December 7, 2009

Labour

Credential approval streamlined for foreign professionals

RICHARD GILBERT

staff writer

New immigrants to Canada with a background in architecture and engineering will be among the first foreign trained professionals to have their credentials recognized, under a new federal-provincial agreement.

“One of the benefits of this is that people will get a decision in one year, in terms of whether they are qualified to get a license,” said Gillian Pichler, director of registration with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C. (APEGBC)

The new Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications will allow foreign-trained workers to submit an application and be advised within one year whether their foreign qualifications will be recognized.

“We recognize the credential, but whether they meet the requirements is another thing,” said Pichler.

“We tell them what the top up is or what courses need to be taken, and most will need to get a year of work experience in a Canadian environment.”

The new policy is part of the federal government’s strategy of verifying that knowledge, skills, work experience and education obtained in another country are comparable to the standards established for Canadian professionals and tradespersons.

“We have been working with our federal counterparts, who are essentially putting into place the best practice for qualification review,” said Jerome Marburg, deputy executive director of the Architectural Institute of British Columbia (AIBC).

“We have developed outcomes-based criteria, that allows foreign-based architects to build a portfolio to demonstrate how they meet the requirements.”

Marburg said the old credential-based system used exams to assess an applicant’s education against the Canadian standard.

With an outcomes-based approach, the assessment will focus on a broader range of criteria, which includes all the things architects would be asked to do in terms of skills, education and knowledge.

“People must provide evidence to show how skills and knowledge were obtained, but they come to this knowledge in different ways,” said Marburg. “We provide a range of tools for them to demonstrate how they meet the standard.”

The engineers use a similar form of self assessment, which is called a competency-based model, to determine how people meet certain requirements before they come to Canada.

“We are developing a framework and model now,” explained Pichler.

“The information is currently online. This model will drill down and give a more in depth assessment of what is required from someone who is eligible to register as a professional engineer.”

According to Marburg, the federal and provincial governments can’t dictate entry requirements, but they can outline the best practice for how to do assessments.

The new framework states that governments across Canada will work towards better pre-arrival services, assessments that are fair, transparent, consistent and timely across Canada, and improved workforce participation services for newcomers.

“We face a huge potential shortage of skilled folks,” said Marburg.

“In developed countries, we are all fighting for the same pool of the best and brightest. It is acceptable to have multiple pathways to a license, as long people meet the entry standards.”

The services provided by the AIBC and APEGBC are designed to help internationally trained workers put their training and knowledge to work sooner. The framework follows the Government of Canada’s commitment in the 2008 Speech from the Throne to work with the provinces to make the recognition of foreign credentials a priority, attract top international students to Canada and increase the uptake of immigrant settlement programs.

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