# Australian university degree recognized in Canada?



## matt_fitzy

Hi,

I am looking for some solid information on this topic, but haven't been able to find anything definitive. Everything I have read refers me to a credential evaluation service, and if I could find out some information without having to pay for an evaluation, it would be great in assisting me to decide if it is even worth us having to pay and complete our degrees in Australia and then to only find out we have to do another 12 months of study in Canada.

As some of you may have read from another thread of mine, I am in the process of moving to BC Canada as a permanent resident with my Canadian wife, we are currently living in Australia.

My current education - I have an Australian associate degree, or in simple terms, 2/3 years of a bachelors degree. I work as a Police Officer in Australia. I am most likely going to complete my final year of my bachelors degree in policing before migrating, or completion of it soon after arriving in Canada.

My wife is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts degree in Australia, which is also a three year degree.

I wanted to know if anyone can tell me if our Australian degrees would be recognized completely in Canada, or would we have to undertake further study in order to be that equivalent to a Canadian degree?

Thanks!


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## jawnbc

Unlike many other countries, Canada doesn't have any national qualifications assessment scheme. Canada is a very loose confederation of provinces, with only a handful of federal jurisdictions. Education isn't one of them. Ontario has a scheme; BC does not. Not sure about the other provinces, though I suspect Québec might.

An undergraduate degree from an Australian university will have the same currency as a similar degree in Canada; an associate's degree would be considered similar to a diploma. For a long time undergraduate degrees in Canada were also 3 year degrees, though that's not really the case anymore as far as I know.

If your undergrad is from TAFE or a polytechnic it might not have the same currency, however.

One important note: if the degree in question relates to licencing for a profession--like engineering or nursing or medicine--that profession's peak body might require credential assessment. Police officers in BC are accredited during their poliice training, rather than by getting a university degree. the RCMP runs its own school in Saskatchewan too.

Is that the sort of info you were seeking?




matt_fitzy said:


> Hi,
> 
> I am looking for some solid information on this topic, but haven't been able to find anything definitive. Everything I have read refers me to a credential evaluation service, and if I could find out some information without having to pay for an evaluation, it would be great in assisting me to decide if it is even worth us having to pay and complete our degrees in Australia and then to only find out we have to do another 12 months of study in Canada.
> 
> As some of you may have read from another thread of mine, I am in the process of moving to BC Canada as a permanent resident with my Canadian wife, we are currently living in Australia.
> 
> My current education - I have an Australian associate degree, or in simple terms, 2/3 years of a bachelors degree. I work as a Police Officer in Australia. I am most likely going to complete my final year of my bachelors degree in policing before migrating, or completion of it soon after arriving in Canada.
> 
> My wife is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts degree in Australia, which is also a three year degree.
> 
> I wanted to know if anyone can tell me if our Australian degrees would be recognized completely in Canada, or would we have to undertake further study in order to be that equivalent to a Canadian degree?
> 
> Thanks!


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## EVHB

In Canada, you have 2 kinds of Bachelor degrees:
- the ones that take you 3 years, at a College. They don’t give you access to a Masters degree, and if you want to continue at a university level, you will need to take a special transition program that takes about 12-18 months. (in Europe, they often call this the Professional Bachelor Degrees)
- the ones offered at universities, that take 4 years. They offer you a Bachelor (Honours) which gives you the opportunity to get into a Masters program. (in Europe they often call them Academic Bachelor degrees)
Maybe this info will give some more insight?


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## jawnbc

EVHB said:


> In Canada, you have 2 kinds of Bachelor degrees:
> - the ones that take you 3 years, at a College. They don’t give you access to a Masters degree, and if you want to continue at a university level, you will need to take a special transition program that takes about 12-18 months. (in Europe, they often call this the Professional Bachelor Degrees)
> - the ones offered at universities, that take 4 years. They offer you a Bachelor (Honours) which gives you the opportunity to get into a Masters program. (in Europe they often call them Academic Bachelor degrees)
> Maybe this info will give some more insight?


That's not entirely true. Honours programmes are becoming much less common--and most bachelor degrees are four year degrees, with Honours consisting of specific courses rather than number of years studied.

There are universities in Canada that follow the US model: most follow a modified version of the British model. ALL bachelor degrees in British Columbia require 4 years of study: we have an articulated, standardized higher education system here.


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