Credential Evaluation Service

In 1993, CGFNS developed its Credential Evaluation Service (CES). The CES is an objective evaluation and reporting service that analyzes the education and licensure earned outside of the United States in terms of comparability to U.S. standards and expectations. This objective evaluation carefully assesses documents received from source agencies, verifying and appraising an applicant's educational and registration/licensure credentials.

The resulting CES report serves as a valuable tool for regulatory/licensing agencies, specialty certification authorities, academic institutions, immigration attorneys, prospective employers and others. It also helps qualified applicants demonstrate the merits of their credentials with regard to U.S. standards, facilitating their pursuit of educational or career opportunities in the United States.

Report Advisory
The Credentials Evaluation Service analyzes the credentials of multiple types and levels of healthcare professionals educated outside the United States, or with an international educational background, who wish to pursue a healthcare professional degree in the United States. Unlike the Credentials Review service of the Certification Program, which evaluated an applicant's eligibility for the CGFNS Qualifying Exam and TOEFL, the CES is designed to provide factual information to assist CES report recipients in their decision-making. A CES report is advisory in nature and does not make specific placement recommendations.

Report Users
CES reports are highly beneficial to regulatory agencies (such as a U.S. State Board of Nursing) prior to licensure; by governmental agencies prior to immigration; by schools to assist in the admission or placement of a student working towards higher education; or by employers to evaluate a candidate's preparation. These CES report recipients (regulatory/licensing agencies, specialty certification authorities, academic institutions, immigration attorneys, prospective employers and others) determine the level of report needed by the applicants. The CES is useful for any internationally-educated healthcare professional, regardless of where the individual was educated or licensed/registered outside the United States. The fees for the CES are reasonable and are generally borne by the applicant.

Meeting Diverse Needs
The CES report, customized to meet specific informational requirements, provides the right set of details to enable accurate decision-making. Tailoring the report also helps contain its cost, generally paid by the applicant. The report includes copies of original transcripts from source institutions and validations of registration/licensure from the issuing authorities.

CES Reporting Features
The service offers three levels of reports from which to choose. The differences among the reports are related to the amount of analysis undertaken. The decision of which report to select is generally made by the recipient of the report, i.e., a university admissions office, U.S. State Board of Nursing, hospital, etc.

General Report
Information includes entrance requirements and dates of attendance for completed academic programs, the scope of practice for attained registration/licensure credentials and comparisons with U.S. educational and registration/licensure credentials.

Healthcare Profession and Science Course-by-Course Report
Information includes all of the data in the General Report and a course-by-course analysis of all profession-specific and science coursework. This report also includes information about other pathways to the same educational/licensure credentials, where appropriate.

Full Education Course-by-Course Report
Information includes all of the data in the other two levels of reporting and a course-by-course analysis of all coursework in an applicant's healthcare/post secondary education. Reports prepared for academic institutions also include a conversion of credit hours.

Unique Features of the CES Report
Each report incorporates a careful analysis of each credential in the applicant's non-healthcare and professional education. This may include:

1. Secondary and post-secondary educational information, to ensure that the applicant meets all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements for either academic admission or professional practice;
   
2. Dates of attendance for each completed educational program;
   
3. Information on the grading scales used (when applicable);
   
4. Comprehensive professional license/registration information, to confirm that the applicant has met all practice requirements;
   
5. Verification of the credential source; and
   
6. Bibliographical and reference citations.
   The report also includes country-specific background information on schools and universities the applicant has attended and details on the language of academic instruction and textbooks. The service identifies, analyzes and explains each credential, ultimately presenting it in terms of its comparability to U.S. standards.

Click here for information on how to download an application for the Credentials Evaluation Service.

For more information on the Credentials Evaluation Service, check out Frequently Asked Questions about the service.