How to explain...what CEGEP is...

[Mephys 2]

Here I am in the "I got my EAD and I need to find a job" hell

I have a DEC, 3 years degree in a technical field, from a CEGEP in Quebec.

now I have someone asking me if I have a BA or a BS.

well technically in the US people starts University after high school, while in Quebec you need to do at least 2 years of CEGEP before, or you can do 3 years of CEGEP in a technical field and then be on the job market. So where a BA is 2 years, and a BS is 4 years, wouldnt a DEC in a CEGEP for 3 years be somewhere in between??

Its not a University, but thats what we call college, and I hear that in the USA they call university college anyways

So here I am, confused about how to explain myself. The question has already arised twice, and their human resources department are working on it. I am also counting on my 6 years of experiences in my previous job, but it seems like they are very focused on my education anyways.

My guess is that 3 years of technical college should be worth more than 2 years of a BA, considering they are both studies donw right after High school and none of them includes more specialization...

Any ideas?

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Mephys,

Run to your nearest World Education Services or similar agency and ask for them to evaluate your credentials. you only need your degree and transcripts translated into English and this gives you the backing (and less explaining left to do).

Good luck, L.

[nivesito 0]

Here I am in the "I got my EAD and I need to find a job" hell

I have a DEC, 3 years degree in a technical field, from a CEGEP in Quebec.

now I have someone asking me if I have a BA or a BS.

well technically in the US people starts University after high school, while in Quebec you need to do at least 2 years of CEGEP before, or you can do 3 years of CEGEP in a technical field and then be on the job market. So where a BA is 2 years, and a BS is 4 years, wouldnt a DEC in a CEGEP for 3 years be somewhere in between??

Its not a University, but thats what we call college, and I hear that in the USA they call university college anyways

So here I am, confused about how to explain myself. The question has already arised twice, and their human resources department are working on it. I am also counting on my 6 years of experiences in my previous job, but it seems like they are very focused on my education anyways.

My guess is that 3 years of technical college should be worth more than 2 years of a BA, considering they are both studies donw right after High school and none of them includes more specialization...

Any ideas?

Try to evaluate your degree

http://www.wes.org/jobSeekers/index.asp

[Mephys 2]

Mephys,

Run to your nearest World Education Services or similar agency and ask for them to evaluate your credentials. you only need your degree and transcripts translated into English and this gives you the backing (and less explaining left to do).

Good luck, L.

The person form the human resources just sent me an e-mail in regards to this as I was reading your reply!

Amen

lol

I am doing it right now

[Kathryn41 3,205]

CEGEPs are rather unique. You could probably just simplify it and compare it to a College that may qualify you in a technical field or offer you further training prior to admissions to University-(and yeah, Universities are often called colleges in the US, but there is such a wide disparity!) and that colleges and Universities are different animals in Canada - that colleges don't grant degrees. And what is this thing with Associates' Degrees!? It just means you attended 2 years of a college - far different than earning a BA.

[derekkj 0]

Actually I believe both a BA (Bachelor of Arts) and a BS (Bachelor of Science) are 4 year degrees. But there are also AA (Associate of Arts) and AS (Associates of Sciences) etc. that are 2 year degrees. So yes, I would guess a CGEP is sorta in-between those two.

In the US, technically a University is a school which offers Bachelors, Masters, and/or Doctorate degrees, while a college only offers a Bachelors degrees. And yes, many Americans use both words interchangeably which makes it pretty confusing.

Unfortunately I don't have any assistance for the rest of your questions. Derek ran into the same problems as you trying to explain what on earth a CGEP degree is at his first job, but is fortunately now at the Canadian Embassy so it is not currently as issue. But I would love to hear what others have done!

Edited August 20, 2007 by derekkj

[nivesito 0]

Actually I believe both a BA (Bachelor of Arts) and a BS (Bachelor of Science) are 4 year degrees. But there are also AA (Associate of Arts) and AS (Associates of Sciences) etc. that are 2 year degrees. So yes, I would guess a CGEP is sorta in-between those two.

In the US, technically a University is a school which offers Bachelors, Masters, and/or Doctorate degrees, while a college only offers a Bachelors degrees. And yes, many Americans use both words interchangeably which makes it pretty confusing.

Unfortunately I don't have any assistance for the rest of your questions. Derek ran into the same problems as you trying to explain what on earth a CGEP degree is at his first job, but is fortunately now at the Canadian Embassy so it is not currently as issue. But I would love to hear what others have done!

In Europe you can get a Bachelor degree on a 3 or 4 years university. It is validated the same, the difference is the 3 years bachelor is earned on a University of applied science. It is accepted everywhere in Europe according to Bologna declaration. I’m really not familiar how is accepted in the States but I’m just going to do all that stuff thru WES because I have a 3 year bachelor from a business college in Croatia and Masters from a University of applied science in Germany and I really do not feel like studying anymore. I consider just taking some online Master courses from some University in US because it may help in getting a job there.

[Mephys 2]

OMG....

Yeah of course I selected Canada, and now they are asking for

"Clear, legible photocopies of all graduation certificates or diplomas issued in English by the institutions attended

e.g. Associate, Bachelor, Master, Ph.D."

Why do they do this to me.... All my certificates are in french.... is a certified translated copy enough ?

[Mephys 2]

well that's from a different agency...but I can't find the same information on WES

"All applications for evaluation must be accompanied by official copies of all degrees/diplomas/certificates. If documents are not in English, certified English translations must be attached."

[Krikit 1,163]

colleges and Universities are different animals in Canada - that colleges don't grant degrees.

You've been gone too long, Kathryn! Canadian Colleges were granted the right to offer degree programs a few years ago. Albeit with some red tape attached.

Thanks for asking the question, Mephys. I had wondered what the process would be. Good luck!

[Mephys 2]

Thanks for asking the question, Mephys. I had wondered what the process would be. Good luck!

And the answer is: Would be painful

[Krikit 1,163]

Thanks for asking the question, Mephys. I had wondered what the process would be. Good luck!

And the answer is: Would be painful

[mwinburn 0]

Yah, I was really surprised when my fiance told me that Canada has 3 year programs. There is no equivalent in the States. And yes, a BA is a 4 year program here. An Associates Degree (never heard them broken down as AA or AS) doesn't really matter much. You won't find a job asking for it, nor will you find it gets you preferential treatment.

Associates degrees to Americans just means that you didn't make it all four years. Generally, most people refer to this as the "core", as the classes taken during those years are very transferable from one school to another. So you might take your core at a state school, which is relatively cheap, then transfer to a more prestigious school, which might be very expensive.

Best of luck on getting your credentials sorted out!

[mwinburn 0]

Oh yah, just to confuse you guys more...

Universities can be made up of colleges For instance, I attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, which is a member of the University System of Georgia. Within my University, I attended the College of Computing. My University was actually made up of five colleges. The degree itself, however, is awarded by the University, not the college.

In other words, the concept of college in the States is very different than it is in Canada. Any distinction you might make is not part of the vernacular. The terms are 100% interchangeable here, regardless of their etymology.

[~Nini~ 2]

An Associates Degree (never heard them broken down as AA or AS) doesn't really matter much. You won't find a job asking for it, nor will you find it gets you preferential treatment.

You mean, I won't get Bill Gates' job? But my professor at college told me I could!