The CELBAN (Canadian English Language Benchmark Assessment for Nurses) is a test of English language proficiency for individuals who want to work as healthcare professionals in Canada.
To get a score of 10 in the CELBAN Listening section, you need to demonstrate a high level of comprehension of spoken English. Here are some steps you can follow to prepare for the test:
CELBANPrep University is a comprehensive online English language preparation program designed to help individuals prepare for the CELBAN (Canadian English Language Benchmark Assessment for Nurses) test. It provides study materials, lessons, and guidance to help individuals prepare for their careers in Canada by improving their English language skills and increasing their chances of passing the CELBAN test.
At CELBANPrep University’s virtual campus we offer more than you can imagine. That is why this 2-minute video is about 3 things you might not know about preparing for CELBAN writing through CPU.
Thank you for the interest in helping me out. I believe that am wasting time without having any material to start with my exam preparation. If I can have something from you now I will also appreciate it Thanks
Recently, I updated all the posts about information about the CELBAN, CELBAN skill development programs, and online CELBAN Preparation courses.
What I realized, is that although so many people come to Dear Kim to learn about the CELBAN and CELBAN preparation:
Only one IEN wrote me from the US, asking me about the LPN process.
And, only one wrote to me asking how to prepare for the CELBAN from the UK.
So, despite the 400 articles, none answer questions for people located in the USA!
Only one was written for IENs in the UK!
I am about to change that!
First, we will explore:
Over a Quarter of a Million People have come to Kim @ CELBANPrep!
Internationally Educated Nurses in the USA, UK, and Australia
Then we will consider the following variables:
Were you educated in the medical field in the US? (the UK? Australia?)
Are you a Registered Nurse or a Licensed Nurse?
When should I apply for NNAS?
How can I prepare for the CELBAN while in the US of A?
What can you tell me about the CELBAN Books.
What can you tell me about CELBANPrep’s online Preparation Courses?
Let us begin by exploring who has come to CELBANPrep for help!
Over a Quarter of a Million People have come to Kim @ CELBANPrep!
Since the inception of Dear Kim, in 2012, there have been over a quarter of a million views of my blog. 326, 550 views in Canada alone! Astounding.
And in that time, 12 000 views have originated in the United States:
Almost 1000 views in the last year,
250 in 2021,
150 in the last 90 days.
Not only that, 1500 views originated in the UK!
What is remarkable to me is that because Dear Kim has been both organic and responsive (IENs send messages to me and I write the reply, and post them there) I have not gone into the stats, nor have I specifically created a list of topics to write about and dates to publish them.
With the announcement of the CELBAN being available online, I was just updating the posts about CELBAN Preparation also being available online. (I had to update the posts I wrote back in 2018.)
While the information in those links is valuable for you, in the US, and while the https://dear-kim.com/tag/celban-preparation-internationally/ tag is also helpful: there is more specific information for people preparing for the CELBAN in the United States of America and other English speaking nations.
Internationally Educated Nurses in the USA, UK and Australia
Internationally Educated Nurses in the USA, UK, and Australia
There is a lot to be said about IENs in the USA because there is so much variation!
And, the education system in Canada is very much a learner-centered system.
So, that means that there isn’t just one answer for everyone in the US or Australia and the UK for that matter.
Just because you are in an English-speaking country does not mean that you do not have to go through the process created in Canada for Internationally Educated Nurses.
There is a sorting-out process when it comes to your education.
Were you educated in the medical field in the US? (the UK? Australia?)
If you were educated in the medical field in the US (the UK or Australia) the process is different for you as compared to the nurses who are living in the US (the UK or Australia) but have been educated in the Philippines, India, or elsewhere.
That is important to know. Because the answer to this question determines whether or not you have to take the English proficiency exam: either the CELBAN or the IELTS.
I have a friend who is a Labour and Delivery Nurse, living here in Canada. She is from Texas. She had to go through the entire IEN process, but she was not required to take the English exam.
I was teaching a nurse, who lived in the US, who told me that even though she had passed the NCLEX, and was an RN, she still had to provide the results from her English proficiency exam.
I have been teaching an IEN that was born in Canada, but her family left when she was 5 years old. She became an LPN in South America and returned to Canada as an Adult. She is required to provide the results of her English proficiency exam.
It is the provincial Colleges of Nursing, through the National Nursing Assessment Services, that determine whether or not you need to take the CELBAN or IELTS as an English test.
Are you a Registered Nurse or Licensed Nurse?
This is another discerning question.
If you are an RN or LPN practicing in the US (the UK or Australia) your process in applying for a license in Canada will be different as compared to an Internationally Educated Nurse from say India or the Philippines who like many IENs in Canada have not completed the licensure process, and are working as Health Care aids or some other unlicenced profession or field.
When should I apply for NNAS?
That is why, for IENs from the US, the answer to this question is, “It depends.”
It depends on where your medical training occurred.
It depends on where you are licensed to practice as a nurse.
It depends on where you were born.
If you were both born and educated and licensed in an English-speaking nation (the US, the UK, Australia) then the English proficiency exam may not be required. It is only when you apply to NNAS that you will discover if you, as an individual, are required to take an English exam. To you I would say, apply to NNAS first to discover your steps and procedure.
But,
If you were educated and licensed outside of the US, the UK, or Australia….
If you do not have a license to practice medicine in the US, the UK, or Australia….
Take the CELBAN first.
Get your score.
Find out whether or not you can get the required score. Get your report with the feedback for speaking and writing. And if necessary, develop your skills so that you can get the required score.
This will save you time, money, and a great deal of stress.
How can I prepare for the CELBAN while in the US of A?
That is where CELBANPrep comes in.
Once you have determined or discovered that you have to provide English test results, and have decided to explore the CELBAN, there are several options.
First, read the posts written to people living in other countries outside of Canada. (This post is clearly laid out.)
Then, decide what you are looking for, and how much are you willing to spend.
Do you want books or courses?
What can you tell me about the CELBAN Books?
There are two types of books available on Amazon, through CELBANPrep Publishing:
Preparation Guides (Paperbacks – Sept. 8 2021)
CELBAN Writing Preparation Guide: Healer Master the CELBAN
CELBAN Speaking Preparation Guide: Healer Conquer the CELBAN
CELBAN Reading Preparation Guide: Healer Discover the CELBAN
CELBAN Listening Preparation Guide: Healer Explore the CELBAN
Grammar Essentials (Paperback – Sept. 20 2021)
Nouns & Articles (Book 1 of 3)
Verbs & Verbals (Book 2 of 3)
Punctuation (Book 3 of 3)
These guides and volumes are available through the following national Amazon sites:
It took time, but now CELBANPrep University has the most extensive library of resources available to you, at various price points, to assist you in preparing for the CELBAN no matter where you are in the world and how much you can afford at this time.
At the end of the day
At the end of the day, that is why it was both important and necessary to address the needs of Internationally Educated Nurses residing in the US (the UK and Australia). Being English speaking nations, the process for you as an IEN is different.
And just because you are living in an English speaking nation does not mean that you get to skip the IEN process.
The process for every IEN, because Canada is so student-centred, is different. It is the same with patient-centred care in the hospitals. The more you understand the significance of student-centred learning the better you understand the Canadian education and medical systems, the better you understand the CELBAN.
I hope this article helps you, your friends, and your family members living cross the US, in the UK, and/or in Australia have a better understanding of the process of becoming a nurse in Canada, and how to prepare for the CELBAN through CELBANPrep.
COVID has changed our lives substantially. But some of the changes are good. After 10+ years of the CELBAN being delivered face to face and only in Canada with the announcement of the Computer Based Test, CELBAN CBT, in January of 2021:
The CELBAN is available online,
It is available internationally, and
IENS can take the CELBAN more than 3 times.
What that means is that as a service provider, CELBANPrep is changing too. As a result all of the articles on Dear Kim have to be updated. With more than 400 posts and 700 comments that is alot of content to wade through. The hope is to have the entire blog updated for Canada Day: July 1st, 2021.
(When you are reading articles on Dear Kim, look for “Updated 2021” at the top to know if the post is current and updated.)
Today I was updating Where should I start? originally posted in January 2015. So much has changed since then.
In writing that post I began answering the question, “How much does it cost?” I decided to create a new and separate post on that topic.
I would like to prepare for celban with you. I would like to let you know that I took celban twice and I didn’t get expected score. Very first time I was with you.
First result: L-8, R-9, W-7, S-7
Second result: L-10, R-10, W-6, S-6
Naturally, I won’t go for my third trial without your permission. Please enroll me with you. Dosen’t matter, I will work for some extra hours. But I would pay you happily. And, I am sure that with your valuable guidence, I will definately pass this test. I am ready to work hard and also will improve my mistakes according to your guidence.
Thank you very much for your time and consideration,
Hi Kim,thanks to google I was able to found you.i read a lot of your blog articles for dear Kim.i’m now encourage to take my celban exam.i took my ielts once last year, my score was as follows Listening-6,reading-4.5,writing 5.5,speaking-6.0.from that time I didn’t have anymore interest to take again.because I’m afraid to fail,I feel also that I would not be able to pass.i wanted to try celban last year but I keep on postponing,I don’t have the confident,I feel that I will fail,I even thought that I would not pass.now I want CELBANPrep. Hope to hear from you Best regards L..
Dear Kim 