CGFNS Announces Change in
Exam Format Beginning in 1998
English Portion to be Eliminated

FREE NEWSLETTER

Learn how to benefit from United States immigration laws and procedures from a former INS Attorney (1976-82) with over 30 years of experience. SHUSTERMAN'S IMMIGRATION UPDATE is must reading for potential immigrants, employers, human resources managers, immigration attorneys, reporters and policy makers. Join over 55,000 persons in more than 150 countries in subscribing to our FREE monthly e-mail newsletter. E-Mail Address: Your Name:

PHILADELPHIA, PA. August, 1997. The Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) has announced changes in the format of the Qualifying Examination for the CGFNS Certification Program (CP), beginning with the July 1998 CGFNS Exam.

CGFNS has contracted with Educational Testing Service (ETS) to administer the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) to nursing applicants in the CGFNS Certification Program. TOEFL, which will replace the English-language portion of the CGFNS Qualifying Exam, will be used to assess an applicant s knowledge of the English language, a requirement of the CGFNS Certification Program.

To be eligible for a CGFNS Certificate, nursing applicants must pass a credentials review, the CGFNS Qualifying Examination, and TOEFL. An acceptable TOEFL score has not yet been determined, however, the score will not exceed 560. Applicants in the CGFNS Certification Program must achieve acceptable scores on TOEFL and the CGFNS Qualifying Exam within a two year time frame in order for test scores to be considered valid. For example, if a nursing applicant takes the CGFNS Qualifying Exam in July 1998, she/he must achieve a passing score on TOEFL no later than July 2000. CGFNS will also consider acceptable TOEFL scores if the test were taken within two years prior to passing the CGFNS Qualifying Exam. Given the example above, the applicant would have had to take TOEFL no earlier than July 1996.

CGFNS has chosen to use TOEFL so as to more easily integrate the CGFNS Certification Program with the International Commission on Healthcare Profession s federal VisaScreen Program. Under the requirements for VisaScreen, healthcare professionals, including nurses, applying for certain U.S. occupational visas, must take Test of Spoken English (TSE) and Test of Written English (TWE), in addition to TOEFL. Nurses applying to the VisaScreen Program will have satisfied the TOEFL requirement as part of the CGFNS Certification Program, but will still need to take, and achieve passing scores on TSE and TWE.

Please note that TWE is administered only in conjunction with TOEFL and only five times per year. Since TWE cannot be taken as a stand alone exam, CGFNS strongly encourages applicants to register for TWE when registering for TOEFL. There is no additional charge for TWE.

Healthcare professionals applying to CGFNS/ICHP are encouraged to contact ETS to obtain further information about applying for these English-language proficiency tests. When filling out the ETS application, use the following code number when identifying score recipients: 9988. This number is extremely important, as it specifically identifies the applicant as a CGFNS/ICHP candidate and ensures that the individual s ETS test results will be forwarded for inclusion in his/her file. To receive more information about TOEFL, TSE, and TWE, contact ETS at:

Schedule A Legal Consultation

Return to Text and Analysis of 1996 Law

Return to Immigration Guide Homepage