Does a 1-year post-secondary certificate/diploma count toward Two or more certificates, diplomas, or degrees" for Express Entry?

[TechieGirl]

Hi everyone
I am trying to understand how IRCC treats a 1-year post-secondary certificate/diploma for the “Two or more certificates, diplomas, or degrees. One must be for a program of three or more years” CRS category.

My situation: I have a 4-year Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Computer Engineering degree.

I also have a 1 year Certificate/Diploma Course in Cybersecurity from the same university. The certificate/diploma is done online through distance education with exams given offline. It has proper credits (32 credits). I have done this diploma in my final year of bachelors degree.

The Cybersecurity program is post-secondary but NOT postgraduate. Admission requires completion of 10+2/secondary education, not a bachelors degree.

My concern is about the ECA. When I use the WES Required Documents tool, I can find options for things like Master’s and Postgraduate Diploma but I cannot find an appropriate option for a 1-year post-secondary certificate/diploma that is entered after 10+2.

WES AI assistant support told me that WES evaluates formal academic credentials but if the certificate isn't listed in their tool, it may be because it isn't classified as a degree/diploma under their system. They didn't give me a definite answer.

I also looked for IQAS and they mention that they evaluate 1 year post secondary certificate and their equivalency is generally equal to canadian post secondary certificate

So my questions are:

Has anyone had a 1 year university-level post-secondary certificate/diploma evaluated by WES, IQAS, ICES, CES or ICAS? If so what Canadian equivalency did you receive?

Would a 1 year post-secondary certificate/diploma entered after 10+2, together with a 4-year bachelors degree, satisfy IRCC's “Two or more certificates, diplomas, or degrees” education category?

Does the credential have to specifically be a postgraduate diploma or can a regular 1 year post-secondary certificate/diploma qualify?

If anyone has used IQAS specifically for a university certificate/diploma, what was your experience?

Thanks in advance for help !

 

[alexwangcrs]

You're good on the rules part — the second credential doesn't have to be postgraduate, it just has to be a post-secondary program of at least a year with a proper ECA. So your 4-year BTech plus the 1-year cybersecurity certificate can qualify for "two or more" as long as both ECAs come back with Canadian equivalencies. The tricky part is the ECA itself though — distance/online credentials get rejected sometimes, so I'd confirm with WES or IQAS that your specific certificate is assessable before paying. Don't claim the points in your profile until you actually have the report in hand.

 

[CanGoldDigger]

Depends on your ECA report.

 

[canuck78]

Hi everyone
I am trying to understand how IRCC treats a 1-year post-secondary certificate/diploma for the “Two or more certificates, diplomas, or degrees. One must be for a program of three or more years” CRS category.

My situation: I have a 4-year Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Computer Engineering degree.

I also have a 1 year Certificate/Diploma Course in Cybersecurity from the same university. The certificate/diploma is done online through distance education with exams given offline. It has proper credits (32 credits). I have done this diploma in my final year of bachelors degree.

The Cybersecurity program is post-secondary but NOT postgraduate. Admission requires completion of 10+2/secondary education, not a bachelors degree.

My concern is about the ECA. When I use the WES Required Documents tool, I can find options for things like Master’s and Postgraduate Diploma but I cannot find an appropriate option for a 1-year post-secondary certificate/diploma that is entered after 10+2.

WES AI assistant support told me that WES evaluates formal academic credentials but if the certificate isn't listed in their tool, it may be because it isn't classified as a degree/diploma under their system. They didn't give me a definite answer.

I also looked for IQAS and they mention that they evaluate 1 year post secondary certificate and their equivalency is generally equal to canadian post secondary certificate

So my questions are:

Has anyone had a 1 year university-level post-secondary certificate/diploma evaluated by WES, IQAS, ICES, CES or ICAS? If so what Canadian equivalency did you receive?

Would a 1 year post-secondary certificate/diploma entered after 10+2, together with a 4-year bachelors degree, satisfy IRCC's “Two or more certificates, diplomas, or degrees” education category?

Does the credential have to specifically be a postgraduate diploma or can a regular 1 year post-secondary certificate/diploma qualify?

If anyone has used IQAS specifically for a university certificate/diploma, what was your experience?

Thanks in advance for help !

As long as the cybersecurity diploma didn’t use any of the credits used for the B tech it should be fine. You may be asked to explain how you were able to complete 2 full-time degrees at the same time. As already mentioned your choice of degree evaluator will determine the equivalent degree in Canada