Express Entry - Do I qualify?

[alfredoc86]

Good evening,

I am interested in applying for a permanent resident visa through the Express Entry program and want to find out wether or not I would qualify for this visa based on my education, experience and skills.

I live with my wife in Seattle, WA and would like to migrate to Vancouver, BC. I am 30 years old and my wife is 27. We currently don't have any children. My wife has little work experience in the academic field, but she is currently in the process of obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Liberal Arts from her native country in South America. She is currently going through the final evaluation of her thesis project.

I have a Master of Science degree in Business Management from a university in the United States and a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from a university in South America.

I am currently working as a Senior Financial Analyst for a manufacturing company in the United States and have close to 5 years of experience in Finance. Most of my professional experience in Finance has been in the Real Estate field, more specifically in residential building, land development and land acquisitions. I also have programming experience in VBA and SQL and expert skills in MS Excel.

Although my current experience is in the manufacturing field, Real Estate is my passion and would like to work again in this field.

Recently, I started to make some research on the Express Entry program, and found out in the "Find your NOC" website that I could qualify as a "1112 Financial and investment analysts" or as a "1114 Other financial officers". However, after reading the occupation descriptions, one of the requirements for both occupations is to have a bachelors degree in Commerce, Business Administration or Economics.

I do not have a bachelor degree in business; my Bachelor degree is in Engineering. However, I do have a Masters degree in Business Management plus working experience as a Financial Analyst and Senior Financial Analyst. I also have good references to support my experience and skills.

Do you think I would qualify for a permanent resident visa based on my education and experience? How flexible is this process? Would my experience and Master's degree in business management outweigh the lack of a Bachelor degree in Business?

Would it make a difference if I apply before or after my wife gets her degree?

I would really appreciate your advice.

Thank you!

 

[DelPiero07]

I would highly recommend for you to check out the "express entry step by step instructions" thread on this forum. You will find there a tool to check your eligibility. Based on the information you've provided everything looks good but I cant answer your question regarding your degree (maybe someone else can)

You don't need to wait for your wife to get her degree, you can always update your express entry profile once she gets it (it will give you 8 extra points). Just be aware that she might have to get her educational credentials assessed. I studied in Canada but plenty of people here can tell you about the cost and time it takes to get that done.

Other than that, you will have to take an English test (IELTS) even if you're a native speaker to create your express entry profile.

Cheers

 

[jes_ON]

Recently, I started to make some research on the Express Entry program, and found out in the "Find your NOC" website that I could qualify as a "1112 Financial and investment analysts" or as a "1114 Other financial officers". However, after reading the occupation descriptions, one of the requirements for both occupations is to have a bachelors degree in Commerce, Business Administration or Economics.

Ahem, no, it does no say that it is "required,", it says "usually required." That word "usually" makes a huge difference.

I do not have a bachelor degree in business; my Bachelor degree is in Engineering. However, I do have a Masters degree in Business Management plus working experience as a Financial Analyst and Senior Financial Analyst. I also have good references to support my experience and skills.



Do you think I would qualify for a permanent resident visa based on my education and experience? How flexible is this process? Would my experience and Master's degree in business management outweigh the lack of a Bachelor degree in Business?

The process is not that flexible, but pretty much everywhere, an Master's degree trumps a bachelors, so you are way over-interpreting the "requirements." LOL, you will not be refused because you have a masters instead of a bachelors.

Would it make a difference if I apply before or after my wife gets her degree?

As stated above, you can submit your profile now and add her degree later when she finishes (and gets the ECA done), but that 8 extra points may not be that crucial.

 

[alfredoc86]

That is awesome! Thank you so much for your replies ;D. I already registered to take the IELTS test here in Seattle.

 

[alfredoc86]

Good evening,

I have two more questions:
Does my wife need to take the IELTS exam too?
I am diabetic. Can they deny me the visa because of my health condition? I take care of myself and have a very healthy lifestyle.

 

[thestunner316]

Good evening,

I have two more questions:
Does my wife need to take the IELTS exam too?
I am diabetic. Can they deny me the visa because of my health condition? I take care of myself and have a very healthy lifestyle.

yes - better for her to take IELTS exam so you can claim extra points.
no - diabetes half the world has lol... they are more concerned with TB or hepatitis or some other blood related diseases

 

[vensak]

You will soon find out, that there is whole army of people with Master / PhD degrees and 5+ years of skilled work experience (NOC category 0, A or B) and perfect English (CBL lev. 9+), that are waiting for the pool ITA (offer to put down all documents). Current draw of 483 pt(minimum amount of points needed) is very close to maximum what you can get without canadian experience (school, work, family in Canada).
So all and all every point matters if you try to climb somewhere above 450+

You will also need your university diplomas to be assess (ECA) against canadian system.

As for your wife, she can give you some points for - Languages, education, work experience