Ryan NI

Hi I've been looking at job vacancies before we make the move to the States and have noticed some of them are asking for a foreign degree assessment/evaluation basically too prove it's validity. I've had a quick wee search on here and notice http://www.ierf.org/ & http://www.wes.org/ have been used in the past but this was a couple of years ago.

Has anyone used this service before or is there one you would recommend?

Thanks in advance

ian-mstm

www.wes.org is well-known and, as these things go, well-respected in the US. While I've never had a need to use their service, they'd get my vote.

Ian

sir_eccles

Not used them myself but reading on here of other experiences don't get too mad at the assessment when it comes back.

ian-mstm

Good point... people often think their education is worth more in the US than it actually is!

Ian

HarryTheSpider

And whilst many UK degrees from say 20 years ago were of a higher educational value than their typical US counterparts, remember that nobody likes to hear how some foreign thing is better than the home grown thing...

My evaluation was done via the lawyers who sorted out my visa, so I can't say much about the process. I believe they used www.wes.org

Psyman

If you have a particular profession for which you have to be licensed to practice, you might check with the governing body which organisation they would like you to use to do the evaluation. I had my qualifications evaluated by an organisation called The Knowledge Company when I came over orginally, but apparently that was not acceptable to the organisation that governs my profession. Might save you some money and the effort of doing it twice.

Bob

I wouldn't bother, unless you've been asked for it and then use who ever they want.

vikingsail

I go with this advice. I have used them before and had my qualifications well and truly 'rubbished' Ironic as the actual professional body they were for accepted them with no qualms whatsoever. Essentially this was an area of business (and it is business $$$) set up a number of years ago as a self fulfilling phrophecy. They began by marketing to govt agencies and private companies saying there was a need for their services to the point many companies now use them. Quite how or where they derive their 'alleged' authority from is beyond me. Hence I would go with Bob's advice, dont bother unless asked. The best way to illustrate this is to ask yourself - do academics go around the world lecturing and having to prove up their credentials via a service. The answer is a simple no. If you have degrees from a recognized institution they should be self evident for what they are.

Lazzza

One thing I would suggest is that you get all your transcripts of each and every course you have ever passed during your degree. This is usually requested by employers. It can be a real pain getting them once you are already over here. I used a company called Spantran and they were very good. Also very fast but VERY expensive! Their equivalence document has a shelf life, so there would be no point in getting it unless necessary because they 'run out'.

vikingsail

I agree that's a good idea. However, the Registrar for the Uni you attended should hold all that information on one document and obtaining it should be as simple as request/ payment (nominal - usually about 10-15 pounds for a certified copy). I have done so several times in the 16 years I have been here, only when requested to do so since as the original poster says there is usually a time period for the validity of the document. I would think using a third party service to get your degree information is not necessary.