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Primary occupation and education

MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
Hello to everyone! Need a straightforward answer, please!
My undergrad degree is in Psychology, my work experience (4,5 years) is in Marketing, my master's is in Education Management.

Can I choose for FSW application my marketing experience as a primary occupation and also claim points for my master's degree in Education management?

I found it confusing in the guidance as it is never stated that job experience and education must be under the same NOC.

Could you please accompany your answer with some references from official documents!

Thank you very much!
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
Hello to everyone! Need a straightforward answer, please!
My undergrad degree is in Psychology, my work experience (4,5 years) is in Marketing, my master's is in Education Management.

Can I choose for FSW application my marketing experience as a primary occupation and also claim points for my master's degree in Education management?

I found it confusing in the guidance as it is never stated that job experience and education must be under the same NOC.

Could you please accompany your answer with some references from official documents!

Thank you very much!
Yes you can. Area of studies don't have to match work experience (unless the employment in question is so restrictive, from a licensing/education perspective, that it would cast reasonable doubt if you didn't have matching educational credentials, but this is not the case for you - Marketing Professionals don't need any specific type of Degree). Sorry; don't have official documents. But if your search the CIC website you will see somewhere (can't remember where), where it states that you don't need to meet the employment requirements (education and prior work experience requirements) in order to be able to claim an NOC Code.
 
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MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
Yes you can. Area of studies don't have to match work experience (unless the employment in question is so restrictive, from a licensing/education perspective, that it would cast reasonable doubt if you didn't have matching educational credentials, but this is not the case for you - Marketing Professionals don't need any specific type of Degree). Sorry; don't have official documents. But if your search the CIC website you will see somewhere (can't remember where), where it states that you don't need to meet the employment requirements (education and prior work experience requirements) in order to be able to claim an NOC Code.
Thank you!
Why marketing professionals don't need any specific degree. In NOC It states 'A university degree or college diploma in business marketing, public relations, communications, journalism, museology or a discipline related to a particular subject matter is usually required."

I can see that you're applying almost under the same category. what is your education?

Thank you for your help anyway!
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
Thank you!
Why marketing professionals don't need any specific degree. In NOC It states 'A university degree or college diploma in business marketing, public relations, communications, journalism, museology or a discipline related to a particular subject matter is usually required."

I can see that you're applying almost under the same category. what is your education?

Thank you for your help anyway!
Marketing Professionals don't need to have specific Degrees. Very few business-related professions actually require specific types of Degrees for someone to succeed in the profession - most of what you need to know can be learned on-the-job and through experience.

I work in HR and recruiting, and I hire persons for Marketing with Degrees in areas that are wide and varied in scope (e.g. foreign languages, statistics and mathematics, biochemistry, gender studies, political science, etc.). I don't only look for persons with Degrees in Marketing, Communications, PR, etc..

Even though Bachelor's Degrees come with an attached discipline, most of them really only 'open your mind and teach you how to think on a higher level than a secondary education'; they don't actually provide proficiency in a specific discipline (despite what universities would have you believe).

Clearly IRCC understand this, and this is why they don't require you to meet the somewhat restrictive and sometimes unnecessary employment requirements under each NOC in order to claim that NOC.
 
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MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
Marketing Professionals don't need to have specific Degrees. Very few business-related professions actually require specific types of Degrees for someone to succeed in the profession - most of what you need to know can be learned on-the-job and through experience.

I work in HR and recruiting, and I hire persons for Marketing with Degrees in areas that are wide and varied in scope (e.g. foreign languages, statistics and mathematics, biochemistry, gender studies, political science, etc.). I don't only look for persons with Degrees in Marketing, Communications, PR, etc..

Even though Bachelor's Degrees come with an attached discipline, most of them really only 'open your mind and teach you how to think on a higher level than a secondary education'; they don't actually provide proficiency in a specific discipline (despite what universities would have you believe).

Clearly IRCC understand this, and this is why they don't require you to meet the somewhat restrictive and sometimes unnecessary employment requirements under each NOC in order to claim that NOC.


Thank you, @crescent_jam and @DelPiero07
May I ask a bit more questions,
1. As I understand that I don't need to comply with employment requirements, does it mean that I still can claim points for both my master's and my job experience, right?
2. If my highest degree is master's, do I need to verify my undergraduate degree and school certificate?
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
Thank you, @crescent_jam and @DelPiero07
May I ask a bit more questions,
1. As I understand that I don't need to comply with employment requirements, does it mean that I still can claim points for both my master's and my job experience, right?
2. If my highest degree is master's, do I need to verify my undergraduate degree and school certificate?
1. Yes
2. Only need to assess highest degree
 
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MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
1. Yes
2. Only need to assess highest degree
Wow! It's fantastic! Life is getting easier and easier! Thank you ))
Is it really a requirement that my institution has to send a re-issued diploma directly to an assessing agency by post? Not email or so?
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
Wow! It's fantastic! Life is getting easier and easier! Thank you ))
Is it really a requirement that my institution has to send a re-issued diploma directly to an assessing agency by post? Not email or so?
The requirements differ by country of education and by the assessing agency so it largely depends. You have to go the assessing agency's website and look up specifically which documents they will need from you and how they will need to be submitted.

For my assessment, I only had to have my school send transcripts by mail directly to the assessing agency. But when I was going with another assessing agency (before changing my mind), that one allowed my school to email them the transcript, and I was able to email them a copy of my degree (since that was a requirement for them also). But there are other people on this forum who are required to give things such as attested mark sheets. It all depends.
 
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MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
The requirements differ by country of education and by the assessing agency so it largely depends. You have to go the assessing agency's website and look up specifically which documents they will need from you and how they will need to be submitted.

For my assessment, I only had to have my school send transcripts by mail directly to the assessing agency. But when I was going with another assessing agency (before changing my mind), that one allowed my school to email them the transcript, and I was able to email them a copy of my degree (since that was a requirement for them also). But there are other people on this forum who are required to give things such as attested mark sheets. It all depends.

Understood. Thank you! Could you please just outline what was the most tricky or difficult thing/things in your case? Maybe there is something I need to pay attention to since it's not so straightforward?
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
Understood. Thank you! Could you please just outline what was the most tricky or difficult thing/things in your case? Maybe there is something I need to pay attention to since it's not so straightforward?
Regarding the educational credential assessment or regarding PR applications on a whole?

There's not much to the educational credential assessment - you just follow the instructions given by the chosen assessing agency and then wait for them to give you a result.

Keep in mind that the result they give you may not always be what you expect (for example, they might decide that your Master's Degree is only equivalent to a 4-year Bachelor's Degree). Because of this, some people choose to have all of their credentials assessed, if they're not certain their highest Degree will get them the result they want (e.g. if you submit your Bachelor's and Master's Degree together, they could assess your Bachelor's Degree as a 3-year Bachelor's Degree, and your Master's Degree as a 4-year Bachelors Degree, with the overall summary being '2 Bachelor's Degrees'). In this scenario, you'd be able to at least claim points for '2 or more post-secondary Certificates/Diplomas/Degrees', instead of only being able to claim points for a 'Bachelor's Degree' if you had only submitted your Master's for assessment ('2 or more post-secondary Certificates/Diplomas/Degrees' gets you more CRS points that just 'Bachelor's Degree').
 
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MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
Regarding the educational credential assessment or regarding PR applications on a whole?

There's not much to the educational credential assessment - you just follow the instructions given by the chosen assessing agency and then wait for them to give you a result.

Keep in mind that the result they give you may not always be what you expect (for example, they might decide that your Master's Degree is only equivalent to a 4-year Bachelor's Degree). Because of this, some people choose to have all of their credentials assessed, if they're not certain their highest Degree will get them the result they want (e.g. if you submit your Bachelor's and Master's Degree together, they could assess your Bachelor's Degree as a 3-year Bachelor's Degree, and your Master's Degree as a 4-year Bachelors Degree, with the overall summary being '2 Bachelor's Degrees'). In this scenario, you'd be able to at least claim points for '2 or more post-secondary Certificates/Diplomas/Degrees', instead of only being able to claim points for a 'Bachelor's Degree' if you had only submitted your Master's for assessment ('2 or more post-secondary Certificates/Diplomas/Degrees' gets you more CRS points that just 'Bachelor's Degree').

It's interesting, thank you! Can I re-submit the documents in case I am not satisfied with a result? I mean, add an additional certificate.
How long does this assessment take?
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
It's interesting, thank you! Can I re-submit the documents in case I am not satisfied with a result? I mean, add an additional certificate.
How long does this assessment take?
Depends on the assessment agency - mine took 20 business days (1 month) but others may take longer, and each case is processed at different paces (despite the average processing time). You could re-submit for an additional assessment if you're unhappy with the results, assuming you're okay with waiting the additional time and spending the additional money...
 

MariaMaria

Full Member
Oct 22, 2017
34
1
Depends on the assessment agency - mine took 20 business days (1 month) but others may take longer, and each case is processed at different paces (despite the average processing time). You could re-submit for an additional assessment if you're unhappy with the results, assuming you're okay with waiting the additional time and spending the additional money...
Thank you!
Interesting, I obviously have 2 institutions to make an arrangement with, how does it work? Both universities have to send my degree certificates or so to an assessing organization separately, do they?
Do you know if having arranged employment is necessary for applying for FSW or it just gives you additional points but not compulsory?
 

crescent_jam

Hero Member
Aug 21, 2017
808
432
Jamaica
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Kingston, Jamaica
NOC Code......
1121
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
17-10-2017
VISA ISSUED...
26-10-2017
LANDED..........
19-01-2018
Thank you!
Interesting, I obviously have 2 institutions to make an arrangement with, how does it work? Both universities have to send my degree certificates or so to an assessing organization separately, do they?
Do you know if having arranged employment is necessary for applying for FSW or it just gives you additional points but not compulsory?
What the universities have to send is dependent on what the assessing agency asks for, for the specific country in which you pursued your eduacation (some will ask for transcripts only, others will want degree certificates, others will want attested mark sheets, etc.), but yes, the universities will either have to send them separately, or you will have to procure them in a sealed enveloped and send the envelope on the assessing agency unsealed (again it depends on the assessing agency's instructions). You need to look up the instructions for the assessing agency.

Arranged employment is not necessary. It only helps to give you additional CRS points, and not every type of arranged employment qualified for extra points.