Foreign professionals who have been selected for immigration to Australia have a better chance of working in their field of expertise than their Canadian counterparts, a research on foreign trained immigrant study says.
Their (Australia’s) solution? A fine tuned selection system that includes compulsory English language testing, assessment of credentials and qualifications evaluation in their field within five years (5 years experience).
In the past, Canada and Australia used similar system using “points” in selecting skilled category immigrants. Both system have resulted in similar outcomes.
But after a decade of applying the change in the selection system, immigration to Australia have proven to be more beneficial for the foreign degree holding professional than in Canada. Australia have successfully placed their professional newcomers in their field of expertise by a wider percentage points.
Census results by the University of Melbourne, showed that about 65 percent of immigrants with university degree who arrived in both Australia and Canada during the period 1996 and 2001 found jobs within six months after arriving. But only 30 percent of those professionals landed jobs in their fields within five years.
But in 1999, Australia begun strictly imposing English language testing and assessing applicant’s credentials by authorized Australian bodies, which excluded many applicants – whom they thought to be at risk of not finding work in their field.
Australia also fixed the point system based on education, age and labor needs. More points are awarded to applicants with in demand skills and also for those who have gained Australian qualifications and experience.
The outcome seemed to be a success, with 83 percent increase in employment rate for skilled newcomers and an improvement of 63 percent for professionals landing jobs in their field.
The report was commissioned by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Statistics Canada and Service Canada.
(Culled reports from Toronto papers)
Disclaimer: The article posted above does not substitute as a legal advice on immigration matters. If you need to consult a professional about your case, you can consult a certified Australian immigration lawyer or consultant.