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Number of NCLEX takers coming to Saipan drops
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Posted on Sep 13 2008
The number of Filipino nurses taking the United States licensing examination has remained steady for the first half of 2008 compared to last year, despite Manila now offering the test.
A total of 9,837 Filipinos took the National Council Licensure Examination from January to June 2008, a decrease of 107 from last year’s number of 9,944 during the same time, Ernesto Herrera, general secretary of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, said in a press statement.
The United States’ National Council of State Boards of Nursing board of directors chose Manila as an international NCLEX site in February 2007, following the Philippine government’s request to host the NCLEX.
Filipino nurses wanting to take the NCLEX had earlier favored Saipan because of its close proximity to the Philippines and the less stringent visa requirement of the CNMI government compared with the U.S. immigration in Guam.
However, with the test now being offered in Manila came a proportionate drop in the number of Filipino nurses coming to Saipan to take the test.
According to the Marianas Visitor’s Authority, the number of Filipino tourists dropped from 516 in July 2007 to 171 in July of this year. MVA officials said the drop in numbers could be attributed to Manila now offering the test.
Many potential test takers have complained about the slow processing by the Commonwealth Board of Nursing to win approval to take the NCLEX.
Public Health Secretary Joseph Kevin Villagomez said a lack of staffing has affected the processing.
Chrestine Batalon, a resident of the Philippines, said she is worried about the status of her application because a friend of hers submitted her required documents in April and still has not heard back.
“I know the eligibility from Saipan would only take 2-3 months but in her case, it’s almost six months and yet she [hasn’t] received any [word],” she said.
Batalon said her sister took the test in Saipan last year at a cost of about $1,100, but with a new testing site in Manila, she wants to take it there once she hears about her status.
