Congratulations! You’re moving or have moved to a new country! There’s so much to do, from finding a home to getting acclimated to your new environment. On top of that, perhaps you are searching for a job, attempting to acquire an occupational license, applying for a work visa or pursuing new education. In job advertisements, literature from licensure boards or application checklists, you may come across an important note about holders of academic degrees from institutions outside of your new country of residence. Institutions and employers will often require that an applicant obtain an evaluation of foreign-earned achievements. This is called an international credential evaluation. It’s simply a report that defines your academic or professional achievements from abroad in terms that entities in a new country can understand; this allows an individual to get recognition for their education, opening opportunities for them in their new home, while also allowing recipients of this report to feel certain that the applicant meets the standards necessary for participation.
This article will provide a step-by-step explanation of how to utilize your documents in pursuit of your dreams and goals in your new country.
Step 1: Reason for Evaluation and Selection of Evaluator
The first question many people have is why they need an evaluation. There are a few reasons for this: for licensure, immigration, employment, education, or military needs.An international credential evaluation assists qualified individuals with pursuing paths in their professional or educational journeys; it certifies that your foreign education is valid and applicable in a different country, which will help with job applications, visa sponsorship or college admissions.
Like a patient searching for a doctor, the next thing to do is find an organization to provide the credential evaluation. The greatest recommendation, at least for individuals in the United States, is to find a credential evaluator with membership in NACES (National Association of Credential Evaluation Services), a trade organization that oversees ethics and standards in the credential evaluation industry. Recipients of credential evaluations want to trust that the evaluation was done by trained, knowledgeable comparative education professionals who can fairly, accurately and properly equate educational achievements; NACES provides that trust and credibility and has a comprehensive list of members who cooperate to maintain a standard of excellence.
Agencies offer different products and services, so it is best to examine all options to see what works best for you. There are many factors that may influence your choice: price, processing time, types of evaluations, customer reviews or something else.
The industry sees 2 common reports that provide equivalencies: a Document Report and a Course Report. A Document Report will show the basics about your education, from credential name to issuing institution; a Course report will do the same, but it also provides a table of the courses you took, converted credits and grades, and a new Grade Point Average with a scale. Firms may also have unique report options. IEE, for instance, has developed a nursing licensure report for specific state nursing boards. It is best to look carefully at what providers can do. IEE offers various types that may give you what you need.
Step 2: The Credential Evaluation Application and Supporting Documentation
Once you’ve selected your credential evaluation provider, visit their website or contact their offices to learn their specific process for getting your credential evaluation.
Being in the digital age, it is likely that you will create some sort of online account, which will ask for your contact information and what product you’d like to order. IEE has a customer portal where you can start, track and manage your application for credential evaluation.
Part of your application includes delivery options; you can have the report sent to yourself or to a desired recipient, which could be an employer, educational institution, legal professional or somewhere else.
After placing your order, you must arrange for your credential documents to be sent to the agency. The documents are the foundation for the evaluation. While plenty of additional research is done by evaluators using a wide variety of sources, the documents provided are the most important element used to construct an international credential evaluation.
The two most common documents used are transcripts and degree certificates. A transcript is a document issued by an educational institution that contains courses taken and grades earned. It may also have information about credits or instructional hours, a grading scale, and additional accomplishments like a thesis or internship. A degree certificate is an official document that shows someone has completed a degree, like a high school diploma, a Bachelor of Arts, or a Doctor of Philosophy. However, credential evaluation agencies may ask for more documentation, such as a letter from an institution or a document unique to the country the education was taken.
Moreover, credential evaluators may have their own policies or procedures about obtaining the documents. In some cases, scans may be acceptable. In other cases, the institution must send the documents directly to the evaluation company. It is usually the responsibility of the individual to have documentation sent. This requires contacting the relevant office at your institution, such as a university registrar, an examination board or a guidance counselor. In some instances, a third party service will secure the official documents and send on the institution’s behalf, such as Parchment in the United States and Canada, MyeQuals in Australia and New Zealand, 100 Transcripts LLP (an official partner with IEE) in India or CSSD in China.
Step 3: The Completion of the Evaluation
Once documents are received, your credential evaluation service will likely notify you. Closely follow your application for alerts on where you are in the process. Timing varies, but IEE is proud to hold the fastest processing times in the industry, offering reports in as little as 3 days. We also offer Same-Day and Special Service options. We make this a priority so you can meet your deadlines and get your education validated.
After every necessary document is received, credential evaluation agencies review your documentation; IEE has a stage for record organization and authenticity verification, followed by an evaluation stage, when credential evaluators examine your documentation, research your institution, country of education and program, and determine an equivalency. Once the report is finished, it is sent to the registered recipient.
Step 4: Breaking of Barriers
Upon successful completion, you officially become one step closer to reaching the professional or academic goals you may have as an internationally educated individual in a new country. IEE’s goal is to assist individuals through the recognition of foreign educational achievement. We know that you accomplished great things in another country or region, and our credential evaluations aim to legitimize this, so that way you are empowered and able to turn your skills, knowledge and achievements into participation and contributions in a new country.
We hope this article has made understanding this process easier. If you need help getting started, IEE has 24/7 customer service available for questions during your experience of obtaining a credential evaluation.
