Internationally-Educated Engineers Qualification

About IEEQ

Internationally-educated engineers who take the IEEQ Program are individuals who already hold an engineering degree from outside of Canada, who generally have extensive engineering work experience from outside of Canada, who have recently immigrated to Canada, and who wish to continue their engineering career in Canada.

The IEEQ Program opportunity offers immersion in the English technical vocabulary and Canadian codes & standards of the discipline, intensive cultural orientation, Canadian engineering work experience, and introductions to a local engineering network of fellow students, professors, co-op employers and colleagues.

IEEQ includes technical courses and co-op work experience, augmented by a consistent emphasis on cultural orientation, English communication development, and professional networking. The program duration varies from individual to individual and generally is 12 months. Course lists are planned according to your preferred timeline.

Program components

The IEEQ Program has several major components.

Academic coursework

Senior-level courses in the Price Faculty of Engineering, including: Engineering Economics (ENG 3000); Professional Engineering Practice in Manitoba (ENG 4020); and Technical & design courses corresponding to the Confirmatory Exams assigned by Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba. The exact number of technical & design courses depends on the total number of Confirmatory Examinations assigned by Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba.

Co-op work experience

Four months of paid work experience with an engineering employer in your engineering discipline. We take a multi-dimensional approach to the professional integration of internationally-educated engineers into the Canadian engineering profession.

Other components

The IEEQ Program curriculum includes English language and communications support, a year-long course in cultural training, engineering business practices in Canada, and engineering ethics, as well as networking opportunities with other engineers. Most participants will be able to complete the program requirements in 12 to 24 months.

Working while in IEEQ

We strongly encourage everyone to consider the IEEQ Program a fulltime commitment.

Whether you are able to maintain employment while you are participating in the IEEQ Program depends on the number of courses you must take in the IEEQ Program, your academic abilities, the arrangements you can negotiate with your employer, your personal time management skills, and the other commitments and responsibilities in your life. Previous IEEQ participants indicated that it was very stressful, and at times impossible, for them to hold a job and complete the IEEQ Program at the same time.

Program fees

You will pay fees at the same rate as any other domestic student in the Price Faculty of Engineering. You can expect to pay an average of $1,000 per course assigned. If you’re already an Engineering Intern (EIT), you will be taking ENG 4020 (Professional Engineering Practice in Manitoba), ENG 3000 (Engineering Economics) and at least two technical courses and at least on Co-op work placement. The program will cost approximately $6,000. Fees have several components, including course tuition, endowment, student organization, health & dental, library, laboratory, sport & recreation, and more.

The fees for the Price Faculty of Engineering can be found by visiting the UM Student fee information page.

Financial assistance

Each year, IEEQ Staff explore various potential sources of financial assistance and provide a listing of available assistance with an applicant’s letter of acceptance. These include: UM and external bursaries, government grant assistance, provincial and federal student loans, and loans programs specifically for skilled immigrants with flexible repayment terms and low interest rates.

If you find yourself in an emergency financial situation, please contact the IEEQ Staff, who can refer you to emergency supports on campus and in the community.

Students may be able to access financial aid through Manitoba Student Loan, Manitoba Jobs and Skills Development and SEED Winnipeg.

Facts and figures

300,000

The average number of immigrants Canada welcomes annually.
60%

Percentage of immigrants who come to Manitoba that are either scientists or engineers.
150

Number of new immigrants to Manitoba per year identify their professional background as engineering.
290

Program graduates from 20 cohorts.
2003

Year IEEQ was first established as a program in the Faculty.

Eligibility

IEEQ is offered to permanent residents and Canadian citizens only, and priority is given to residents of Manitoba.

Academic Assessment

In order to be eligible for the IEEQ Program, you must be an Engineering Intern (EIT) or have had an Assessment of Academic Credentials by Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba, the result of your assessment included the requirement for Confirmatory Examinations, and, the number of required exams was five or fewer (not including Engineering Economics).

For information on an Assessment of Academic Credentials, please contact Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba.

Language proficiency

Prospective IEEQ students must demonstrate proficiency in the English language.

If you have a CLB Placement Test, your scores must include at minimum three benchmarks of eight (8) and no more than one benchmark of seven (7) in the four language areas (for example, 8/8/8/7 or some similar combination) to be eligible for the IEEQ Program. Scores must be valid as of the start of the year in which you intend to apply. For other test types and minimum requirements, refer to the University of Manitoba's English Language Proficiency Requirements.

An application to the IEEQ Program that meets the eligibility requirements does not guarantee acceptance to the program. In the situation where there are more eligible applicants than there are available spots, a waiting list will be maintained.

Other considerations

There are additional important questions to ask yourself, when considering the IEEQ Program. If you are accepted into the IEEQ Program, you will be required to take third and fourth-year engineering courses, alongside the students in the bachelor degree programs. The instructors and the IEEQ Program expect you to keep up with the material, and complete the same assignments, labs, tests, and exams as all other students.

Applying to IEEQ

Applications for the September will be accepted online starting November 1 until April 1.

Step 1: Take the Self-Test

To determine whether you are ready for the IEEQ, take this self-test.

Step 2: Confirm Eligibility

To be eligible for the IEEQ Program, you must be an Engineering Intern (EIT) or have an Assessment of Academic Credentials completed by Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba. This assessment process may take several months, and its results will determine whether you are eligible to apply to the IEEQ Program. Please contact Claudia Shymko, International Assessment Coordinator at Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba or visit their website for more information on the Assessment of Academic Credentials.

Once assessed by Engineering Geoscientists Manitoba, prospective students should review the IEEQ Academic Requirements prior to submitting their application.

Step 3: Application

Applications for the September 2023 intake are online until April 1, 2023.
IEEQ is listed under Find admission requirements and begin your application > Price Faculty of Engineering > Internationally Educated Engineers Qualifications (IEEQ) Program on the UM online application system.

Program details

Coursework

Only one course in the IEEQ Program is created for and offered only to IEEQ participants. This is the course ENG 4020 Professional Engineering Practice in Manitoba. In all other courses, you will be grouped with undergraduate students who are working to earn their Bachelor’s degree. The IEEQ Program places IEEQ participants into open spaces in existing Engineering courses. The content, scheduling, and timing of the courses are determined by the various departments in the Price Faculty of Engineering and not by the IEEQ Program.

If you are an Engineering Intern (EIT), you will be asked to choose at least two (2) senior-level courses that align strongly with your technical strengths.

If you are not an Engineering Intern (EIT) your technical courses will be matched as closely as possible to the Confirmatory Examinations assigned by Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba. In the IEEQ Program, approved lists of course equivalents that have been developed by Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba will guide course selections for each individual.

In all cases, there are two core courses that all participants must complete.

These core courses are:
ENG 3000 Engineering Economics
ENG 4020 Professional Engineering Practice in Manitoba

The following table shows how the Confirmatory Exams assigned correspond to the number of courses required in the IEEQ Program.

Time limits

The normal maximum time allowed for the completion of the IEEQ Program is whichever occurs first, either:

• 30 months (two-and-one-half years) from the date of first registration
OR
• Two (2) months after the due date or end date of all required courses, assignments, co-op term, and/or other program requirements.

After graduation

You will receive a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Engineering if:
1) You have a minimum of 24 credit hours completed through IEEQ Program requirements,
OR
2) Your IEEQ Program requirements are less than 24 credit hours, but you have made an additional successful application of transfer credit.

The courses and final grades from all courses in the IEEQ Program will appear on your permanent record with the University of Manitoba and on all future transcripts.

The IEEQ Program cannot be combined concurrently with a Confirmatory Exam program, or any one of the other options for academic qualification with Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba.

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