> Source: https://coursetojob.com/guides/degree-recognition-abroad/ — updated 2026-09-25 · language: en > Markdown version of this CourseToJob page for AI agents. The HTML page is canonical. Data licence CC BY 4.0: cite the page URL and the original statistical source. Guide # Will my degree be recognised abroad? How recognition works Updated September 25, 2026 6 min read [How we use data](https://coursetojob.com/methodology/) In short Whether your degree is recognised abroad depends on what you need it for. For further study or most jobs, an official statement of comparability or a credential evaluation is usually enough. For regulated professions such as medicine, nursing, engineering, law and teaching, you need approval from the regulator in the new country, which can involve exams, supervised practice or extra study. Start early, keep full records of your studies and use official recognition bodies. ## What does degree recognition mean? Recognition means that an official body in another country accepts that your qualification is comparable to one in its own system. One kind of recognition does not guarantee another: a university may accept your degree for a master's while the medical or engineering regulator still asks for exams. And every kind of recognition depends on your institution being properly recognised in its own country. There are three main kinds of recognition, and different organisations decide each one: - Academic recognition: a university decides whether your degree gives you access to further study, such as a master's or PhD. - Professional recognition: a regulator decides whether you can work in a regulated profession, such as doctor, nurse, engineer, lawyer or teacher. - Recognition for employment or immigration: employers, public-sector recruiters and immigration authorities decide how your degree compares, often using an official comparability statement or evaluation. ## Which international agreements help? Several agreements set shared rules for recognition. They make the process fairer and more predictable, but they do not give you an automatic right to work in a regulated profession. The most important are: - The Lisbon Recognition Convention of 1997, from the Council of Europe and UNESCO, covers most of Europe and some other countries, such as Australia, Canada, Israel and New Zealand. Qualifications should be recognised unless the authority can show a substantial difference. - The UNESCO Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education was adopted in 2019 and entered into force in 2023. It sets global principles for fair, transparent and non-discriminatory recognition, including for refugees. - Regional UNESCO recognition conventions also cover Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Arab States. - The Bologna Process created the European Higher Education Area, with a shared degree structure and credit system in countries from Iceland to Kazakhstan. - The Washington Accord is an agreement between engineering accreditation bodies in countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas and Oceania. Members treat each other's accredited engineering degrees as substantially equivalent. - Within the European Union, doctors, nurses, dentists, midwives, pharmacists, vets and architects trained in member states can benefit from automatic recognition when their training meets shared minimum standards. ## How to get your degree recognised: step by step The exact process depends on the country. Some authorities ask your university to send documents or confirm your degree directly, so contact your university early, especially if you graduated many years ago or the institution has closed or merged. Most recognition applications follow these steps: - Decide why you need recognition: further study, a regulated profession, a general job or a visa. - Find the right authority: a university admissions office, a national recognition centre, a professional regulator or an immigration body. - Check that your institution and programme were officially recognised in their home country when you studied. - Collect your degree certificate, full transcripts, course descriptions and proof of internships or clinical practice, plus a Diploma Supplement if you studied in the European Higher Education Area. - Get certified translations where the authority asks for them. - Authenticate documents if required, for example with an apostille in countries that belong to the Hague Apostille Convention, or through embassy legalisation. - Submit the application, pay any fee and allow weeks or months for a decision. - If the result is negative or partial, ask for the reasons in writing and whether you can appeal or complete extra requirements. ## How does recognition work in different countries? Each country organises recognition in its own way. In Europe, and in some countries elsewhere such as Canada, a national ENIC-NARIC centre gives information and, in many cases, official statements on how foreign qualifications compare with local ones. In the United States, there is no single national authority for recognising degrees. Universities, employers and state licensing boards make their own decisions and often ask for a report from a credential-evaluation service. Choose a service that the organisation you are applying to accepts. In Canada, immigration applications usually need an Educational Credential Assessment from a designated organisation, while provincial regulators handle professional licensing. Many other countries have an official process to confirm or validate foreign degrees, which is often needed for public-sector jobs, further study or professional registration. Examples include evaluation by the national qualifications authority in South Africa, equivalence certificates from education ministries in several Gulf states, verification of overseas degrees for returning graduates in China and revalidation by public universities in Brazil. In Australia, skilled migration usually requires a skills assessment by the body responsible for your occupation. ## What about regulated professions? Regulated professions need the most preparation. The regulator in each country, or sometimes each state or province, decides who can practise. In the European Union, the Regulated Professions Database shows which professions are regulated in each member state and which authority to contact. Typical requirements for common regulated professions include: - Doctors: your medical school usually needs to be listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools. Most countries then require licensing exams, a language test and a period of supervised practice, and some require you to repeat specialist training. - Nurses: registration with the nursing regulator, an assessment of your education, often a competence test and an approved language test. Some countries offer bridging programmes. - Civil and other engineers: an accredited degree under the Washington Accord helps, but a professional engineering licence usually also requires work experience and sometimes exams on local codes, law and ethics. - Lawyers: law is specific to each legal system, so you usually need further study, conversion exams or a local bar exam. Some places let foreign lawyers advise on their home country's law as foreign legal consultants. - Secondary teachers: state schools usually require registration or certification, which can involve an assessment of your teaching qualification and subject knowledge and a period of supervised teaching. International schools may have different rules. ## What if your degree is not fully recognised? Partial recognition is common, and it does not mean you cannot work in your field. The Lisbon Recognition Convention and the Global Convention say that applicants should receive the reasons for a decision and be able to appeal, so keep copies of all correspondence. Ask the authority exactly what is missing, then consider these options: - Take bridging modules, top-up courses or supervised practice to fill specific gaps. - Sit an aptitude test or complete an adaptation period, which some countries offer instead of full retraining. - Study for a master's degree in the new country, which gives you a local qualification. - Work in a related, unregulated role while you complete the requirements, for example in research, health administration or compliance. - If you are a refugee without full documents, ask about qualifications passport schemes, such as those run by the Council of Europe and UNESCO, which assess qualifications through interviews and the evidence available. ## Common mistakes that slow recognition down Most delays can be avoided. Watch out for these common problems: - Waiting until you have moved before starting the process. - Not keeping course descriptions and syllabuses, which regulators may ask for years later. - Using unofficial translations or uncertified copies. - Studying with an unrecognised provider, or a degree mill that sells certificates without real study. - Assuming that a degree from the European Higher Education Area gives automatic access to regulated jobs. - Confusing permission to live in a country with permission to practise a profession there. ## Frequently asked questions **Is a degree from one country valid in another?** A degree from a recognised institution is usually accepted as evidence of your education in other countries, but it may need to be formally recognised or evaluated before an employer, university or regulator accepts it. For regulated professions, the degree alone is rarely enough, and you normally need approval from the regulator in the new country as well. **What is ENIC-NARIC?** ENIC-NARIC is a network of national information centres on the recognition of qualifications. The ENIC centres were set up by the Council of Europe and UNESCO, and the NARIC centres by the European Union. Most members are in Europe, but the network also includes some countries elsewhere, such as Canada. Your national centre can explain how your degree compares and who makes recognition decisions. **How long does degree recognition take?** It depends on the country and the purpose. A statement of comparability or a credential evaluation often takes a few weeks to a few months once all documents are received. Recognition for a regulated profession usually takes longer, sometimes a year or more if you need exams, language tests or supervised practice. Start before you move and check current processing times with the authority. **Can I work as a doctor or nurse in another country?** Usually yes, but not straight away. You must register with the medical or nursing regulator in the new country. This normally involves checking your qualifications, passing licensing exams or a competence test, proving your language skills and sometimes completing supervised practice. Requirements differ widely, so contact the regulator early. Within the European Union, many qualifications gained in member states are recognised automatically. ## Careers in this guide - **[Doctor](https://coursetojob.com/careers/doctor/)** — Doctors diagnose and treat illness and injury, help prevent disease and guide patients through their care. - **[Nurse](https://coursetojob.com/careers/nurse/)** — Registered nurses care for patients, give medicines and treatments, watch for changes in their condition and support them and their families. - **[Civil engineer](https://coursetojob.com/careers/civil-engineer/)** — Civil engineers plan, design and oversee the building and upkeep of roads, bridges, railways, tunnels, water systems, dams and large buildings. - **[Lawyer](https://coursetojob.com/careers/lawyer/)** — Lawyers advise people, businesses and governments on their legal rights and duties, draft legal documents and represent clients in negotiations and in court. - **[Secondary school teacher](https://coursetojob.com/careers/secondary-teacher/)** — Secondary school teachers teach one or two subjects to students aged about eleven or twelve to eighteen and prepare them for national exams. ## Subjects in this guide - **[Medicine](https://coursetojob.com/subjects/medicine/)** — A medicine degree trains you to diagnose, treat and prevent illness, combining medical science with supervised clinical work in hospitals and communities. 4 linked careers - **[Nursing](https://coursetojob.com/subjects/nursing/)** — A nursing degree prepares you to care for patients and families in hospitals, clinics, homes and communities, combining health science with supervised practice on clinical placements. 4 linked careers - **[Civil engineering](https://coursetojob.com/subjects/civil-engineering/)** — A civil engineering degree teaches how to design, build and maintain the structures and systems that communities depend on, such as roads, bridges, railways, buildings, water supply and flood defences. 6 linked careers - **[Law](https://coursetojob.com/subjects/law/)** — A law degree teaches how legal systems work and how to find, interpret and apply the law, from contracts and crime to human rights. 6 linked careers ## Sources 1. [ENIC-NARIC network](https://www.enic-naric.net/) 2. [UNESCO Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education](https://www.unesco.org/en/higher-education/global-convention) 3. [International Engineering Alliance (Washington Accord)](https://www.internationalengineeringalliance.org/) 4. [European Commission — Regulated professions database](https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/regprof/) **How to cite this page:** CourseToJob (2026). Will my degree be recognised abroad? How recognition works. https://coursetojob.com/guides/degree-recognition-abroad/ (accessed September 26, 2026) [Report a data or content issue](mailto:hello@elitedigitalagency.io?subject=Data%20issue%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fcoursetojob.com%2Fguides%2Fdegree-recognition-abroad%2F) **On this page** 1. What does degree recognition mean? 2. Which international agreements help? 3. How to get your degree recognised: step by step 4. How does recognition work in different countries? 5. What about regulated professions? 6. What if your degree is not fully recognised? 7. Common mistakes that slow recognition down 8. Frequently asked questions