Credentials not considered comparable

[s9sofia]

Hi all,
my husband has applied for a ECA through WES and, after 4 months of waiting, he's been told that his 3-years graduate studies done in Italy are not comparable to a Canadian course of study of the same level.
I am talking about a PhD-like research program, conducted at a known Institution (which has been the first in Italy to issue PostGraduate research degrees) and which has allowed awardees to become Researchers (Principal Investigators) in Italy and abroad (e.g. US Institutions).
This has left us disconcerted, as with the same degree, he has been able to have a 2 years PostDoctoral position in the UK, a 3 years PostDoc position in the US, a 3 years contract as an Associate Scientist in the US (holding a H1B VISA) and a 1 year contract as an Associate Scientist in Sweden.
To show all of this, he has a long list of peer-reviewed publications in his research field.
Unfortunately, though, WES does not accept any other documents except for the degrees statement, when applying for ECA.
Has anyone been through a similar situation? How did you go about it? Any chance we can challenge this decision showing evidence of the working experience he has been able to have after obtaining his degree?
This all feels absurd, especially because neither the US, nor the UK or Sweden, raised any problems or concern.
We also have a positive ECA from them, but unfortunately the Institution tha we contacted back then is not accredited for the Canadian Express Entry program.
Apologies for the long post, hope someone will be able to help!
Thank you.

 

[subodhp]

Hi all,
my husband has applied for a ECA through WES and, after 4 months of waiting, he's been told that his 3-years graduate studies done in Italy are not comparable to a Canadian course of study of the same level.
I am talking about a PhD-like research program, conducted at a known Institution (which has been the first in Italy to issue PostGraduate research degrees) and which has allowed awardees to become Researchers (Principal Investigators) in Italy and abroad (e.g. US Institutions).
This has left us disconcerted, as with the same degree, he has been able to have a 2 years PostDoctoral position in the UK, a 3 years PostDoc position in the US, a 3 years contract as an Associate Scientist in the US (holding a H1B VISA) and a 1 year contract as an Associate Scientist in Sweden.
To show all of this, he has a long list of peer-reviewed publications in his research field.
Unfortunately, though, WES does not accept any other documents except for the degrees statement, when applying for ECA.
Has anyone been through a similar situation? How did you go about it? Any chance we can challenge this decision showing evidence of the working experience he has been able to have after obtaining his degree?
This all feels absurd, especially because neither the US, nor the UK or Sweden, raised any problems or concern.
We also have a positive ECA from them, but unfortunately the Institution tha we contacted back then is not accredited for the Canadian Express Entry program.
Apologies for the long post, hope someone will be able to help!
Thank you.

To start with, it is not you but them ! Don't take it personally, there is sizeable difference between different evaluation agencies on which programs they consider/not. You can research this online and in these threads to see which agencies consider your program and what documents to provide (for some programs they are picky about who sends transcripts). I would suggest doing this research and then considering either asking for an appeal (will only likely work if who sent documents was the problem) or another evaluation agency ( will work if other agencies consider your program)

 

[canuck_in_uk]

Hi all,
my husband has applied for a ECA through WES and, after 4 months of waiting, he's been told that his 3-years graduate studies done in Italy are not comparable to a Canadian course of study of the same level.
I am talking about a PhD-like research program, conducted at a known Institution (which has been the first in Italy to issue PostGraduate research degrees) and which has allowed awardees to become Researchers (Principal Investigators) in Italy and abroad (e.g. US Institutions).
This has left us disconcerted, as with the same degree, he has been able to have a 2 years PostDoctoral position in the UK, a 3 years PostDoc position in the US, a 3 years contract as an Associate Scientist in the US (holding a H1B VISA) and a 1 year contract as an Associate Scientist in Sweden.
To show all of this, he has a long list of peer-reviewed publications in his research field.
Unfortunately, though, WES does not accept any other documents except for the degrees statement, when applying for ECA.
Has anyone been through a similar situation? How did you go about it? Any chance we can challenge this decision showing evidence of the working experience he has been able to have after obtaining his degree?
This all feels absurd, especially because neither the US, nor the UK or Sweden, raised any problems or concern.
We also have a positive ECA from them, but unfortunately the Institution tha we contacted back then is not accredited for the Canadian Express Entry program.
Apologies for the long post, hope someone will be able to help!
Thank you.

IRRC will not accept any challenge or any other proof besides an accredited assessment from an organization that they recognize.

You can try challenging WES or you can try another one of the organizations to see if they give a different assessment.

 

[s9sofia]

Thank you very much for your replies!
I think we are going to challenge WES by sending a copy of the Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research decree that states that his title is equivalent to a Doctoral Degree awarded by any other Italian Universities.
Let's see what they say.
Anyway, my feeling is that the decisions taken by the accredited agencies are somewhat arbitrary and biased... which should really not happen in such delicate circumstances as the applications for permanent residency.
And you basically have confirmed it.

 

[21Goose]

You should also begin the process of getting the degree validated by another recognized agency.