The US Department of Homeland Security has recently released its Visa Bulletin for April, and it shows that for those with approved Third Preference Employment Based Petitions like you, the US Department of State will now be processing petitions approved prior to April 8 , 2006.

We therefore urge you to make sure that all your credentials are complete and current now so you will be ready at the time of interview at the US Embassy in Manila. If your Visa Screen is expiring within the next six months, we advise you to start reviewing for your IELTS Exam now and take the test as soon as possible because in all likelihood, your Visa Screen will expire before the interview.

Also, if you have not passed the NCLEX, we likewise urge you to review and take the test here in Manila, also at the soonest possible time, to avoid expected inconveniences upon arrival in the United States.

At this point, we would like to inform you in view of the recession that hit the United States in 2007, and still prevailing to this date, the employers that filed the petition for you might no longer be in a position to provide the employment and/or the benefits initially promised. Fortunately, our principal, the Nursing Resources, Inc., has a host of employers willing and able to provide you with employment in the US. That means that even if the hospital that filed the I-140 petition in your behalf has closed down or no longer needs the same number of nurses it petitioned for, we can still provide you with an employer or employment.

Incidentally, if you have friends, classmates and relatives who have approved Immigrant Visa Petitions BUT whose employers have either closed or will no longer provide employment and/or plane fare in going to the US,  please refer them to us. We can help them with an employer and a new visa petition that will preserve their current Priority Date.

PLEASE UPDATE YOUR CREDENTIALS NOW !!!

Thank you.

The US Embassy in Manila has begun an awareness campaign about Tuberculosis (TB). About fifteen percent of all visa applications are denied or delayed as a result of high TB numbers. TB is the number one medical reason for the denial or delay of a visa application. All immigrant applicants must prove that they have been immunized against the major communicable diseases.

According to the Embassy, the Philippines has the ninth-highest TB rate in the world. TB is the sixth leading cause of death. About one hundred Filipinos die of the disease every day. If you are living in Manila and plan on immigrating to the US, please be sure to have your immunization records up-to-date. Indeed, even if you do not plan on coming to the US, it is a good idea to protect yourself.

The Embassy has posted a video on its Facebook page by Project Blue Balloons, which highlights this tragic disease.

Second: Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required by first preference.

Third: Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide level, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences, not more than 10,000 of which to “*Other Workers”.

Fourth: Certain Special Immigrants: 7.1% of the worldwide level.

Fifth: Employment Creation: 7.1% of the worldwide level, not less than 3,000 of which reserved for investors in a targeted rural or high-unemployment area, and 3,000 set aside for investors in regional centers by Sec. 610 of Pub. L. 102-395.

On the chart below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that the class is oversubscribed (see paragraph 1); “C” means current, i.e., numbers are available for all qualified applicants; and “U” means unavailable, i.e., no numbers are available. (NOTE: Numbers are available only for applicants whose priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed below.)

http://www.rn.ca.gov/pdfs/applicants/ssninfo.pdf
CA BON update for SNN as a requirement

https://www.ncsbn.org/1983.htm
NCLEX raise passing rate

Why is the scoring being changed?
This is the latest in a series of enhancements to IELTS, based on continual consultation with test takers, teachers, Recognising Organisations and other stakeholders around the world.

This range of scores – using full and half-bands – is already used for Listening and Reading. We have consulted a large number of organisations that use IELTS scores, and their feedback tells us that they find the half band scores very helpful as they allow them to specify required language levels more precisely. Many teachers and test takers have also told us that they would like more detailed information on performance in each skill.

What will the benefits be?
There will be two main benefits to the new arrangements:

• Recognizing Organizations will be able to set their requirements for admission, recruitment, etc, more precisely, based on more detailed information about the test-taker’s performance in each module.
• Test takers will get a report that gives them more information on their strengths and weaknesses.

It will also mean that the IELTS scores are easier for everyone to understand because all parts of the exam will now be reported in the same way.

Does this change the way the exams will be marked?
No. Examiners will assess test takers’ performance in exactly the same way as at present. The full and half-band scores will then be determined when the scores are processed by the IELTS scores calculation system/software. There will not be any change in the way examiners mark the tests, test takers, so the meaning of the overall Band Scores remains unchanged.

Recognizing Organizations do not need to change the way they use IELTS scores unless they require a Writing and Speaking band score in addition to the Overall Band Score. Organizations should review and update their score requirements for Writing and/or Speaking if these modules are required along with Overall Band Score.

Should teachers and test takers change the way they prepare for the exams?
No. The tests and the way they are marked will remain exactly the same.

Can test takers get half-band scores for previous tests?
It is not possible to issue half-band scores for Speaking and Writing for tests taken before 1 July 2007.

Where can I get more information?
Later this year, we will issue new versions of the Information for Candidates, IELTS Handbook, Official IELTS Practice Materials and the IELTS Scores Explained DVD. In the meantime, full information will be available on the IELTS website so that you can update older copies of these publications if you already have them, and we will be including updates with all the materials we send out.

Yokohama, Japan—Kaplan, a leading international provider of educational and career services, and the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS International), a leading provider of nursing certification and professional development, today announced a preliminary agreement to create a strategic alliance to develop online and offline nursing education and test preparation products and services. The planned Kaplan/CGFNS Advantage Program, Knowledge for Nursing, will provide co-branded nursing education and test preparation products and services to hospital organizations, international schools of nursing, and individual international nurses.
The joint program will combine the strengths of two flagship organizations in nursing education, credentials evaluation and certification. Besides the English language training programs for non-native English speakers, Kaplan will contribute its expertise in test preparation for the U.S. nursing licensure exam known as the NCLEX® (National Council Licensure Examination), as well as the CGFNS® Qualifying Exam, a test of basic nursing knowledge for first-level, foreign educated nurses. CGFNS will contribute its expertise as an internationally recognized authority on credentials evaluation and verification for nurses and healthcare professionals worldwide, and as administrator of the CGFNS Qualifying Exam.

“The Kaplan/CGFNS Advantage Program, Knowledge for Nursing, will provide quality educational materials online and offline to prepare nurses worldwide to have career mobility and increased nursing knowledge,” said Judith A. Burckhardt, PhD, R.N. Executive Director, Nursing for Kaplan Test Prep and
Admissions. “We are excited about working with CGFNS on this initiative. Providing nurses in their country of origin with what they need to prepare for and pass the CGFNS and NCLEX exams without the constraints of location,” she continued, “will be a catalyst for education in the nursing community.”

“Education and training that can be qualified and quantified is the currency for mobility of healthcare professionals and the standards upon which healthcare institutions employ and sustain their workforce,” said Barbara Nichols, DHL, MS, RN, FAAN, and Chief Executive Officer of CGFNS. The Kaplan/ CGFNS partnership for delivering a leading, robust, web-based, educational and testing product for nurses worldwide will broaden nursing knowledge and improve the delivery of healthcare service universally.”

The Kaplan/CGFNS Advantage products and services are scheduled for January 2008 release.

About Kaplan, Inc.
Kaplan, Inc. is a leading international provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Its four areas of focus are: Kaplan Kids and Schools, Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions, Kaplan Higher Education and Kaplan Professional. Kaplan, which had 2006 revenue of nearly $1.7 billion, is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO). For more information, please visit www.kaplan.com.

About CGFNS
CGFNS provides expert credentials evaluation and professional development services to promote the health and safety of the public. CGFNS is an immigration-neutral, not-for-profit organization with 30 years of experience in certifying the credentials of 500,000 internationally educated nurses and other healthcare workers for practice in the U.S. For more information, please visit www.cgfns.org. The announcement was made during the International Council of Nurses Conference in Yokohama, Japan.

Savoy, Illinois and Bloomington, Minnesota – The Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP) has signed a contract with Pearson VUE for computer-based testing delivery services for the examinations leading to the Certified Safety Professional® (CSP®) credential and other programs administered by BCSP. Pearson VUE is the electronic testing business of Pearson.
With this contract, BCSP continues to ensure that its examination candidates have a high-quality testing experience in secure environments. Beginning June 29, 2007, candidates taking BCSP-administered examinations will use the Pearson VUE owned-and-operated global network of more than 230 Pearson Professional Centers, supplemented by select Pearson VUE® Authorized Test Centers around the world. Candidates are encouraged to visit www.bcsp.org/transition for more information.

BCSP administers two examinations leading to the CSP certification: Safety Fundamentals and Comprehensive Practice. BCSP operates solely as a peer certification board with the purpose of certifying practitioners in the safety profession. Safety professionals are involved in the prevention of accidents, incidents, and events that harm people, property, or the environment. BCSP is recognized as the leader in high-quality credentialing for safety, health, and environmental practitioners. Today, the CSP credential is a highly sought after safety certification in the United States.

“We are constantly working to improve the quality of our certification programs,” said BCSP Executive Director, Roger Brauer, Ph.D., CSP, P.E., CPE. “We believe that the Pearson VUE test delivery facilities and services will provide secure and quality testing experiences for our candidates, whether they are located in the United States, at military education centers or other locations around the world.”

Robert Whelan, Pearson VUE president, said, “Our broad test center network will provide the security, global reach and control that the BCSP testing program needs. We are excited that BCSP chose Pearson VUE as their new testing partner and we look forward to providing safety professionals around the world with the best possible testing experience available.”

BCSP also administers examinations for the Council on Certification of Health, Environmental and Safety Technologists (CCHEST) and the American Board for Occupational Health Nurses, Inc. (ABOHN).

CCHEST (www.cchest.org) administers certification programs for safety and health practitioners at the technologist/technician level. Since 1985, CCHEST has operated as a joint venture of the American Board of Industrial Hygienists (ABIH) and BCSP. Its nationally-accredited peer certifications include the OHST (Occupational Health and Safety Technologist®)/CLCS (Certified Loss Control Specialist), CHST (Construction Health and Safety Technician®), and STS (Safety Trained Supervisor). Currently, there are more than 4,000 CCHEST certificants.

ABOHN (www.abohn.org) was established as an independent nursing specialty certification board in 1972. It is the sole certifying body for occupational health nurses in the United States and awards four credentials: Certified Occupational Health Nurse (COHN), Certified Occupational Health Nurse-Specialist (COHN-S), Case Management (CM), and Safety Management (SM). The COHN, COHN-S, and CM programs are accredited by the American Board of Nursing Specialties (ABNS) and by the National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA). Over 12,000 occupational health nurses have been certified by ABOHN.

BLOOMINGTON, Minn – Pearson VUE, the electronic testing business of Pearson, announced today that they have signed a contract with Citrix® to deliver certification exams, effective immediately.

This partnership will give candidates seeking Citrix certification expanded access to 4,400 test center locations in 162 countries through the Pearson VUE Authorized Test Center network, more than doubling the number of Citrix authorized testing centers worldwide. In addition to increasing the number of test centers offering Citrix certification exams, Pearson VUE provides flexible exam registration, reliable test delivery and outstanding customer service to Citrix candidates.

“As the demand for Citrix certification continues to grow, expanding the number of test center locations is essential for providing the best possible service to our candidates,“ said Julieann Scalisi, senior director of Citrix Education. “Pearson VUE’s global network of test centers and reputation for outstanding service were significant factors in our decision to add an additional test delivery provider.“

Robert Whelan, president of Pearson VUE said, “Pearson VUE’s extensive test center network will considerably extend the reach of the Citrix certification program. Our flexible technology and attention to service will provide Citrix exam candidates with an exceptional testing experience.“

Citrix certification candidates can visit www.PearsonVUE.com to register for Citrix exams available through the Pearson VUE network. A complete list of Citrix Education offerings is available at www.CitrixEducation.com.”

Is RP (Really) Not Good Enough for NCLEX?
by Reuben S. Seguritan

There is no denying the fact that the leakage in the Philippine nursing licensure exam will make it more difficult for advocates to make their case for setting up an NCLEX-RN testing site in the Philippines. The ability to secure the integrity of the US nurse licensure exam is considered one of the more important criteria for selection in setting up an NCLEX-RN testing site.

In January 2005, the NCSBN set up three international pilot testing sites in Seoul, Hong Kong and London. Seven testing sites were added this year in Australia, India, Japan, Mexico, Canada, Germany and Taiwan, bypassing the Philippines for the second time.

The absurdity of the situation is hard to miss. Obviously, it would make more sense to set up an NCLEX testing site in what is undeniably the largest overseas source of RNs.

Filipino nurses have consistently made up the largest number of first time NCLEX-takers with a yearly average of 30 percent since 2003, according to a position paper prepared by the Philippine Nurses Association of America (PNAA). India comes as a far second at 5.8 percent (1,910) and Canada, at 5 percent (1,650).

If having the most number of test-takers is not reason enough to set up the test site in the Philippines, would the nurse exam leakage be reason enough not to set it up in the Philippines at all?

It may come as a surprise to the most jaded of Filipinos but cheating, exam leakages and other forms of dishonesty occur with as much frequency and magnitude outside the Philippines as well.

The so-called “culture of cheating” knows no geographic boundaries. It has reared its ugly head in health profession exams in the US and even in places chosen as NCLEX test sites.

Three years ago, the national board exams of three health professions no less were reportedly tainted with chat room leakages and exam question trading via email.

The Post-Gazette reported that more than 100 test questions from the standardized national exam administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy were leaked into Internet chat rooms. Meanwhile, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy caught a 200-question leakage by 15 foreign-trained pharmacists, including an Indian and a Korean. The National Board of Pediatric Medical Examiners and its testing agent, The Chauncey Group International, also had to deal with leakages involving hundreds of students from 4 of the 7 podiatry colleges in the US.

The American educational system is similarly infected with academic dishonesty. A March 2006 Newsweek International article cited a national study involving 50,000 college and 18,000 high school students conducted by the Center for Academic Integrity of Duke University where more than 70 percent admitted to cheating.

Newsweek also pointed to a British government-sponsored report on rampant cheating in its GCSE and A-level exams. The large-scale cheating led to call from the British Secretary of Education for “total revamp” of the coursework system.

In India, arguably the largest source of foreign-trained doctors in the US today, answers to Pre-Medical test questions were allegedly sold at $15,000 per student in 2004. Many of its highly competitive entrance exams have been sold to students at least once during the last 5 years, Newsweek said.

South Korea, one of the three NCLEX pilot test centers, reeled from what Newsweek mentioned as its biggest cheating scandal last year (the test site became operational in 2005), when the national college entrance exam was infiltrated by 20 cheating rings.

China, for its part, according to Newsweek has Web-based agencies in 19 provinces where students can hire look-alikes to take national tests for them.

That cheating has occurred in high-stakes testing in other countries, including international NCLEX test sites, simply proves that it is next to impossible to make a 100 percent guarantee against leakages and the like. What can be guaranteed though is the full support of concerned government agencies in enforcing measures that ensure the integrity of these exams.

If there is anything that this nurse leakage incident has demonstrated sufficiently, it is the commitment of the Philippine government and concerned organizations to protect the integrity of the nursing profession.

The Commission on Filipinos Overseas, the Philippine Nurses Association and the PNAA have joined forces to create a mechanism that will address this leakage incident and guard against similar incidents in the future. The Professional Regulatory Commission has already implicated two members of the Board of Nurses in this incident and is preparing administrative charges against them. The Philippine Congress, no less, is also looking into the issue.

True, the nurse exam leakage is a serious setback. Those who are culpable must be brought to justice and those who are in charge must make sure this does not happen again. The drive to set up an NCLEX test site in the Philippines will continue, nonetheless.

The real reason the Philippines has no NCLEX testing site might just have nothing to do with the much-ballyhooed selection criteria of the NCSBN. It might have something to do with the fact that easier access to the NCLEX would mean lesser CGFNS test takers because foreign nurses who pass the NCLEX need not be CGFNS-certified.

Neither the CGFNS nor the hundreds of review centers that thrive on Filipino nurses seeking employment in the US would be happy if there were no CGFNS test takers. It would certainly be better to bypass the Philippines as an NCLEX test site than to bypass CGFNS in favor of NCLEX. In that case, advocates may want to rethink their strategy and consider who would stand to lose (rather than who would stand to gain), if NCLEX tests were held in the Philippines.

*****
Editor’s Note: REUBEN S. SEGURITAN has been practicing law for over 30 years. For further information, you may call him at 212 695 5281 or log on to his website at www.seguritan.com