christmasoompa

Ah this is more promising! If by partner you mean spouse or common-law spouse (that you've lived together for a year or more), then he can apply for PR, and you would also get PR as his dependent. So you could then do whatever you like, including getting a job.

What does he score on the CRS?

Cornfedapache

Ahh excellent... I've just run through the CRS scores - without a job offer he comes in at 407... Which is still under the latest ITA scores although if they keep going down, it's all gravy...
My lack of a degree is proving to be the sticking point...

So all of this leads me back to the thought that it's get a job - if I get one first, its TWP then apply for PR with 6 months experience in-country under my belt.

If it's Chris, then go straight through the EE pool to go for PR.

Does that sound about right?

(And thanks, again )

christmasoompa

At 407, I would personally apply now with him as the principal applicant. You can still job hunt in the meantime, but best to apply asap in case the points keep dropping. I suspect you'll be pleasantly surprised and well on the way to PR by the end of the year.....or even PR's already!

Good luck!

Cornfedapache

Thanks for the advice! We're going IELTS on 3rd June & Chris should get his degree results end June/early July - can/should we apply before he actually has these in his hands?

If the points keep dropping, is that a problem for us at 407, or only in the sense that more people will get ITAs?

DigitalGhost

An OU honours degree is an equivalent to a 4-year Canadian degree. I know because I have one and just had it ECA approved by WES this month.

Cornfedapache

Oooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

DigitalGhost

It's a pretty straightforward process as well. I just had to post photocopies of the certificates to Toronto and then emailed the OU who sent the transcripts to Canada free of charge.

Make sure he is doing one of the named degrees with honours though. If he is doing one of those open programs where you can choose any modules you like and just need to make up 300 credits then those probably only are equivalent to a 3 year Canadian qualification. As I understand it, those are essentially the same as graduating from a UK university without submitting a 3rd year dissertation.

Cornfedapache

Thanks - we'll check it out. He's doing a 4-year Psychology degree - BSC Hons when he finishes....

DigitalGhost

Then that should be considered a 4 year degree at ECA.

Cornfedapache

Woohoo!
Thank you

Cornfedapache

I meant to ask before - how long did this take?

DigitalGhost

How long did what take?

If you're asking about WES then their process took roughly 2 months IIRC. I wouldn't expect them to conform to their own estimated timescales.

Cornfedapache

Hiya

I've got another couple of questions!

My other half has now finished his degree and got his result (a statement through the OU system). Is this what's required or is it the actual certificate (which could be with us anywhere from 8-12 weeks from this point)?

Also, where did you email it to? Was it the Uni of Toronto or another body who can assess the qualification as being equivalent?

Was there a pro-forma to ask the OU to send whatever they needed to send that we could beg/borrow?

Thank you

Cornfedapache

Just twigged - WES is the company not an acronym for an educational assessment...
D'oh.

DigitalGhost

Congratulations.

What you will need is an ECA (Educational Credential Assessment). It's a process whereby a recognised body go over the degree and equate it to a Canadian qualification. Assuming you pass ECA (no reason why you shouldn't as long as the degree is legit) then as far as the CIC are concerned you're as good as a Canadian graduate.

I did mine through WES who are the most popular option because they're the cheapest and tend to be a bit more generous than some of the others when it comes to certifying extra qualifications that you might have on top of the degree (e.g. HND's, HNC's, Foundation Degrees, CertHE's, PGCerts etc).

The process is outlined here: Apply now for a WES credential evaluation

Essentially your partner will register online and pay the fee and then send photocopies of his degree certificate to WES. Unfortunately the statement is no use when it comes to this. You can't kick this process off until the degree has been formally conferred and sent to him in the post.

You then need to request a certified transcript which will be sent to WES directly from the OU. They have a department who deal with this and the request from you goes to [email protected]. They'll just need your WES reference and the address, not much else from you. The OU handle these requests all the time so they'll know exactly what to do. WES won't accept a transcript copy from you.

Once all that's in you just wait a month or two to be assessed and certified by WES and then that's it.