than where I am living now, and there is so much there I want to explore, and experience. Central Park, Hawks nest Highway on my motorbike, The Brooklyn Bridge.....I am definitely still planning to do an assignment here, just not likely my first assignment unfortunately. There are a few things I wish I knew before applying, so I'm going to share them here with you in case you are considering New York as a first assignment coming from Canada.
NYSED
http://www.op.nysed.gov/prof/nurse/nursingrn.htm
New York State Education Department is the govt body responsible for reviewing your application, CVS documents, education and work history. This one department processes and issues licenses for over 50 professions, so don't expect speedy service.......in fact any response at all via email seems pretty hard to come by. Out of the 5 emails I have sent, I have received 2 replies. This is the first stop for your application. This is where you will find instructions and fill out the appropriate application. From here it is forwarded to the nursing department where they claim it can take 6 to 8 weeks to review. They also explicitly state on the website that you are not to contact them prior to 6 weeks from submitting everything, and doing so may delay your application process. So I waited.... and waited. And at the 6 week mark, I sent the contact us form requesting an update, I have still not received a reply and its week 10!!!
A week after not hearing anything, I called customer service. Waited on hold for an hour only to be told that CGFNS had not sent my CVS (see my CGFNS post for that story), and I was only able to contact the nursing department on Tues and Thurs. It took a week and about 4 phone calls to sort that, and then once the CVS got to the nursing department, I was told my application had been sent to comparative education for further evaluation.....
BUT WHY????
I graduated December 2014, wrote my NCLEX in Canada as my graduation exam, paid for the credential verification specific to new york from CGFNS, and met all other requirements.
Apparently, It's policy
So after being informed by the nursing department that my application needed further review, and that they couldn't really do anything to help, it was suggested that I call the processing department if I had questions. So I did.
Another team you can only talk to on Tues and Thurs......So I emailed, knowing I may never hear back. I asked if it was really necessary to go through the extra 3 month evaluation given everything I already mentioned here..... the response stated "if you graduated before Jan 2015, the policy is for us to send the application to comparative education". I replied, asking if the reason for that was not due to the implementation of the nclex in Jan 2015??? And since that was my exam, which I wrote in Jan 2015, doesn't that meet the graduation recency requirement??......
Crickets.
So I tried comparative education. I emailed all of the same questions and asked if it was necessary my application go through this very extensive review, and the response from them was "we are currently processing applications from May, you can contact us in 6 to 8 weeks if you have a question about your application"....so 6 to 8 weeks to have a question answered??!!! Wow.
That's where I started looking at my other options. Being potentially 5 more months away from a license in NY.
According to NYSED if you graduated from a Canadian based nursing program after Jan 2015, you may be eligible for a quicker application process, and may not need to buy the CVS from CGFNS. Even WITH the CVS, this was not my experience.
The Application
The fee to apply by Endorsement is $143.00
You are required to provide the typical info : personal info, work history, education history, and background/security questions. This part was very straight forward.
You are also required to take 2 extra courses for this application. The courses are easy to find online and take very little time to complete. I paid 55 USD for both.
My thoughts
Nowhere online does it say that an international application will take 6 months or more, I wish I knew this. I definitely would have picked somewhere else. However if you know this going in, and you are prepared to wait, I still think it would be an awesome place to work.
The communication online is super slow if you get a response at all. There is no online platform to see your application updates like some other states have. That's why I went 6 weeks oblivious to the error made by CGFNS. Talking to the nursing department was always pleasant and informative. The wait time on the phone was atrocious though and added over 100 bucks in long distance charges to my phone bill.
The cost to apply is reasonable however, WAY CHEAPER than my Alberta license. The application process is easy to navigate. Your license is yours for life, and your registration is good for 3 years.
So all in all, this is a good place to apply for a first assignment IF you graduated after January 2015 AND/OR you are prepared to wait up to 6 months for your license. If that doesn't sound like you, stay tuned for my updates on the licensing process in Minnesota and Arizona, coming soon.
For now, New York will stay on my bucket list, and when the timing is right, I will be so happy to share that adventure with you guys.
Xo
Alana
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