Does US degree and Experience count in Canada?

[Suryak86]

Hey Guys,
I havent yet moved to Canada but I am thinking of ( My PR just came). I live and work in the US , have a US masters degree, have more than 5 years of experience working in the US. I checked for jobs in Canada and I found that a lot of jobs are similar to what I do here in the US.

So let me ask you guys this, with your experience, is it easier or just as hard for someone with US experience and a US degree to find a job in Canada?

A backgrounder here, my wife is a software engineer ( Also has a US degree and US experience) and I am a Statistical Data Analyst.

Thanks

 

[Edgar Poe]

Try applying to companies. If they respond, good. If they don't, then you know the answer.

Cheers man!

 

[RocketCity]

Hey Guys,
I havent yet moved to Canada but I am thinking of ( My PR just came). I live and work in the US , have a US masters degree, have more than 5 years of experience working in the US. I checked for jobs in Canada and I found that a lot of jobs are similar to what I do here in the US.

So let me ask you guys this, with your experience, is it easier or just as hard for someone with US experience and a US degree to find a job in Canada?

A backgrounder here, my wife is a software engineer ( Also has a US degree and US experience) and I am a Statistical Data Analyst.

Thanks

Just an anecdote....

I had a friend who graduated from the US in Management Information Systems. In the US (as you may already know), you are eligible for one year (at the time) of Optional Practical Training (OPT) after graduating. In the one year of OPT, he could not find a job in the US. He went to Canada and got a job with one of the oil services company. He's now a senior network administrator. He was born in Canada so technically he was not an immigrant. However, he spent most of his life prior to college in Dubai and the US where his father worked, and he hadn't lived in Canada since he was 9. Is this story relevant for you? Maybe, maybe not. He is a visible minority of Pakistani descent, but he does not have a noticeable foreign accent. For him at least, the US degree did not count against him. Did he have better success because he did not have a noticeable accent and hence was not looked at as an outsider? Probably. What's clear is that his US degree seemed to have served him better in Canada than in the USA.

 

[Suryak86]

Hey Rocket city,
Thanks for the update. Yes this does apply to me as well, because I also have a degree in MIS. So thank you.

 

[ZingyDNA]

In yours and your wife's fields, US experiences and degrees count more in Canada than Canadian experience

 

[Suryak86]

That sounds superb. Wait was that sarcasm or for real ?

 

[Sheps]

I think if you looked at everything equally (Canadian Masters vs US Masters) you would find that they might favour a Canadian more. However I doubt it would be much more then a "We are torn between these two guys, they are both so good... Lets hire the Canadian because he is Canadian (Then again, I was hired at my previous job because I was a dual-citizen of US and Canada, so having the US citizenship might help)". I doubt you would get into a situation where you would be passed over because you have a US degree vs a Canadian with no Degree or a undergrad.

 

[ZingyDNA]

That sounds superb. Wait was that sarcasm or for real ?

That was for real!

 

[krishnalynn]

Hard to say. I found a bit of trouble with people not being happy with my US experience and degree but in your field it might be more even.

 

[Suryak86]

Krishnalynn,
Can you elaborate a little more on what your experience has been and what your field of work is in?