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Building a Self-Directed Process for the Development of Internationally Trained Professional Profiles in Canada

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Abstract

More and more internationally trained professionals (ITP) coming to Canada face challenges in getting credentials recognized by regulatory bodies and employers (Forum of Labour Market Ministers 2009; Ontario Office of the Fairness Commissioner 2011b). This leads to a high level of brain waste that recently has been estimated to cost Canada up to $3.4 billion per year (Evans, CGA Magazine 45(4): 26, 2011). This paper looks at some of the challenges regarding prior learning assessments and portfolio-building processes toward credential evaluation, and explains some of the reasons why the current system and tools are not meeting the needs of ITPs. In particular, postsecondary institutions and regulatory bodies’ processes toward preparing individuals for evaluation are compared, leading to a number of conclusions on commonality and future directions. The authors conclude with the proposal of a new generic online and modular professional profile model to better prepare ITPs for credential assessment. Such a model would be particularly useful for credentialing bodies with fewer resources available. It would also provide a common set of information to front-line agencies that support ITPs.

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Notes

  1. In Canada, a college is a higher education institution equivalent to a community college (in the American sense) or a technical or applied school of arts or science. In Quebec, colleges are referred to as CEGEPs (Collège d’Enseignement General et Professionnel).

  2. A compendium of terminologies is available from Joosten-Ten Brinke et al. (2008). Ideally, a holistic view of PLAR, although more complicated, will provide the most complete assessment of individuals. This description best serves the economic efficiency needs of our growing population of internationally trained professionals if and when the tools and processes can become recognized, are achievable, and are used in a fair and consistent manner.

  3. Professions North/Nord (PNN) is a bridging program for internationally trained professionals in accounting and finance, serving the needs of Northern Ontario through a number of front-line partner agencies in the five main cities of the north. A focus group session was held in Sudbury with these stakeholders in spring 2011.

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Acknowledgments

This research project was made possible through Bridge Training Program funding provided by the Government of Ontario, with some support from the Government of Canada. This project was also made possible through special grants provided by CGA Canada. The authors are grateful to Mrs. Adwoa AWUKU-SAO (MBA 2012, Laurentian university) for her help throughout this project. The authors would also like to thank two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Business and Economics, University of Winnipeg, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, Canada, R3B 2E9

    Sylvie Albert

  2. Commerce and Administration, Faculty of Management, Laurentian University, Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, ON, P3E 2C6, Canada

    Pawoumodom M. Takouda, Yves Robichaud & Rana Haq

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  1. Sylvie Albert
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Correspondence to Pawoumodom M. Takouda.

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Albert, S., Takouda, P.M., Robichaud, Y. et al. Building a Self-Directed Process for the Development of Internationally Trained Professional Profiles in Canada. Int. Migration & Integration 14, 671–688 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12134-012-0256-2

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