PLA for engineers in Canada

"Engineers in Canada" is a community-corporate training project developed by the Ottawa-Carleton Learning Foundation in partnership with Digital Equipment of Canada and the Professional Engineers of Ontario. This professional orientation and technical upgrade training project for foreign-trained engineers assesses prior learning from the viewpoint of employability rather than academic accreditation or professional certification.

In the assessment, the following aspects are addressed:

• level of education in engineering and area of specialization;
• previous work experience and its relevance to the Canadian job market;
• level and timeliness of technical skills;
• language skills: verbal, oral, technical;
• number of years (if any) not working in engineering;
• attitude toward change (need for workplace acculturation).

Engineers in Canada addresses barriers to employment by providing:

• an understanding of how business and engineering are conducted in Canada;
• training in current technologies;
• technical language skills;
• Canadian work experience and references;
• integration into the local engineering community;
• professional level career management skills.

Between 1991 and 1993, 24 engineers took advantage of the program; 80% of them were subsequently able to find work in their field. The Engineers in Canada model has the potential to be adapted for other professions in the area and across Canada.