International Education Evaluations offers a wide range of credential evaluation services that you can choose from, whether you’re a student, an employer or an educational institution. IEE wants to help you achieve your goals in the United States one credential evaluation at a time!
We know that choosing the right type of credential evaluation may be a little overwhelming, so here in this blog we will describe the different types of reports and their purposes so you can easily choose the right one that suits your needs.
Why Credential Evaluations Matter
Let’s start by taking a look at the different reasons you may require an evaluation, along with the types of reports available for each:
| Purpose of the Evaluation | Types of Reports |
| Education or Employment | Document ReportDocument Report + GPACourse-by-Course AnalysisDivisional Course Report |
| Nursing | Nursing Education ReportBoard of Nursing Licensure Report |
| Military | Document ReportDocument Report + GPACourse-by-Course Analysis |
| Professional Licensure | General Licensure ReportAccounting Licensure ReportTeaching Licensure Report |
| Canada Assessment | Document ReportDocument Report + GPACourse-by-Course Analysis |
| Immigration | Document ReportDocument Report + GPACourse-by-Course AnalysisExpert Opinion Letters |
IEE knows that every evaluation is unique and may not be intended for the same purpose. Academic and professional needs may vary, not to mention those for immigration. Now that we know the different reasons for purchasing an evaluation, let’s take a look at each one in turn in order to determine which is best suited for your needs:
Education and Employment Credential Evaluations
Education evaluations determine the academic equivalency of credentials for high school and university admissions, in order to determine academic eligibility and/or transfer credit. IEE supports you in achieving your academic goals!
In contrast to evaluations for education, IEE’s employment evaluations assess academic credentials for the purposes of applying to job opportunities in the US and ensuring compliance with employer requirements.
For evaluations for either education or employment purposes, IEE offers 4 different types of reports:
| Types of Reports | Description |
| Document Report | A standard evaluation that provides a general assessment of your educational credentials (US equivalency, entrance requirements, program duration, institutional accreditation). |
| Document Report + GPA | Includes everything as the Document report including a calculated GPA based on your academic performance. |
| Course-by-Course Analysis | A very complete evaluation report including your coursework analysis, grade conversions to US equivalent grades, credit calculations and GPA. This report also includes the general assessment from the Document report. |
| Divisional Course Report | Includes everything as the course-by-course analysis indicating the lower and upper level divisions of the coursework evaluated. |
Understanding IEE’s Benchmarking and Year-Counting Methodologies
At IEE, we also offer credential evaluations utilizing a credential evaluation methodology called benchmarking, used exclusively for the Education and Employment reports. This methodology is known for focusing on the next level of education the degree grants access to, and generally speaking, if a certain credential is sufficient to move on to the next level of study in the home country, IEE may be able to consider the credential as equivalent in the United States. For more information, we recommend our white paper, “Benchmarking and Year-Counting Defined.”
An example of the benchmarking methodology would be when evaluating a 3-year degree from India, which normally would not be equivalent to a US bachelor’s degree given the number of years studied; however, we have investigated the topic thoroughly and concluded that because a 3-year degree is sufficient for admission to a graduate-level program in India, the same can be considered as equivalent to a bachelor’s degree here in the US. Not all 3-year degree programs would be eligible for an evaluation using this methodology, as IEE considers a range of other factors as well, but IEE’s evaluators are trained to look out for those conditions that may allow us to provide a benchmarked evaluation wherever possible.
IEE also employs other evaluation methodologies as necessary, such as year-counting, and it prioritizes the number of years required to complete a given degree. This is arguably the most common methodology and is required for licensure reports, immigration reports, and military reports.
It is important to mention that when applying for a credential evaluation at IEE, some institutions may not accept reports evaluated using the benchmarking methodology and before applying to an institution we suggest checking with the institution to confirm if they accept benchmarked evaluations.
Nursing Credential Evaluations
IEE services have designed specific credential evaluations for nursing professionals seeking to practice in the United States. These nursing reports provide a comprehensive assessment of international nursing credentials as well as the instructional and clinical hours required by the various Boards of Nursing in the United States:
| Types of Reports | Description |
| Nursing Report | This is a course-by-course analysis for your nursing academic credentials including the language of instruction, English proficiency exam and exam scores. |
| Board of Nursing Licensure Report | Board of Nursing reports for the State of your choosing, and includes an evaluation of both secondary and nursing education programs as well as a thorough review of professional licensure and English language proficiency. |
Nursing reports differ from standard licensure reports in that the nursing report is tailored to have more detailed information on the theory and clinical hours from their nursing internships and science curriculum. Coursework is not included as it is for standard licensure reports.
For more information on our nursing products and the process of application, you can download our Nursing Handbook here.
You can also apply for our nursing reports by visiting https://myiee.org/nursing.
Military Credential Evaluations
IEE services also include military credential evaluations to help you through the process of enlisting in the United States military. IEE works with numerous recruiters in the US Army, Marines, Air Force and Navy.
The available report types are:
| Types of Reports | Description |
| Document Report | A standard evaluation that provides a general assessment of your educational credentials (US equivalency, entrance requirements, program duration, institutional accreditation). |
| Document Report + GPA | Includes everything as the Document report including a calculated GPA based on your academic performance. |
| Course-by-Course Analysis | A very complete evaluation report including your coursework analysis, grade conversions to US equivalent grades, credit calculations and GPA. This report also includes the general assessment from the Document report. |
As mentioned earlier, for the purpose of military evaluation reports, the US military exclusively uses the Year-Count methodology as the standard approach for credential evaluations, due to certain federal regulations and guidelines. Therefore, we are unable to apply a benchmarking methodology for this purpose of evaluation.
Professional Licensure Credential Evaluations
Many professional occupations in the United States require licensure in the state in which they are practicing or are planning to practice. IEE provides evaluations for a variety of state licensure boards including teaching, nursing and accounting:
| Types of Reports | Description |
| General Licensure Report | A very detailed course-by-course analysis where the coursework will be grouped by field of study or category to determine how many credits the client completed in the relevant areas. For the Teaching Licensure report, a note will be added to specify the subject/level the client was qualified to teach in their home country. |
| Accounting Licensure Report | |
| Teaching Licensure Report |
Immigration Credential Evaluations
If you’re looking to immigrate to the United States, IEE offers immigration reports just for you, in order to help you demonstrate your qualifications and eligibility for visas, residency or citizenship. We recommend considering our immigration document reports that are based on those recommendations made by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers in their Electronic Database for Global Education (AACRAO EDGE), an online database that provides detail information on educational systems worldwide, including various resources that helps assess credential evaluations. This database is often employed by United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) and Customs and Border Protection (CPD) when reviewing the applications and IEE aligns its immigration reports with these recommendations in order to increase the chances of approval for our clients. AACRAO EDGE is also employed as one of many resources used when evaluating credentials for other purposes.
As for military reports, for the purpose of immigration evaluation reports, USCIS exclusively requires the year-counting methodology as the standard approach for credential evaluations. Therefore, we are unable to apply a benchmarking methodology.
| Types of Reports | Description |
| Document Report | A standard evaluation that provides a general assessment of your educational credentials (US equivalency, entrance requirements, program duration, institutional accreditation). |
| Course-by-Course Analysis | A very complete evaluation report including your coursework analysis, grade conversions to US equivalent grades, credit calculations and GPA. This report also includes the general assessment from the Document report. |
| Expert Opinion Letters | This is a formal document done by our experts in the field to provide a more detailed explanation of the individual’s credential, skills and accomplishments to show the benefits to come to the United States. |
Canadian Credential Assessments
In addition to reports intended for use in the United States, IEE offers credential evaluation services for individuals looking to study, work or immigrate to Canada as well. Clients can use their Canadian Assessment to apply for undergraduate, transfer and graduate studies in all provinces of Canada.
| Types of Reports | Description |
| Document Report | A standard evaluation that provides a general assessment of your educational credentials (Canadian equivalency, entrance requirements, program duration, institutional accreditation). |
| Document Report + GPA | Includes everything as the Document report including a calculated GPA based on your academic performance. |
| Course-by-Course Analysis | A very complete evaluation report including your coursework analysis, grade conversions to Canadian equivalent grades, credit calculations and GPA. This report also includes the general assessment from the Document report. |
While there are some differences in the requirements for Canadian evaluations, much of the report will be structured in the same was as those for use in the United States.
H2: Start Your Credential Evaluation with IEE
And remember, whether you’re pursuing education, employment or immigration in the United States or Canada, IEE credential evaluations can help you achieve your goals.
Contact IEE and apply for your credential evaluation today!
