Validation of diploma abroad for US USCIS green card

Two procedures are provided for validating a degree abroad:

Nostrification (from English to nostrify – to recognize) – allows you to confirm the legitimacy of the diploma and its validity for employment in another country. When applying for training, this procedure is often carried out by the university, but in most cases it is necessary to provide confirmation from your country – a special document apostille or notarized copy of the diploma, depending on the requirements of the educational institution or host organization.

Evaluation – is the process of evaluating the educational value and equivalency of a foreign credential to a U.S. credential. This is important for individuals who have earned degrees outside the U.S. and wish to continue their education or obtain employment in this country.

Nostrification should not be confused with evaluation, which is a recalculation of points under the U.S. system and determines what level of education in the U.S. your diploma corresponds to. After evaluation, the level is often lowered. Were a master’s student – recognized as a bachelor’s student, etc.

Diploma evaluation involves translating your diploma into English, providing a list of courses, grades earned and calculating your diploma grade point average according to the American education system. This information is necessary for American universities and employers to assess the value of the degree and your level of knowledge.

The American education system is different from other countries, so evaluating the diploma ensures that your diploma is properly understood and evaluated. This assessment is required by reputable universities in the United States and is recommended for applicants.

The most common types of diploma evaluation are as follows:

General or simplified. This type of evaluation provides a general evaluation of the degree, including the type of degree, the accreditation of the institution, and the date of graduation. It does not give a detailed analysis of the subjects, but confirms the validity and equivalence of the degree. That is, you are given a document stating that your education is equivalent to an American education in a certain specialty. Such an evaluation costs from $80. It will be suitable for employment and immigration to the United States.

General with Grade Average. This grade is similar to the first grade, but it also indicates the average grade of the diploma. Such an evaluation costs from $110. This option is only suitable for further studies.

Course-by-Course. This assessment option provides a detailed analysis of courses taken, grades earned, and the American equivalent for each course. However, such evaluation is more energy intensive and more expensive than the previous types. It costs from $160. This assessment is useful for those who wish to continue their education in the United States, as it helps universities determine whether a foreign degree meets the requirements of their program.

The level of assessment required depends on the individual’s goals. For example, if he wants to continue his education in the U.S., a “course-by-course” evaluation must be done to determine if the foreign degree meets the program requirements. If a person is looking for a job in the US, a “general” evaluation may be sufficient to prove the validity of the diploma.

Evaluation in the U.S. is handled by local companies that are members of the
association
NACES
(National Association of Credential Services). It currently includes 19 organizations. You should check with the university you are applying to to find out which company they work with to make sure your evaluation will definitely be accepted.

Our company Visakrokit, recommends the 14th company on the list, it does the evaluation in 3 days, can do everything online on the scan of the diploma, as well as often a 5-year diploma from the CIS count as a Master’s degree, which is useful for example for green card EB-2 niw.

List of NACES member organizations:

1. A2Z Evaluations, LLC
2. Academic Evaluation Services, Inc.
3. Center for Applied Research, Evaluation and Education, Inc.
4. Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc.
5. Educational Perspectives, nfp
6. Educational Records Evaluation Service, Inc.
7. Foreign Academic Credential Service, Inc.
8. Foundation for International Services, Inc.
9. Global Credential Evaluators, Inc.
10. Globe Language Services
11. Institute of Foreign Credential Services, Inc.
12. International Academic Credential Evaluators, Inc.
13. International Consultants of Delaware, Inc.
14. International Education Evaluations, Inc.
15. International Education Research Foundation, Inc.
16. Josef Silny and Associates, Inc. International Education Consultants
17. SpanTran: The Evaluation Company
18. Transcript Research
19. World Education Services, Inc.

There are several companies offering credential evaluation services in the US. Among the most popular are.
World Education Services (WES), Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) and Educational Records Evaluation Service (ERES)

.
Each of these companies offers slightly different services and the price may vary depending on the level of assessment required.

WES is a popular choice for degree evaluation and has an impeccable reputation in America, but puts up the most stringent requirements. It is believed that their evaluation will be accepted by any employer and university. However, they may underestimate your level of education. For example, according to the stories on forums, someone was equated postgraduate education to one year of undergraduate study (bachelor’s degree), and someone got a specialist diploma counted as one year of undergraduate study, because it was a two-year correspondence postgraduate education. So the first thing to do is to find out what is required at the particular university you are applying to. If evaluation only from WES is not necessary, it is better to use another company. Also, remember that they don’t evaluate out-of-state universities.

In 2022, the WES requirements have changed, you no longer need to put an apostille and send them the originals, only scans with translations are required (otherwise you won’t get them back and they will be destroyed).

Sending documents to WES

• Before submitting, request confirmation from the educational institutions you attended in your country. If possible, ask the institution to send the confirmation (transcript) electronically to WES. But not all educational institutions are willing to do this, so you will most likely have to do it yourself. And if your academic documents are not released in English, get accurate translations of your transcript and diploma.
• Scan your educational credentials as clearly as possible. Then upload the files to your WES account. Scan and upload the translations to your WES account as well.
• When submitting documents to WES. be sure to write your reference number (reference number) on each document, including the envelope. The ID number is issued on the WES website during the educational assessment application process. It is mandatory for the successful completion of the evaluation.
• If you or your institution sends your documents via courier service, you must pay the shipping costs. WES is not responsible for unpaid shipping charges or any customs fees.

In general, the cost of diploma evaluation at WES varies depending on the purpose of the evaluation and how the documents are sent. There are two ways to send documents with deadlines:

WES ICAP involves storing the report in WES and sending it directly from WES to the requesting party upon request.

WES Basic – the evaluation report is not kept by WES, but is sent to the applicant. If you need a report for the same diploma again, you will need to reapply for evaluation. If you chose the Basic package during the evaluation process and then changed your mind and decided to change to ICAP, you will need to pay an additional $47.

The cost of “course-by-course” evaluation if you choose the WES ICAP package is $217 and the WES Basic package is $170. Document-by-document evaluation costs $154 (WES ICAP) and $170 (WES Basic). Additional fees may apply for rush processing, extra copies and translation services.

Document-by-document evaluation includes:

• education document title
• admission requirements
• term of study
• equivalency with American education

Course-by-course” evaluation includes the same as “document-by-document” but also a list of all courses taken at an institution of higher education; the equivalent of a grade in each course and a GPA on a U.S. 4.0 scale.

WES Reference:
https://www.wes.org/evaluations-and-fees/education/graduate-admissions/

ECE offers the following types of services outlined below. The cost of these services ranges from $100 to $275, depending on the level of evaluation and additional services required.

Sending documents to ECE

1. You must complete and submit an application on their website before submitting your documents. (Press
here
to start the application process).

2. After submitting the online application, you will be asked to print the Document Compliance Form and follow the instructions provided therein

3. If the document requirements for your country of study specify “photocopy or scan” as the document type, you can send this document as a PDF attachment by e-mail to ecemail@ece.org.

4. If the document requirements for your country of study specify “Original” OR “Official document issued in a sealed envelope”, send them to:

ECE

101 W. Pleasant Street, Suite 200

Milwaukee, WI 53212-3963

5. All of your educational records will be returned upon completion of the report, unless the issuing institution has separately indicated that they cannot be transferred to the student.

6. Also prepare an English translation of all documents. Provide complete, legible copies. You can prepare the translation yourself, as long as it is word-for-word and in the same format as the original document. If you are submitting to NABP, follow their documentation requirements here.

7. But for a fee of $50, you do not need to provide English translations. This service is only available for General and General with Grade Average reports, but is not available for reports to NABP (National Association of Boards of Pharmacy).

8. The approximate processing time for reports can take about three weeks. ECE offers a rush service within 5 business days when you submit an online application. More information can be found on the Services and Fees page of this website.

ECE Reference:
https://www.ece.org/

Regarding ERES, according to the reviews on their website, they provide a fast and professional service. The cost of the assessment depends on your goals, e.g. for employment, promotion, immigration, future references, etc., ERES provides the following two types of report:

• General or Document by Document Evaluation (from $215) includes information about the institution of higher education; type of program; date of graduation; degree earned; document citations; and evidence of U.S. educational attainment.
• Course by Course Evaluation (from $325) includes a list of courses taken and a recalculation of grades according to the American educational system (GPA calculation is done for an additional fee of $50).

Sending documents to ERES:

1. You must apply and get a recommendation before you send ERES any paperwork.
2. ERES requires a precise, accurate, word-for-word translation for every document submitted in a language other than English.

List of Acceptable Translations:

• Transfer from an ATA member
• Official translation issued by an educational institution
• Translation by a professional translator or translation agency

For an additional fee depending on the number of items, they can translate your documents for you.

1. Total turnaround time without rush service is 5-7 weeks. An additional fee is required for urgent service:

• R15 (15-day rush service) – $85
• R10 (10-day rush service) – $120
• R5 (5-day rush service) – $180
• R1 (1-day rush service) – $290
• R0 (same day rush service) – $350.

On the official website you can find more information on the page
“Services”
.

ERES Reference:
https://www.eres.com/

It’s important to note that evaluating a diploma takes time and effort, so it’s best to plan ahead and choose a company with a good reputation. This process will save you unnecessary headaches in the future.

So, if you are planning to study or work in the US, you should consider undergoing a diploma evaluation procedure to confirm the validity and equivalence of your foreign diploma and thereby increase your chances of acceptance by universities and employers in the US.

A summary of evaluation timelines at other organizations is provided below.