NMC relaxes OET/IELTS norms, Kerala nurses may benefit

New Delhi: Here's a chance to become a staff nurse in Britain without specific scores in global English language test for healthcare professionals.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) in Britain has announced that those who had studied nursing in the medium of English and had worked in various posts in the healthcare sector in Britain, for at least a year, can now become staff nurse without OET/IELTS scores.

(OET is Occupational English Test. IELTS is International English Language Testing System.)

Those who work as senior caregiver or healthcare assistant in Britain without having specific OET/IELTS score will now get NMC registration if the employer certifies that their English language proficiency is excellent. Besides, the applicant should have compulsorily spent at least a year in Britain, in the two years prior to applying.

In a meeting that was held recently the NMC also raised the duration that was allowed to club OET/IELTS qualifications from 6 months to 12 months.

The significant decision, which could benefit hundreds of nurses from Kerala, will be in force from January 1, 2023. However, the Council didn’t consider reducing the qualifying score of OET and IELTS.

Currently, only those who score 7 in IELTS can register with the NMC. The candidates need to score 7 each for listening, reading and speaking and 6.5 for writing. Meanwhile, the candidate should score at least B grade in OET. Besides, they should score C Plus score in writing.