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Areas of Interest

Leveraging Global Engineering Skills

CAPE Reaches out to other provinces and professions

New for service providers Inventory for employment support

Engineering 360Edge

CAPE

Engineering in Canada

Overview

To build a globally competitive economy, the Government of Canada has committed itself to investing in skilled knowledge workers, cutting-edge research, science, and innovation. It also committed itself to attracting highly skilled and educated immigrants based on a point system. Consequently, the vision of the Government of Canada in bringing immigrants with engineering backgrounds to Canada is one of bringing in the leading edge of migrant workers (associated with globalization). The idea is to create a world class and globally competitive workforce to make Canada more productive.

Canada is a Confederation comprising of ten provinces and three territories. Each of these provinces has its own vision and regulatory structure for the practice of engineering vision and the skilled immigrant.

The Government of Ontario is driven by the vision of strengthening Ontario's economic advantage and positions itself as already having a leading edge knowledge workforce which it must strengthen to maintain its competitive advantage. This means it must define highly educated and experienced knowledge workers from other parts of the world as "deficient" vis-à-vis its own domestic leading edge knowledge workers.

Therefore to strengthen Ontario's economic advantage it intends to increase the percentage of internationally trained people in its workforce by making them "qualified" through regulation, bridging education and employment support so that they can work in Ontario.

How is Professional Engineering Defined in Canada?

The practice of professional engineering in Canada as defined in the Professional Engineers Act and comprises:

  • Any act of designing, composing, evaluating, advising, reporting, directing or supervising;
  • Wherein safeguarding of life, health, property or the public welfare is concerned; and
  • That requires the application of engineering principles, but does not include practicing as a natural scientist.

If what you do meets all these three tests, you can qualify to practice professional engineering.

How is Professional Engineering Governed in Canada?

Engineering is a regulated profession in Canada. This means that by law, no one can practice the profession of engineering without a license. You cannot call yourself an "engineer" unless you obtain the Professional Engineer (P.Eng) license. However, 80% of engineering jobs in Canada do not require you to hold a license.

Licensing is carried out by 12 provincial and territorial associations or regulatory bodies who set standards and regulate the profession. An engineering license is valid only within that jurisdiction, however, there is a mobility agreement among some provinces and territories regarding transfer of licenses. These associations serve and protect the public on behalf of their provincial or territorial government.

When is certification needed in engineering in Canada?

You will often hear language regarding "permission to practice engineering" in Canada. Engineers are regulated - they require an Engineering license to practice (as discussed above). Engineering Technicians and Technologists are not regulated but certified instead - they may be asked to produce a Technologist/Technician Certificate but are not required by law. Certification to practice as an engineering technician or technologist is voluntary and is offered in each province by provincial associations. Some employers may ask for this.

However, while you require an engineering license to become a "professional engineer" or "engineer" you do not need a license to work in the many different professions within the field of engineering/applied science technology.

Can I Become a Licensed Engineer in Canada?

Based on a Survey of over 1000 immigrants with engineering backgrounds drawn from 73 countries, CAPE has established that less than 5% of immigrants with engineering backgrounds (IEBs) actually become licensed and even fewer are able to practice as Professional Engineers in Canada. The reasons for the barriers faced by immigrants with engineering backgrounds in accessing the professional engineering jobs are discussed below.

The Knowledge Economy and Engineering

Today knowledge cannot be contained within defined borders. Recognizing this, the Government of Canada has endorsed several international trade agreements (e.g. NAFTA and GATS) designed to ease the seamless access to markets and the migration of knowledge workers. By signing the General Agreement on Trades and Services, Canada must ensure that all accreditation and licensing requirements for such self-regulating professions as engineering follow some principles. These include being "open, transparent, non-discriminatory, objective and no more burdensome than necessary". CAPE has adopted the Position that immigrants with engineering backgrounds (in the case of Ontario) face a licensing system that has yet to honor these obligations.

Importance of Language Competency

The Canadian Council of Professional Engineers (CCPE), the association representing the 12 provincial licensing bodies in Canada, has just completed the second phase of its "From Consideration to Integration" Project. To gain some perspective from Canadian employers, a random sample of 21 employers was selected from across the country during Phase I. None reported difficulty in assessing technical proficiency among international engineering graduates (IEGs). Of the factors considered in the hiring process, employers noted proficiency in English (or French) and knowledge of North American business practices as among the most important.

CCPE is recommending a "language standard" be developed to ensure IEBs have the appropriate level of English or French proficiency to navigate through the licensing process. This recommendation recognizes that the regulatory bodies are not responsible for language testing. Instead, a Phase III project would involve determining what the language requirement should be to work one"s way through the licensing process. Once this has been determined - and it may differ for oral, written, and reading skills -it would be clearly communicated to IEBs so that they can then present the regulatory bodies with proof of their having met the standard.

Foreign Credential Recognition and Reserved Title

Foreign credential recognition is a term that you will have come across often, that is said to underlie the problems of access and accreditation to engineering jobs and qualifications that IEBs face in Canada. In order to better understand the issues, it is important that you understand the constitutional issues that underlie this.

Under the Canadian constitution, provincial governments have exclusive responsibility for all levels of education. The quality of postsecondary (college/university) programs is ensured through a combination of legislative and administrative mechanisms rather than by a single system of institutional or program accreditation. Therefore, the notion of foreign credential recognition is used to assess the "equivalence" of "knowledge" obtained in different jurisdictions. As mentioned in the overview above, for the most part, Ontario institutions define highly educated and experienced knowledge workers (IEBs included) from other parts of the world as "deficient" due to its vision of already having its own domestic leading edge knowledge workers. Therefore, the IEB has to have his/her foreign credential assessed to see if it is equivalent to the Canadian benchmark.

Under the mechanism of foreign credential recognition, the title "Engineer" and "Professional Engineer" (P.Eng) is "reserved" for those who hold the engineering license. This means that an immigrant with an engineering background can no longer call him/herself an "engineer" when he/she lands in Canada. This notion strips the IEB of the right to the practice of engineering or credentials previously possessed by him/her upon arrival in Ontario. Consequently, IEBs from outside the province are assumed to be "deficient" until they have fulfilled the requirements of the provincial credential recognition.

In Ontario, this has translated into an institutionally rigid foreign credential system so that you have to obtain "accreditation" for any route to access your profession in Ontario, be it higher education, licensing or employment. Appallingly, despite great strides in information technology, these services have been unable to keep up with rising diversity amongst immigrants with engineering and other professional backgrounds. There is no centralized system that is either able to assess equivalency of credentials across engineering (or any other profession) or is used in agreement by different institutional bodies. Credential recognition systems based on time honored peer-review processes on an individual, case-by-case and need-by-need basis, through evaluation networks have become increasingly questionable creatures of confusion and disconnects in Canada.

Consequently, the Ontario engineering regulator Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO) has established the Licensing Process Task Force (LPTF) to review its licensing process. As well the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration has recently (March 2007) proclaimed Bill 124 to provide fair registration practices in Ontario's regulated professions. The purpose of the bill is to help ensure that regulated professions and individuals applying for registration by regulated professions are governed by registration practices that are transparent, objective, impartial and fair.

Canadian Experience

Under Sections 33 of the Engineering Act regulation, an immigrant applying for a professional license must acquire 12 months experience in a Canadian jurisdiction under a licensed engineer to ensure that the applicant is familiar with Canadian codes and standards of practice. The term "Canadian experience" is continually utilized, to describe this requirement when in truth no one can identify, describe or define its constituent elements. CAPE has adopted the position that this knowledge can be acquired through simulated teaching or self-learning as is the case in the rest of the world.

Employment and Licensing

Requirements for Canadian work experience link licensing and, in turn foreign-credential and experience recognition, to the employment of immigrants with engineering backgrounds. For the employers this takes on an aspect of risk when hiring immigrants with engineering backgrounds.

Non-recognition of foreign credentials and experience by employers is a critical barrier to the access to the profession of engineering by IEBs.

Recruiting and Hiring Practices

In the 1990s, evidence began to emerge showing that informal sources of recruitment tended to produce candidates who had a lower turnover rate and who were a better "fit" than recruitment through more formal channels. These were less expensive than formal processes and dovetailed nicely with the emphasis that began to be placed on networking in the new job-search practices. Continued cost-cutting pressure in recruiting interacted with newer computer technologies, primarily scanning software and web development. The resulting shift towards internet-based recruiting resulted not only in the restructuring of Human resources industry to distance the potential job-seeker from the employer placing the onus for understanding employer needs squarely on the shoulders of the recruiter. The effect of this on immigrants with engineering backgrounds is that their entry to the profession now depends almost entirely on recruiters.

The recruiters are driven by profits earned from the placement fees and have played upon the fears of employers emphasizing the immigrants lack of familiarity with "Canadian" workplace culture and language proficiency. As a consequence, recruiters have closed off the profession to immigrants with engineering backgrounds by focusing almost completely on the existing and domestic pool of engineers in search of "exact fits" for quick placement profits and turnovers. This in combination with the development of email, OCR scanners, and web-based application systems to automate initial cuts on candidates, have allowed recruiters to readily scan out entire groups of jobseekers, such as immigrants with engineering backgrounds through the use of such terms as "Canadian experience" and "P.Eng".

Newcomer Support and Bridging

In 1992, two immigrant-training programs for adults were initiated by the Federal Government: Labor Market Language Training (LMLT) and Language Instruction to Newcomers to Canada (LINC). LINC has since become the dominant adult second-language-training structure in Canada. It has gradually replaced almost all other English training programs in the country.

In Ontario, the Access to Professions and Trades (APT) unit was established in the Ministry of Training Colleges and Universities, in 1995. This initially focused on providing information about licensing, funded creation of a credential assessment service (World Education Services), developed fact sheets, and funded development of pilot projects such as the STIC program (Sector-specific Terminology, Information and Counseling) and bridging programs for immigrants with professional and trades backgrounds.

A survey of 144 immigrants with engineering backgrounds, carried out by CAPE aimed at investigating the outcomes of these and other similar employment supports showed that less than 12% of those who attended these programs were able to access gainful engineering employment.

Provincial Associations Mandated With Regulating Engineers

A complete list of engineering regulators in Canada is provided below.

British Columbia: Alberta: Manitoba:

Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (APEGBC)

Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA)

Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of the Province of Manitoba (APEGM)
New Brunswick: Saskatchewan: Nova Scotia:

Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of New Brunswick (APEGNB)

Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan (APEGS)

Association of Professional Engineers of Nova Scotia (APENS)
Prince Edward Island: Yukon: Northwest Territories:

Association of Professional Engineers of Prince Edward Island (APEPEI)

Association of Professional Engineers of Yukon (APEY)

Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of the Northwest Territories (NAPEGG)
Quebec: Newfoundland and Labrador: Ontario:

l'Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec

Professional Engineers and Geoscientists Newfoundland and Labrador (PEG-NL)

Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO)

Other Resources

Other members of the Engineering Fraternity in Canada

We suggest that in order to fully understand the complex engineering fraternity in Canada immigrants with engineering backgrounds should familiarize themselves with are the following engineering bodies:

Canadian Council For Professional Engineers (CCPE)

Established in 1936, the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers (CCPE) is a national umbrella organization for the 12 licensing bodies that regulate the practice of engineering in Canada and license the country's more than 160,000 professional engineers. CCPE serves the licensing bodies by developing and delivering national programs that ensure the highest standards of engineering education, practice, professional qualifications and ethical conduct.

In addition to being the voice of the licensing bodies in national and international affairs, CCPE establishes national policies, positions and guidelines on behalf of the engineering profession. It also promotes greater understanding of the nature, role and contribution of engineering to society, and undertakes federal government relations and national media relations on behalf of, and in consultation with, the licensing bodies.

From Consideration to Integration (FC2I) is an ongoing project which is an initiative of the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers and its constituent members, the provincial and territorial licensing bodies. The goal of FC2I is to develop new processes and/or improve current processes by which internationally trained engineering graduates (ITEGs) are able to obtain an engineering license without compromising public safety or lowering professional standards and to find meaningful engineering employment. CAPE is participating in this project.

Engineering Societies

Engineering societies play a key role in helping engineers learn about new theories, advanced techniques, and modern equipment by bringing knowledge in many ways such as publications, conferences, seminars and courses. These are not involved in the licensing or regulation of engineers in Canada. Some of the Canadian Societies that ITEGs may want to learn more about are listed below with a link to their web site.

Advocacy

There are a number of organizations that voice the concerns of engineers and engineering graduates on topical issues in Canada and Ontario.

CAPE

CAPE's vision is:

To ensure that immigrants with engineering backgrounds improve the quality of their lives by fully participating in the practice of engineering in Ontario and Canada by contributing to their:

  • Local communities
  • Provinces
  • Canada and;
  • the World

by:

  • Maximizing utilization of their engineering education, skills and potential
  • Upgrading their knowledge and skills in keeping with evolving trends in engineering and sustainable human development.

Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE)

The mission of OSPE is to advance the interests of Professional Engineers in Ontario by:

  • Advocating on behalf of engineers and our profession;
  • Providing members with a sense of belonging and mutual support;
  • Supplying valued and innovative services; and
  • Offering quality professional training.

The Society is a member-interest, advocacy organization that promotes professional and economic interests of the engineering profession.

There is Women in Engineering Advisory Committee (WEAC) within OSPE that works towards a more balanced and inclusive professional contribution by women. As recently as 2001, only about 23% of all engineering students in Ontario were women. Today, only 7% of all licensed engineers in Ontario were women. The Women in Engineering Advisory Committee (WEAC) was formed to determine ways of improving these statistics by encouraging the full participation of women in engineering throughout the province of Ontario.

Canadian Coalition Of Women In Engineering, Science And Technology

CCWEST is a national coalition of groups that promotes women in science, technology, engineering and math, celebrates their contributions and applies new vision to these fields.