My NCLEX Journey 🩺🇺🇸

Dear Diary,

I still can’t believe that it has been 11 years since I left my home country and started a new life in this beautiful country, New Zealand.

A lot has happened in those 11 years. First of all, I am now married to my Chinito. I am also now a nurse coordinator, working at my dream hospital here in Auckland, New Zealand. And just recently, I started blogging again.

As I look through the photos from 11 years ago, all the memories come flashing right before my eyes. As I recall those memories with a smile on my face, I am reminded of a dream that went beyond my NZRN (New Zealand Registered Nurse) title: my journey towards earning my second international nursing title—becoming a USRN (United States Registered Nurse).

It all started many, many years ago.

After passing the local nursing boards, I tried applying to take the NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination). However, for some reason, my application was not approved.

So, I started working at a local hospital in our province and eventually got the opportunity to study—and later work—in New Zealand.

However, because of life's circumstances, I had to step up as the breadwinner of my family.  Life became busy.  I worked multiple jobs in order to support my family back home and to help my twin sister financially with her application to the US.

At that time, I was enjoying my life as an NZRN but deep inside my heart, my dream of eventually becoming USRN never completely disappeared.

For five years, I worked tirelessly for my family back home.  I worked as a nurse for the District Health Board in New Zealand while also taking casual nursing jobs in different rest homes.  During those years, I sometimes thought that my dream of becoming a USRN has quietly died.

But perhaps dreams don't really die.  Sometimes, they simply wait for the right time to come alive again.

When my sister finally got the opportunity to work as a nurse in the US, something inside me was rekindled.  My dream of becoming a USRN came back to life, and I finally decided to begin my NCLEX application with the help of NEAC (Nursing education and Assessment Council).

It was also during this time that I sought the help of INAP (International Nurses Academy of the Philippines) Review Centre in the Philippines and started attending their online classes.

I received my eligibility to take the NCLEX during my trip to the US (United States) in December 2023, and I could honestly say that it was love at first sight. However, despite finally being eligible to take the exam, I knew in my heart that I wasn’t ready yet.

Then, I eventually got engaged.

And as you can probably imagine, my focus shifted towards planning our wedding. 💍

After the wedding, however, I finally felt that I was ready to pursue the dream that had been quietly waiting for me all those years.

I officially started preparing for my NCLEX exam in December 2025 and finally
took the exam in March this year.

But what happened during my review journey—and on the day I finally sat for the NCLEX—is another story to tell.

So, bye for now, Dear Diary. 💜

And I hope you’ll join me for the next chapter of my NCLEX Journey Series.

Love,
Maica 💜

✨ Credits & Creative Collaboration

Written & created by Maica
Simply Maica • Nurse Diaries

With AI-assisted creative and editorial support
Brainstorming • Writing assistance • Editing • Visual concepts • Slideshow design

Research & reference support
National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)
Pearson VUE

Personal experiences, photographs, and final creative decisions remain Maica’s.

Simply Maica
Learn • Grow • Serve • Get There 🪻

My American Dream 🇺🇸

Dear Diary,

The “Ber” months are officially here, and for us Filipinos, that officially marks the beginning of our Christmas season. 🎄🎅🙏

However, it looks like I have already received an early Christmas present this year from—can you believe it?—New York, USA. 🇺🇸

As I opened the package, I saw the license I had dreamed of for so long—my USRN license. And suddenly, the dream I thought had remained dormant in my heart for so long came alive once again. 💜

But perhaps, to understand why this moment means so much to me, we have to go back to where it all began.

My twin sister and I have always been fascinated by America. When we were younger, we would read countless novels set in the United States and watch American movies and television series. We would often wonder what it would feel like to finally see the country we had only read about and watched on screen. And so, we began dreaming of visiting America someday.

While we were in nursing school, that dream slowly evolved into something even bigger.

We started dreaming of becoming USRNs someday—of living and eventually working as nurses in the country we had dreamed about for so long.

Back then, we never knew whether we would ever achieve our American dream. We never knew that life would eventually take us in different directions, giving each of us our own challenges, detours, and paths to follow.

I went to New Zealand and helped my family, while Mara had to wait several more years before she was finally able to achieve her dream of working in the United States.

Years later, Mara is already living the American dream we once imagined together—and now, in the most unexpected way, that same dream has found its way back to me. 🇺🇸💜

And perhaps that is why receiving my USRN license from New York felt like more than simply receiving a piece of paper.

It felt like a dream I had once tucked away quietly in my heart had suddenly awakened.

It reminded me of the girl who once read American novels with her twin sister and wondered what it would be like to see that world for herself.

It reminded me of the nursing student who dared to dream a little bigger—to become a USRN someday.

And it reminded me that sometimes, the dreams we think we have left behind are not really gone.

Sometimes, they are simply waiting for the right moment to find their way back to us. 💜

So, join me as I relive the journey that brought me one step closer to my American Dream—the story of my NCLEX journey, filled with challenges, detours, and unexpected turns along the way. 💜

I promise to take you on my journey toward achieving my American Dream, one chapter at a time. 🇺🇸💜

Love,

Maica 💜

🇺🇸✦ CREDITS ✦🩺

Written & Created by:
👑 Maica Angelle Feraren
Registered Nurse • Writer • Storyteller

Creative & Editorial Collaboration:
🤖 ChatGPT
Creative Assistant • Editorial Partner • Visual Storytelling Collaborator

Contributions by ChatGPT:
— Assisted with organizing and refining Maica’s personal story
— Helped develop the narrative and editorial flow
— Assisted with wording, captions, and storytelling
— Helped conceptualise the visual theme for My American Dream
— Assisted with image-generation concepts and creative direction
— Helped transform Maica’s ideas, memories, nursing journey, and American Dream into a cohesive visual story
— Provided editorial suggestions while preserving Maica’s personal voice

Personal Story, Experiences & Photographs:
📖📸 Maica Angelle Feraren

Final Creative Direction & Approval:
👑 Maica Angelle Feraren

One nurse. Four registrations. One dream that crossed an ocean.

🇵🇭 → 🇳🇿 → 🇺🇸

Nurse Diaries
Stories from the journey of a nurse chasing dreams beyond borders.

From NZ with Love

Dearest Bloggerbuds, 

It is 8:36 a.m. and I am stuck here at home staring at the blank computer screen in front of me, trying to come up with a long overdue blog post.  As I open my eyes and stare at my surroundings, I notice that I am at a place far different from the home I used to know.  I then try to acclimatize with the unfamiliar winter breeze around me and I finally realize that I am now 5,024 miles away from my beloved Philippines. I am at a beautiful place I could only dream of seeing before.  I am in New Zealand.

As I browse through my timeline, I realize that 10 months has already passed since I started this journey and the memories keep flashing right before my eyes.  I left the Philippines, set foot at the 'Land of the Long White  Cloud,' met new friends, faced a lot of challenges as I was settling in the country and became the person that I am today.

A lot can happen 10 months, really and in case you are wondering how it has been, here is a rundown of the events that happened by then.

1. The Journey Began

September 4, 2015- I left the Philippines with my newfound friends to set foot on an exciting journey in New Zealand.  I met most of my CAPmates Christian, Kei, Jappy, Carlo, Joie and Michy.  We bid our temporary farewells to our beloved Philippines and to our families as well.  We were sad, excited, happy and primarily ambivalent about the future ahead of us.  We set foot on Nelson, New Zealand on the following day and the rest, as they say, is history.

2.  Competency Assessment Program

I was given the chance to study the Competence Assessment Program (CAP) at Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.  It is an eight-week program designed to prepare foreign nurses to become New Zealand Registered Nurses.  The CAP has not only equipped me with the necessary knowledge and skills that a New Zealand Registered Nurse must have  It has also strengthened me and left me with fun-filled memories I can always treasure all throughout my life.

3.  Exploring Nelson, New Zealand

Nelson is a city located on the South Island in the country.  Dubbed as 'The Sunny Nelson,' due to its pleasant aura, this place is also known for its breathtaking beauty.  I was really lucky that I was given the chance to explore Nelson with my CAPmates.  We went to Nelson City, Cable Bay, Kaiteri Beach, Japanese Garden, Lake Rotoiti, The Centre of New Zealand and others.  It is definitely a place that captures the beauty of New Zealand at its finest.  It is  effortlessly and remarkably beautiful.

4.  Welcome to Auckland

After completing my CAP, I decided to go out of my comfort zone and explore the largest urban area in the country- Auckland.  I went to the Central Business District, Strawberry Farm, Rainbow's End, and others.  I was not really expecting so much when I went here but Auckland gave me more than what I asked for. It has already become my home now.

5.  It's Official!

Great things indeed come to those who wait and believe in God's perfect plan.  I saw my dreams coming true right in front of my eyes this year. I got my New Zealand registration and my first job in the country as well. I am now working as a Registered Nurse at a rest home in West Auckland and I am really enjoying every minute of it. It still feels surreal to me now knowing that I am clearly on my way towards success.

6.  My New Family in Christ

I've also had my fair share of spiritual and religious battles during my stay in the country.  God has clearly tested my faith, my patience, and my morals but I kept firm with my belief.  I chose to be with the group I really believe in.  I choose to be a part of Singles for Christ.  

Hence, I now finally flip through my post as I notice how far I've come through my journey.  The memories of my life from my beloved Philippines flash by once again and I realize that I am clearly far different from the girl who left her country in order to find her luck at the place Pinoy nurses could only dream of seeing.  I've already become a more mature, independent and confidently beautiful woman on her way towards her dreams.  I know that I'll have more struggles, hardships and problems to overcome as I find my way through the beautiful New Zealand but I know that I'll get there through God's amazing grace.

Lovelots, 

Maica Angelle

My Crit Care Experience

Dearest Bloggerbuds,

Christmas is just around the corner.  I know, and by around the corner, I speak of Christmas ornaments everywhere, Christmas carols arising out of nowhere, Christmas parties here and there.  Oh well, at least you all get the picture.  Anyway, inasmuch as I want to blog how the season had been treating me lately, let me first share my memorable experience with one of the premiere hospitals in the country- the Philippine Heart Center.

Last September 17- November 9, 2012, I was given the chance to attend the Critical Care Course of PHC(Philippine Heart Center).  It is an eight-week program that combined classroom learning with  clinical exposure in different critical care units at the Philippine Heart Center.  For me, it was an opportunity to strengthen my knowledge and experience in caring for critically ill patients.

Unlike the other training programs I've come across with, this one is the most challenging and memorable for me.  Imagine, I had to pass the arduous pre-qualifying examination and the immense interview with the PHC mentors in order to secure a slot for this program.

Anyway, if getting onto the program was already challenging, keeping-up with it is yet another story.  The first three weeks weren't easy at all. Imagine, I was out of my comfort zone dealing with various people in a diverse environment trying to keep up with the lectures, quizzes and major exams.  I had to endure all those boring, lengthy nights at the PHC dormitory.  I had to learn how to ride the LRT (Light Railway Transit)/ MRT (Metro Railway Transit), commute from Vito Cruz to Quezon City, experience the condo life(since I was visiting my brother at his condo unit somewhere in Vito Cruz over the weekends), and live the life of an ordinary probinsyana stuck in the wilderness of Metro Manila.  It was clearly insane.

Lecture Days

my Batchmates

When the didactic phase has finally come to pass, we finally bid goodbye to the classroom-type environment to make way for 'the critical care environment itself.' All the tiresome lectures, the mind-boggling surpirse quizzes, the nerve-wracking major exams and all the kulitan moments in between already ended but learning didn't have to stop there.

 

Surgical Intensive Care Unit II

 

Petal 3D Children's Ward 

Adult Service Ward

Cardiovascular Lab

 

Neuro ICU(Intensive Care Unit)

Surgical Intensive Care Unit I

Pediatric ICU

 

Coronary Care Unit


 
 Pulmo Rehab

Medical ICU

As part of 'the Crit Care experience,'  the batch had to prepare several case presentations- the most challenging, burdensome and ambitious requirements up-to-date.  Imagine, I had to spend some tiresome days, sleepless evenings and tedious brain storming sessions with my groupmates before we were able to come up with a manuscript. 

My Case Study Buddies

Prepping-up for Case Pres

The Pulmo Group

Hence, after all the case study manuscripts were done, the case studies were presented, the journals  were checked and the exposures were finally over, the group had to set our white uniforms aside for our most awaited moment- the Graduation Ceremonies.

              My Crit Care Mentors

 

  Group 3- 73rd PHC Critical Care Course

73rd PHC Critical Care Course Graduation Ceremonies

    Archer, Rizza, I and Romeo 

It has been a month since I stepped out of the comforts of the Philippine Heart Center(PHC) to be somewhere close to my heart- HOME.  And right now, I don't have lengthy manuals to review,  case studies to focus on nor journals to finish.  All those Light Railway Transit/ Metro Railway Transit rides, sleepless nights at the dorm, the Crit Care challenges and everything else in between are all but memories away.  However, for what it's worth, I left my heart at PHC and the story doesn't end there.


Lovelots,
Maica Angelle