Qualifications

[ukcharlotte 4]

I have an Education degree (and 5 A-levels and 11 GCSEs) but would be hoping to get a job in administration when I get to the US. My future mother-in-law mentioned that the US might not recognise my qualifications and that I should probably look at waitressing because I don't need any for that. To be honest, I felt so insulted by that comment. So, I was wondering if there was a general aptitude test or something that I could take here in the UK that would benefit me when I get to the US. I just feel like what I have achieved here in the UK won't count for anything so would be willing to be tested in something that would.

Any ideas? Thanks.

[Jessa & Liam 11]

This is a site that I will be using shortly;

http://www.wes.org/

"THE MOST TRUSTED SOURCE FOR RECOGNITION OF YOUR EDUCATION.

If you have international education credentials, a WES evaluation can help you meet university or college admissions requirements, qualify for professional licensing or find a job in the U.S.

A WES evaluation compares your credentials from any country in the world to their U.S. equivalent. WES evaluations are widely accepted and the most trusted and requested reports, so you have come to the right source.

What are your credentials worth? Try our preview here.

Some professions require licensing or certification. To learn more, click here.

Check out WES resources for...

Coming to the U.S

Frequently asked questions

WES International Education Intelligence

WES has the world’s largest database of institutions, course content and degrees so a WES evaluation can help you have your credentials recognized faster and you can pursue further education or employment with more confidence."

Edited March 20, 2012 by Jessa & Liam

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

I just sent my law school credentials off to WES for evaluation. I'll report back with my impressions once the report arrives. WES was highly recommended by the LL.M. program I'm applying to.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

I have an Education degree (and 5 A-levels and 11 GCSEs) but would be hoping to get a job in administration when I get to the US. My future mother-in-law mentioned that the US might not recognise my qualifications and that I should probably look at waitressing because I don't need any for that. To be honest, I felt so insulted by that comment. So, I was wondering if there was a general aptitude test or something that I could take here in the UK that would benefit me when I get to the US. I just feel like what I have achieved here in the UK won't count for anything so would be willing to be tested in something that would.

Any ideas? Thanks.

Ouch! to the comment.

I just wanted to say that if you plan to teach or be a school administrator (you didn't say what kind of administration) it will be dependent on the state where you will work. Public education and teacher certification is set by the state government so you might want to see if you can find specifics at the particular state's Dept of Education website. Principals, Asst. Principals, subject supervisors, etc likely require a master's degree, special additional administrative certification/coursework, and maybe a certain number of years as a classroom teacher. At least you might get an idea of what you need to prove in equivalency. It does vary widely depending on the state. Private or church schools may not bound by the same regulations as public schools. Also many local school district websites will post job openings with the qualifications required for the position that might give you some clues as to what's generally required in the towns near where you will live.

[cathy2904 97]

It's probably worth making sure you have a transcript of your degree with you as that will probably save time later. And an extra copy might be worth it because they usually charge a lot less for copies than for the first one if you get them at the same time. I got a transcript of my PGCE but I haven't actually got one for my first degree as yet.

I am in Georgia and I cannot teach in the public schools here although I can act as a substitute (supply) teacher or work in a private school. I would have to get Georgia certification and I'm really not sure I want to go back to full-time classroom teaching just yet. I am currently working as a tutor for the SAT in a private learning centre - Huntington, it's a franchise so there are lots of them. They only wanted a bachelor's degree so they snapped up a qualified and experienced 'English' English teacher! Down here at least they think we are all very intelligent!

And fwiw, what an insulting comment!

[Darkmoonfaerie 19]

We used Center for Educational Documentation when checking Alan's degree equivalency. He'll be applying to be a teacher in MA and that's on their list of accepted companies. Here's a pretty long list of companies that do degree equivalency. I don't know where you're located or what the UK certifications you have are here in the US, but I'm sure one of those companies would help. I do know that Alan needed transcripts, which seemed to be hard to get in the UK so you might want to inquire about them sooner rather than later. They took a while but we did get what we needed. We'd hoped he was closer to a Master's degree equivalency, but they said bachelors so he'll have to go back to school to finish up his M.S. in a few years.

I'm sorry someone was so insulting to you. I hate when people are just ignorant and rude.

[Kirsten UK 2]

I used ece.org for all my secondary, undergraduate and postgraduate education.

[Elora & Rob 15]

Harsh comment from the mother in law. Good luck with that. She should worship the ground you walk on for not making her son move to the UK.

Next time she says that reply with "oh well they will recognise xxxfiancexxxx qualifications in the UK so I guess we just move there"

Its my understand that they actually value foreign degree's as higher, especially British ones.

[Darkmoonfaerie 19]

Its my understand that they actually value foreign degree's as higher, especially British ones.

That's what we thought too. But when they equated Alan's degrees and certifications, it turned out to be less than expected. The problem was that most UK schools do not offer specific transcripts with detailed descriptions of the courses taken. They also are more specialized than US universities and are usually 3 year schools vs 4 yrs in the USA. Because of the specialization and lesser course load plus not having detailed transcripts, Alan's degree with advanced qualifications only equated to a B.S. here.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

The problem was that most UK schools do not offer specific transcripts with detailed descriptions of the courses taken.

That reminds me of when I got certification in Special Education. The new Uni was evaluating the transcript of my Bachelors degree courses to see what would count toward the Special Education certification courses. They said if I had the course catalog from then with course descriptions, it would help. Example: If my transcript only said something like PSYCH 101-INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY, but the course catalog description mentioned anything about child psychology, then I got credit for having completed that required course. I don't know if you have course descriptions provided in your UK Uni stuff, but that's an idea of something to round up before moving.

Edited March 21, 2012 by Nich-Nick

[Darkmoonfaerie 19]

That reminds me of when I got certification in Special Education. The new Uni was evaluating the transcript of my Bachelors degree courses to see what would count toward the Special Education certification courses. They said if I had the course catalog from then with course descriptions, it would help. Example: If my transcript only said something like PSYCH 101-INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY, but the course catalog description mentioned anything about child psychology, then I got credit for having completed that required course. I don't know if you have course descriptions provided in your UK Uni stuff, but that's an idea of something to round up before moving.

This is great advice! That was where we ran into the problem. The Uni didn't have the detailed catalogs so we got stuck. You can never have too much information when submitting your evaluations so get everything you can!

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Got my law school transcripts today from WES and they made for some surprising reading. For the most part, I'd agree with the course evaluation they gave me but for some reason my land law mark was far lower than I'd have expected and my criminal law much higher. And weirdly, they gave me 6 credits (instead of 4 for everything else) for my thesis (and a much higher mark than I anticipated). I'm not totally complaining because that thesis was a total piece of BS. Huh!