Many people dream of living, working, or continuing their education in another country, and in most cases, a credential evaluation is necessary to provide a comparable equivalent of your educational attainment. International Education Evaluations offers a variety of reports, because the reason you want or need an evaluation, as well as who you select to send your evaluation to, can often mean different information is needed on the final report.
For example, if you plan to use your evaluation for further education at a U.S. university or college, then you will often need details of your program to appear on your evaluation that someone who is intending to apply for a visa or enlist in the military may not need [Potential link to “Why Should I Consider a Credential Evaluation?” or “Why Do I Need a Credential Evaluation?” post]. This is why we offer different categories (types) of evaluations and allow you to select the purpose of your report, to ensure you receive exactly what you need.
What Are the Different Credential Evaluation Types?
Document Report
A Document Report is the most basic type of report we offer. It will provide:
- a brief description of your international program (such as the admission/entry requirement, date you completed your program, your field of study, name of the issuing body [your school, university, or exam board], and institutional accreditation), and
- a comparable U.S. equivalency.
A Document Report is often used for employment, military enlistment, and immigration but can also be suitable for educational purposes if transfer credit and a Grade Point Average (GPA) are NOT required. Further, this type of report serves as the building block for other report types, which all contain the information that a Document Report does.
Document + GPA Report
In addition to the content of a Document Report, a Document + GPA Report will include your Grade Point Average on the U.S. 4-point scale. This may be appropriate for situations where a full course listing with a conversion to U.S. credits and grades IS NOT necessary (as the individual courses and grades will NOT appear on the report), but you want or need an overall program GPA.
H4: When to Use a Document + GPA Report:
- Applying for undergraduate or graduate programs in the US
- Seeking employment that requires a verified GPA
- Transferring credits between institutions
H3: Course Report
The Course Report is one of the most comprehensive reports that we offer. In addition to the basic information included in a Document Report, a Course Report will:
- provide all of the courses you took (listed in semester or year order, when possible) and
- provide U.S. equivalent grades, credits, and GPA.
The cost for a Course Report includes one level of education: either secondary (high school) or postsecondary (university). We will include the information provided in a document report for both levels, but if you would like to include both secondary and postsecondary courses, credits, and grades, there is an additional fee, as credits and grades are determined individually for each program level.
Though a Course Report is typically needed for further education, not all educational institutions require one, and this type of report can also be used for other purposes. Before you start an application, we recommend that you check with the receiving organization (who you want to receive your report) for everything that needs to be included in your credential evaluation.
When to Use a Course Report:
- Applying for specific programs that require detailed course information
- Transferring credits to a US institution
- Seeking professional licensure that requires course-specific details
Divisional Course Report
A Divisional Course Report is something you can order for undergraduate degrees (first cycle programs), that will include the same information as a Course Report but is distinct in that it will designate your upper division coursework. In the U.S., university courses are organized by subject and level, which is reflected in a “course code”. For example, “ENG 101” is a first level English course; “SOC 241” is a second level sociology course; “CHEM 306” is a third level chemistry course; and “PHIL 403” is a fourth/final level philosophy course.
Lower-division courses often cover a wide range of topics and contribute to “general studies” credit, while upper-division courses provide in-depth exploration of a particular subject, usually in the student’s major. Upper-division courses are those considered to be equivalent to U.S. 300- and 400-level courses (alternatively, some U.S. universities use 3000 and 4000, but they mean the same thing), for undergraduate programs (i.e., a bachelor’s degree). We do not offer Divisional Course Reports for secondary, master’s, or doctoral programs.
A Divisional Course Report is sometimes very helpful for application to U.S. graduate (master’s level or “second cycle”) programs. In some cases, you may order this type of report, but we are unable to determine which courses were at the upper division (since this is typically based on the documents you are able to submit). When this is the case, we will provide a standard Course Report and issue a refund for the price difference between the two.
Nursing Education Report
The Nursing Education Report is a specific Course Report that evaluates education completed by Internationally Educated Nurses (IENs). This type of report can be helpful if, for example, you have a lower-level nursing qualification and want to go back to nursing school. This report does not include clinical experience. If you need your clinical experience included, you should request a Nursing Licensure Report (see below in the licensure reports section for more details).
Licensure Reports
IEE also offer several types of Licensure Reports, which are Course Reports tailored specifically to licensure purposes. This category includes a General Licensure Report, and licensure reports specifically for the fields of teaching, accounting, and nursing.
The General Licensure Report provides the same information as a Course Report, but sorts the coursework by categories (Mathematics, History, Sociology, English, Physics, etc.), allowing for easy identification of professional expertise areas.
The Teaching Licensure Report will also sort the coursework by categories for easy identification of professional expertise areas, with an emphasis on required courses for the teaching field. This type of report will also include information about practice teaching (if applicable) and a statement about which grade(s), level(s), and/or subject(s) your qualification prepared you to teach in your home country.
Like the General Licensure and Teaching Licensure reports, the Accounting Licensure Report will sort the coursework by categories for easy identification of professional expertise areas, but with an emphasis on required courses for the field of accounting.
Nursing Licensure Reports can either be general (these can go to a variety of places, like employers or staffing companies), or for specific state licensure boards (as each state in the U.S. has its own Board of Nursing). Each Nursing Licensure Report provides a detailed analysis of nursing credentials earned outside the United States and is required for Internationally Educated Nurses (IENs) to obtain licensure by State Boards of Nursing.
The report validates and authenticates all education, diplomas, professional licensure, and English language proficiency obtained by an applicant, mapping an applicant’s nursing education to its U.S. equivalent. This report is the only of our licensure reports that does not list courses grouped into categories. Instead, the coursework is listed in transcript order, with clinical experience information provided underneath.
The chart below provides a visual reference of key characteristics for each report type, and may help you understand what is included in each.
How to Choose the Right Credential Evaluation Service Is There Anything Else I Should Know?
Choosing the right credential evaluation service depends on your specific needs and goals. Here are some factors to consider:
- Purpose: Identify why you need the evaluation (education, employment, licensure).
- Requirements: Check the specific requirements of the institution or organization requesting the evaluation.
- Detail Level: Determine whether you need a general overview or a detailed course-by-course analysis.
The purpose of your report may or may not affect what information needs to be included in the evaluation. For example, if the purpose of your report is immigration, the government agency called United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has specific requirements of what we need to include, but you can choose either a Document Report or a Course Report (USCIS will accept both).
A report for employment purposes is entirely at your discretion (unless otherwise specified by your potential employer), and often will contain the same information as a report for education purposes. A Report for immigration or military enlistment can be completed based on scans of your documents, but for other report types, if you only submit scans then we complete a Provisional Evaluation (which includes a statement that authenticity of documents should be confirmed by the party receiving your report) [potential link to “What is a Provisional Evaluation” blog; not written yet]
That’s why we offer Companion Products: so that you can receive multiple reports for different purposes for a lesser fee. However, keep in mind that depending upon the country in which you studied, the level of your education, the purpose and type of report, and the way you submit documents, two different reports may be very similar. Not sure what to order?
Here’s a tip: most employers will accept a report that you used for education or licensure, as it has the same information. You can order an Extra Copy of your report easily from your MyIEE Account.
Lastly, it is important that, when you are filling out your application, you add each credential that you want to appear on your report. If you only add one credential in the application, but send us documents for three different credentials, only the credential you added in your application will be included in your evaluation.
Be sure to fill out the application as completely and accurately as you can, because we use what you have added in your application as the basis for your evaluation. If you want your secondary level, bachelor’s degree, and master’s degree included in your evaluation, make sure you add all three of them to your application, using the “Add Credential” function.
Why Choose IEE for Your Credential Evaluation Services?
IEE is committed to providing accurate and reliable credential evaluation services. Our team of experts ensures that your academic credentials are evaluated thoroughly and precisely, giving you the best chance of achieving your educational and professional goals.
Ready to choose the right credential evaluation service? Contact IEE today to start your evaluation process and ensure your academic credentials are accurately assessed.
