WORK IN THE UK AS A NURSE

UK NMC REGISTRATION GUIDE FOR NURSES FROM GHANA OR TRAINED OUTSIDE OF THE EU/EEA

An abridged and a more concise version of this note is available here.

To practice in the UK as a nurse, you need to satisfy certain necessary requirements. It is for these reasons that Dreams Consult together with its partner agencies have decided to make information available to all nurses to take advantage of. This we believe will minimise the systemic exploitation of the ignorance of these innocent nurses and midwives by some unscrupulous agencies.

Registering with the NMC is your first step to working as a nurse in the UK. To help you through registration, we have put together this quick step-by-step guide for nurses trained in Ghana or any other country outside of the EU/EEA:

• English language requirements – all applicants must show they can communicate clearly and effectively in English by undertaking the International English Language Test (IELTS) with a score of 7.0. NMC will verify the scores with the IELTS organisation. Clubbing two IELTS certificates obtained in the period of 6 months is allowed. In this case, the minimum acceptable score to be clubbed is 6.5. The NMC also accepts the Occupational English Test (OET) results.
• Practice requirements – at the time of the application, the applicant must have practised as a registered nurse or midwife for at least 12 months (full time or the part-time equivalent) after qualifying. This post-registration experience must be relevant to the field of practice the applicant is applying for. If the applicant has not undertaken any duties as a registered nurse or midwife in the three years prior to making their application, they should contact NMC to discuss available options.
• Registration requirements – applicants must hold a current registration or license without restriction with the licensing authority or registration body in the country in which they qualified or have been practising. NMC will require verification from that authority
• Education requirements – applicants must have successfully completed at least 10 years of school education before starting a post-secondary education nursing or midwifery training which should be at least a three-year programme (diploma).
• New applicants – applicants must complete an online self-assessment of their eligibility to apply before beginning the application process.

There are different fees for different stages of the application process:

• Application for nursing/midwifery £140
• Part 1 test of competence (CBT) £90
• Part 2 test of competence (OSCE) £794
• Admission onto our register £153

Total £1,177

• Examinations– each professional field of nursing, including adult (general), children’s, learning disabilities, mental health and the midwifery profession, is examined by our NMC’s test of competence. Part one is a multiple-choice Computer Based Test (CBT), written in Ghana, and part two is a practical examination called an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), taken in the UK.
• Assessment – applicants will need to provide the following evidence in order to complete an assessment:
  • – A valid passport. This same document must also be presented at the test centre.
  • – Birth certificate
  • – A qualification certificate for each qualification being submitted as part of the application
  • – Registration certificates from each jurisdiction where the applicant has practised and/or been registered
  • – Two employment references confirming the applicant’s post-registration practice of at least 12 months, their competence and character
  • – Verifications from all jurisdictions where the applicant practised or where the applicant has been previously registered
  • – Transcript of training for all relevant nursing or midwifery programmes completed by the applicant. These must be calculated in hours or be accompanied by a letter from the training institution with a key to how the credits translate to hours
  • – A good health declaration from the applicant’s general practitioner or the occupational health department at their place of work
  • – A police clearance certificate from all countries where the applicant has lived since the age of 18
• Identification check – applicants are required to attend a face-to-face identification check at the NMC office in London. At the ID interview, you must produce the original versions of the documents you sent photocopies of. They will make final checks on your previous registration, and take a photograph for their records.
• Final registration – once NMC has received notification that an applicant has successfully completed part two of the test of competence and the ID check, they will be invited to complete their final declaration and payment for registration online. Once both have been received, you will be sent your PIN (personal identification number), confirming that you are fully registered with the NMC. Your registration will then show up on the NMC register online.

UK IMMIGRATION PROCESSES

Applicants should be aware that they will be required to meet the full requirements of the UK’s immigration processes separately.

For more information and clarification, you can write in the comment section or send us a WhatsApp message.

Source: UK NMC