Federal skilled workers selection criteria: Education
This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.
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Note: Please consult the educational credential assessment (ECA) requirements on how to assess and interpret ECAs.
Awarding points: Education
For an applicant to be assigned points under subsection R78(1), their educational credentials must
- be Canadian educational credentials as in subsection R73(1)
- or
- have an educational credential equivalency assessment (ECA) of their foreign educational credentials issued by an organization or institution designated under subsection R75(4)
Officers should assess the application and award the applicant up to 25 points for education, as follows:
| Educational credential | Points |
|---|---|
| University-level credential at the doctoral level [R78(1)(g)] | 25 |
University-level credential at the master’s level or an entry-to-practice professional degree. IRCC only accepts as an entry-to-practice professional degree those degrees issued in relation to an occupation listed in the NOC TEER Category 1 and for which licensing by a provincial regulatory body is required, in one of the following fields of study:
|
23 |
| 2 or more post-secondary program credentials, at least 1 of which must have been issued on completion of a post-secondary program of 3 years or longer [R78(1)(e)] | 22 |
| Post-secondary program credential of 3 years or longer [R78(1)(d)] | 21 |
| 2-year post-secondary program credential [R78(1)(c)] | 19 |
| 1-year post-secondary program credential [R78(1)(b)] | 15 |
| Secondary school (high school) credential [R78(1)(a)] | 5 |
Note: Paragraph R78(2)(a) provides that, except as set out in paragraph R78(1)(e) where points are awarded for 2 or more post-secondary educational credentials, points shall not be awarded cumulatively on the basis of more than 1 educational credential.