Engineers Australia Migration Skills Assessment

Learn about the entire Migration Skills Assessment process of Engineers Australia, the assessing authority for most engineering occupations.

Since it is going to be a lengthy process, use of navigation is suggested to skip or jump to different sections directly.

Engineers Australia Migration Skills Requirements

Engineers Australia (EA) asks for 2 main assessments –

  1. Your Engineering Skills Assessment EA has laid out clear guidelines on how they would be assessing engineering skills. The most important aspect in the assessment is the pathway you are taking. Read More About the different pathways Here.Next bifurcation is the occupational category you are applying to. There are 4 occupational categories and EA has done a good job in clearly laying out what’s expected in each occupation. Read about different Occupations in the next section or click Here.
  2. Proficiency of English Language You are expected to show your proficiency in English Language. Though this might be waived off for those who have completed Australian Undergraduate Engineering Qualification or 2 years Masters Degree or PHD Program at Australian University.  The waiver might also be on cards for those who are native English speakers (i.e. from Australia, USA, UK, Ireland, Canada (excluding Quebec), New Zealand).However EA reserves the right to request for an English language test if required.

Occupational Categories in Engineering

For migration purposes, Engineers Australia has recognized 4 occupational categories.

  1. Professional Engineer
  2. Engineering Technologist
  3. Engineering Associate
  4. Engineering Manager

 

Professional Engineer

Academic Qualification: 4 Years of Australian Bachelor Degree of Engineering after 12 years of Schooling Expectation:

  1. Should be able to apply management skills and focuses on overall systems
  2. Systematic approach to Engineering Projects
  3. Should be able to apply established engineering methods to complex engineering problems

 

Engineering Technologist

Academic Qualification: 3 Years of Australian Bachelor Degree in Technology after 12 years of Schooling Expectation:

  1. As the name suggests, he/she is expected to focus on interactions within the system
  2. As a harbinger of advancement of engineering technology, should be able to apply established engineering methods within the technology domain

 

Engineering Associate

Academic Qualification: 2 Years of Australian Advanced Diploma or Associate Degree in Engineering after 12 years of Schooling

Expectation:

  1. As an associate, should be able to focus on a specific element of the system
  2. Prepares, Interprets, Inspects and Revises drawing, plans, diagrams, designs, maps and charts (taken from MSA)
  3. Provides technical support to Professional Engineers

 

Engineering Manager

Academic Qualification: Bachelor Degree or Higher in Engineering or related field after 12 years of Schooling Expectation:

  1. Reviews engineering operations
  2. Is able to formulate strategies, policies and plan in the field of engineering

However care must be taken that Engineering Manager is not an engineering occupation but belongs to Managers ANZSCO group; hence positive outcome might not allow automatic membership with Engineers Australia.

English Language Requirement

One of the following English language test needs to be taken to prove the proficiency.

  1. IELTS
  2. TOEFL
  3. PTE ACADEMIC

IELTS

As one must be aware that there are 2 different versions of IELTS – General and Academic. Engineers Australia accept both the versions

Here is the grid to show minimum requirement in each module

Section Minimum Score
Listening 6
Reading 6
Writing 6
Speaking 6

Note: Your IELTS score should not be older than 2 years at the time of application.

TOEFL

EA accepts TOEFL iBT test as a proficiency metric.

Following is the Minimum Score Grid –

Section Minimum Score
Listening 12
Reading 13
Writing 21
Speaking 18

Note: Your TOEFL score should not be older than 2 years at the time of application.

PTE Academic

The latest kid on the block, Engineers Australia has starting accepting Pearson’s PTE Academic Test as a English language Proficiency metric from 1st November 2017. Here is the minimum score grid for the same-

Section Minimum Score
Listening 50
Reading 50
Writing 50
Speaking 50

Note: Your PTE Academic score should not be older than 2 years at the time of application.

Different Pathways to Migration Skills

There are 5 different pathways for migration skill assessments. It is very easy to get lost in the terminology therefore to put in simple terms- there are 5 different routes for skill assessment.

The picture below will clear all your doubts about the pathways –

Let us help you juggle through this maze of pathways –

  1. First is if your qualification is accredited by Engineers Australia – If the engineering program is accredited by Engineers Australia, then you would be permitted under this pathway. To find all the accredited programs, click here.
  2. Next comes in different Accords: Engineers Australia has signed international agreements namely –
    1. Washington Accord: More about the Washington Accord Here.
    2. Sydney Accord : More about the Sydney Accord Here.
    3. Dublin Accord: More about the Dublin Accord Here

There are further detailing in each of the accords. Due to brevity sake, we are not including all the fine details. If you are interested in knowing more about them, just fill in the form on the side and we will get in touch with you within 48 hours.

  1. And then last is CDR Pathway where qualification is either not accredited or is from non-accord listed country. Under this pathway, applicant needs to prepare Competency Demonstration Report to show engineering skills.

Preparing CDR Report for Engineers Australia

If one’s qualification is not accredited or the applicant is not from the accord countries, then one needs to prepare Competency Demonstration Report (CDR). It is primarily based on undergraduate qualifications and graduate competencies.

Here is step by step chart to show how to prepare for CDR.

As is visible from the chart above, the key is the actual CDR Report where one has to prepare CPD Statement, 3 Career Episodes and a Summary Statement.

  1. Continuing Professional Development (CPD): It is a way to keep yourself updated with latest advancements and developments in your related field. CPD is to be in the list form (title, date, duration and venue) and may include –
    1. Conference attended
    2. Seminars, short courses, technical discussions attended
    3. Private Study
    4. Formal Postgraduate Study
    5. Services to Engineering Profession

Care must be taken to ensure that CPD is restricted to only 1 A4 Size page.

  • Career Episodes: Career episode is a documentary of an instance where you have applied engineering skills. Learn everything about Career Episodes in our Career Episode Report Writing guide
  • Summary Statement: Summary Statement is culmination of your career episodes where result of your analysis is demonstrated. Engineers Australia has clearly laid out different formats for summary statement for different occupational category. These formats can be downloaded from Engineers Australia website. Read everything about how to write summary statement, go through our Summary Statement Writing guide.

If you fall under the category where you have to prepare CDR for Engineers Australia and need professional help, do get in touch with us by filling up the form on the side.