Career for engineers in Canada
Each year, thousands of engineers with international qualifications immigrate to Canada. Representing around 12 per cent of licensed engineers in Canada, they work in the fields of civil, electrical, industrial, manufacturing and mechanical engineering. A recently released labour market study by Engineers Canada highlights important trends in the economic market for engineers in Canada. Titled The Engineering Labour Market in Canada: Projections to 2020, the report provides an overview of engineering disciplines and geographical markets, as well as a forecast of international conditions.
According to Mark Bourgeois, director of communications and public affairs, with Engineers Canada, the national organization of the 12 provincial and territorial associations that regulate the practice of engineering in Canada, "Canada is facing a short supply of engineers with more than 10 years of specialized experience."
He refers to the report’s predictions that, by 2020, 95,000 professional engineers will retire, creating a skills shortage not cured by Canadian graduates or experienced internationally trained graduates.
"The shortage of highly skilled professionals is undeniably contributing to the challenges faced by Canada’s engineering industry," says Jan Hein Bax, president of employment agency Randstad Canada. According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers, this skills shortage has resulted in increased competition in the global market. This trend is predicted to increase, along with an increased need for companies recruiting, rewarding and retaining top talent.
According to Statistics Canada, more than 75,000 engineers are registered with Professional Engineers of Ontario alone. The majority work as civil or mechanical engineers, with a large percentage also in the electrical and computer engineering field. Overall, the demand for engineers is predicted to increase, with architectural, engineering and related services the highest in demand. The most commonly advertised jobs in engineering include mechanical engineer, electrical engineer and project engineer.
Barriers for the internationally trained
Licensing is required to work fully as an engineer in Canada, so, on arrival in Canada, internationally trained engineers are encouraged to contact the engineering licensing body in the province or territory they live. The Engineering International-Education Assessment Program assesses the qualifications of individuals who have international training, with assessment times averaging eight weeks. This assessment will determine what steps an immigrant engineer must take to become licensed (get their P.Eng. designation), from retraining to work experience to examinations. Note: you can work in engineering in Canada before you receive your licence as long as you are supervised by a professional engineer (P.Eng.).
Bourgeois believes there are no unique barriers faced by internationally trained engineers in the licensing process itself. "They must go through the same process as Canadian students," he says, "to prove education and have Canadian work experience."
But for internationally trained engineers with years of experience abroad, the process to be able to work in Canada may seem unfair. Even after licensing, they may also find more challenges in getting hired. Research by Engineers Canada shows that those educated abroad were slightly less likely to be permanently employed than native-born Canadian engineers, but more likely to be self-employed or on contract. They are also more likely to have managerial or supervisory experience.
"In terms of immigration, experienced and specialized engineers will have better job prospects in Canada, as employers have recruiting needs for specific projects, but markets will be weaker for new graduates," adds Bourgeois.
How to start the process
While licensing as an engineer is done on a provincial/territorial basis (every province/territory has its own governing body overseeing the profession), a new national online resource launched by Engineers Canada and funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada provides immigrant engineers with a single, comprehensive source of information about how to become a licensed engineer in Canada (see newcomers.engineerscanada.ca).
"Employers in the engineering field say we need good, skilled workers," says Marcia
Friesen, director of the internationally educated engineers qualification program at the University of Manitoba. "It just makes good business sense to do everything we can to bring international engineering graduates here and integrate them into our communities."
The website, designed with extensive input and support from the 12 provincial and territorial regulators of the engineering profession, also features a new Academic Information Tool, which newcomers can use to compare their undergraduate education to Canadian engineering programs to help them understand how their academic credentials are likely to be received in this country.
"In so many cases, people don’t know what they’re actually getting into when they come here," says Kate MacLachlan, director of academic review for the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan. "With this site, we’re looking to make sure international engineering graduates are as prepared as possible."
According to Mark Bourgeois, director of communications and public affairs, with Engineers Canada, the national organization of the 12 provincial and territorial associations that regulate the practice of engineering in Canada, "Canada is facing a short supply of engineers with more than 10 years of specialized experience."
He refers to the report’s predictions that, by 2020, 95,000 professional engineers will retire, creating a skills shortage not cured by Canadian graduates or experienced internationally trained graduates.
"Supply and demand imbalances are becoming more serious," he says. "While engineering labour market conditions vary from region to region, markets must find ways to strike a balance between retiring workers and training incoming graduates and international engineers interested in working in Canada."
"The shortage of highly skilled professionals is undeniably contributing to the challenges faced by Canada’s engineering industry," says Jan Hein Bax, president of employment agency Randstad Canada. According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers, this skills shortage has resulted in increased competition in the global market. This trend is predicted to increase, along with an increased need for companies recruiting, rewarding and retaining top talent.
According to Statistics Canada, more than 75,000 engineers are registered with Professional Engineers of Ontario alone. The majority work as civil or mechanical engineers, with a large percentage also in the electrical and computer engineering field. Overall, the demand for engineers is predicted to increase, with architectural, engineering and related services the highest in demand. The most commonly advertised jobs in engineering include mechanical engineer, electrical engineer and project engineer.
Barriers for the internationally trained
Licensing is required to work fully as an engineer in Canada, so, on arrival in Canada, internationally trained engineers are encouraged to contact the engineering licensing body in the province or territory they live. The Engineering International-Education Assessment Program assesses the qualifications of individuals who have international training, with assessment times averaging eight weeks. This assessment will determine what steps an immigrant engineer must take to become licensed (get their P.Eng. designation), from retraining to work experience to examinations. Note: you can work in engineering in Canada before you receive your licence as long as you are supervised by a professional engineer (P.Eng.).
Bourgeois believes there are no unique barriers faced by internationally trained engineers in the licensing process itself. "They must go through the same process as Canadian students," he says, "to prove education and have Canadian work experience."
But for internationally trained engineers with years of experience abroad, the process to be able to work in Canada may seem unfair. Even after licensing, they may also find more challenges in getting hired. Research by Engineers Canada shows that those educated abroad were slightly less likely to be permanently employed than native-born Canadian engineers, but more likely to be self-employed or on contract. They are also more likely to have managerial or supervisory experience.
"In terms of immigration, experienced and specialized engineers will have better job prospects in Canada, as employers have recruiting needs for specific projects, but markets will be weaker for new graduates," adds Bourgeois.
How to start the process
While licensing as an engineer is done on a provincial/territorial basis (every province/territory has its own governing body overseeing the profession), a new national online resource launched by Engineers Canada and funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada provides immigrant engineers with a single, comprehensive source of information about how to become a licensed engineer in Canada (see newcomers.engineerscanada.ca).
"Employers in the engineering field say we need good, skilled workers," says Marcia
Friesen, director of the internationally educated engineers qualification program at the University of Manitoba. "It just makes good business sense to do everything we can to bring international engineering graduates here and integrate them into our communities."
The website, designed with extensive input and support from the 12 provincial and territorial regulators of the engineering profession, also features a new Academic Information Tool, which newcomers can use to compare their undergraduate education to Canadian engineering programs to help them understand how their academic credentials are likely to be received in this country.
"In so many cases, people don’t know what they’re actually getting into when they come here," says Kate MacLachlan, director of academic review for the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan. "With this site, we’re looking to make sure international engineering graduates are as prepared as possible."