| A seminar on working in Canada, a database
of recognized engineering degrees and a comprehensive, single-source
website – these are just three of 17 recommendations
announced May 14 by the Canadian Council of Professional
Engineers and its members. The recommendations are part
of a collaborative effort to help international engineering
graduates integrate into the Canadian engineering profession
and workforce.
A three-phase initiative titled From Consideration to Integration
has been tackling a range of difficulties in licensing and
employing international graduates. The recommendations address
the issues without compromising public safety or lowering
professional standards. Dubbed FC2I, the initiative is fully
funded by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada.
"We know that many immigrants with a background in
engineering want to work in the profession once they are
here," said CCPE President Darrel Danyluk, P.Eng., chair
of the FC2I Steering Committee and a past APEGGA president. “We
also know they face language and cultural barriers, employment
difficulties and challenges in accessing clear information.
We looked at each of these areas, in addition to the licensing
process itself."
"All Canadians benefit when new
Canadians can gain employment in their profession," said Human Resources and Skills
Development Canada Minister Joe Volpe. "This initiative
supports the Government of Canada's approach to innovation
and learning, which addresses the national challenge of ensuring
Canadians possess the skills and knowledge to fully participate
in the knowledge-based economy."
The Canadian Council of Professional Engineers leads the
FC2I Steering Committee, which has representatives from federal
and provincial governments, the engineering regulatory bodies,
employers, immigrant-serving organizations, educators, engineers
and international engineering graduates themselves. This
diversity of representation, the level of consultation and
the holistic approach with which the engineers tackled the
project, set it apart from similar initiatives.
Other recommendations include:
•
Providing international engineering graduates with a provisional
licence once they have met all requirements for licensure
except the one year of Canadian experience. In this way,
employers can have full confidence in their technical and
communications abilities.
•
Developing a mentoring program.
•
Determining which elements of the engineering licensing process
can be done overseas, to speed the process after they arrive
in Canada.
“Canada has a reputation for engineering excellence,” said
graduate in Iran Saeed Ziaee, P.Eng., the founder and product
development manager of Intelligent Engineering Solutions
Inc., a research and development firm in Toronto with a specialty
in medical devices. “As immigrants with an engineering
background, we want to help maintain that excellence and
to contribute to the Canadian economy; these recommendations
will help us do that faster and with fewer complications.”
“We’re very pleased that our unique approach to this
issue – extensive consultations and a widely representative
steering committee – has resulted in such a substantive
set of recommendations,” said Marie Lemay, P.Eng.,
Chief Executive Officer of CCPE. “We look forward to
implementing these with our partners so we can make a positive
difference for international engineering graduates.”
Launched in January 2003, FC2I is a three-phase project.
The first phase focused on understanding the experience of
international engineering graduates, examining provincial
and territorial engineering licensing procedures, and learning
from those who work with and employ them.
In the second phase, the steering committee analyzed the
information, determined where the process of integration
needs improvement and began to build consensus among stakeholders
on possible solutions.
The third phase will have the steering committee work with
key stakeholders to implement the recommendations and to
develop supporting information materials.
The Canadian Council of Professional Engineers is the national
organization of the 12 provincial and territorial associations/ordre
that regulate the practice of engineering in Canada and license
the country's more than 160,000 professional engineers.
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