This
category covers your processes for assessing all qualifications, such
as academic credentials, competencies, language ability or practical
experience.
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| a) List the criteria that
must be met in order for an applicant’s qualifications to satisfy the
entry-to-practice requirements for your profession. | -
To satisfy entry-to-practice requirements, the following qualifications
in the areas of program, practice, examination and good conduct are
listed. These requirements are from the Nursing Act from Section 5 to
11.1. Listed below are the requirements for General Class and Extended
Class.
Program requirements:
In the case of RNs the applicant:
i. must have received a baccalaureate degree in nursing granted by
a university in Ontario whose program was, at the time the applicant
graduated, approved by a body or bodies designated by the Council or by
the Council itself,
ii. must have received a baccalaureate degree in nursing granted
by a university in another province or territory in Canada that, at the
time the applicant graduated, was, in the opinion of the Registration
Committee, equivalent to the degree described in subparagraph i,
iii. must have graduated prior to January 1, 2005 from a nursing
program in another province or territory in Canada that was, at the
time the applicant graduated, accepted by the regulatory body for
nursing in that province or territory and been registered with that
regulatory body or another regulatory body for nursing in a province or
territory in Canada in an equivalent class prior to January 1, 2005,
iv. must have graduated from a nursing program outside Canada
that the Registration Committee determines was, at the time the
applicant graduated, equivalent to a nursing program in Ontario that is
currently approved in accordance with subparagraph i, or
v. must have graduated from a nursing program other than one
referred to in subparagraph i, ii, iii or iv and must also satisfy the
Registration Committee that he or she has obtained additional nursing
education or experience that, together with the education provided by
the nursing program from which he or she graduated, is equivalent to
the education provided by a nursing program in Ontario that is
currently approved in accordance with subparagraph i.
RPNs applicants to the general class :
i. must have received a diploma in practical nursing granted by a
College of Applied Arts and Technology in Ontario whose program was, at
the time the applicant graduated, approved by a body or bodies
designated by the Council or by the Council itself,
ii. must have received a diploma in practical nursing granted in
another province or territory in Canada that, at the time the applicant
graduated, was, in the opinion of the Registration Committee,
equivalent to the diploma described in subparagraph i,
iii. must have graduated prior to January 1, 2005 from a
practical nursing program in another province or territory in Canada
that was, at the time the applicant graduated, accepted by the
regulatory body for practical nursing in that province or territory and
been registered with that regulatory body or another regulatory body
for practical nursing in a province or territory in Canada in an
equivalent class prior to January 1, 2005,
iv. must have graduated from a practical nursing program outside
Canada that the Registration Committee determines was, at the time the
applicant graduated, equivalent to a practical nursing program in
Ontario that is currently approved in accordance with subparagraph i,
v. must have graduated from a practical nursing program other
than one referred to in subparagraph i, ii, iii or iv and must also
satisfy the Registration Committee that he or she has obtained
additional practical nursing education or experience that, together
with the education provided by the practical nursing program from which
he or she graduated, is equivalent to the education provided by a
practical nursing program in Ontario that is currently approved in
accordance with subparagraph i, or
vi. must have graduated from one of the nursing programs referred
to in paragraph 1 of subsection (1) or paragraph 1 of subsection (1.1)
and must also satisfy the Registration Committee that he or she has
obtained additional practical nursing education or experience that,
together with the education provided by the nursing program from which
he or she graduated, is equivalent to the preparation provided by a
practical nursing program in Ontario that is currently approved in
accordance with subparagraph i. |
| b) Describe the methodology
used to determine whether a program completed outside of Canada
satisfies the requirements for registration. | -
If the Applicant’s educational program has not previously been assessed
by the College and it was completed outside Canada, the College refers
the documents to World Education Services (WES).
- WES evaluates the education level equivalency. The College
absorbs the cost of the WES assessment and then carries out a
paper-based content and competency assessment to determine if the
nursing program is comparable to an Ontario nursing program.
- If the assessment finds that the education requirement is met,
the Applicant is eligible to apply for the exam. Failure to meet the
educational requirement based on the education program alone means the
Applicant is requested to provide any additional education and/or work
experience information to the College.
- If an Applicant has additional education and/or work experience,
the file is referred to a work group of expert nurses to review and
make a recommendation on education equivalency.
- The file and the work group’s recommendation are sent to the Registration Committee for a decision. The decision is to either:
• register the Applicant, or
• register the Applicant with terms, limitations or conditions imposed on the certificate, or
• refuse the Applicant, or
• refer the application back to staff for further information.
- Alternatively, if the Applicant has no other education or
experience, the file is referred to the Registration Committee for a
decision.
- All applications referred to the Registration Committee are
reviewed for two factors: to see if the Applicant’s basic program meets
the education requirement, and if it does not, then to see if their
nursing experience and additional education along with the basic
nursing program are equivalent to the education requirement. |
| c) Explain how work experience in the profession is assessed. | -
For Applicant's work experience to be accepted, the College requires
verification of registration directly from the jurisdiction (province,
territory or country) where Applicant worked as a nurse, or are
eligible to be registered, licensed or certified.
- The College requires verification of registration from any other
jurisdictions where applicant has worked, or still are, registered,
licensed or certified as nurses.
- Graduation from an approved Registered Nurse or Registered
Practical Nurse program within the last five years, is considered as
evidence of recent safe practice.
- If the Applicant has worked as a nurse outside Ontario, the
College requires evidence of recent safe nursing practice, such as a
reference from the most recent employer verifying that the Applicant
worked a minimum of 1,125 hours in nursing within the previous five
years.
- Applicants are required to request their employer(s) to complete
the Verification of Employment and Reference (B-4) form that is
included in the application package. This form must be received
directly by the College from the employer.
- The 1,125 hours of nursing practice does not have to be Canadian
experience. In addition, this requirement is flexible, and Applicants
with less than 1,125 hours of nursing experience will be assessed
individually by the Registration Committee.
- If the College receives verification that an Applicant does not
meet the recent safe practice requirement, the file is referred to the
Registration Committee for a decision.
- If the Applicant’s demonstrated five years of safe nursing
practice ends before he or she passes the registration examination, the
Applicant may still attempt the exam but is required to complete
additional education before becoming eligible to register.
- An Applicant who has not worked in nursing in the past five years
and completed a nursing program more than five years ago is required to
complete additional education. The length of the study required is
based on the number of years since the applicant last practised
nursing.
- The requirements for registration in the Extended Class is that
the Applicant will have to show evidence of a minimum of two years of
safe experience, of which one year has to be in advanced practice. |
| d) Describe how your
organization ensures that information used in the assessment about
educational systems and credentials of applicants from outside Canada
is current and accurate. | - The use of a
credible third party credential evaluation agency, like WES, ensures
the currency of documents used for assessment.
- The College provides WES with documents that were received by the
College directly from the official source. For example, the College
requests that, if possible, transcripts be provided directly from the
official source to the College.
- The College then supplies these original documents to WES for
their evaluation and consideration. WES validates that these documents
are from the official source, and when unsatisfied about the
authenticity of a document, WES clarifies this with the official source
of the documents.
- The College, upon receiving the documentation, ensures that the
documents contain the appropriate seals and/or signatures based on a
repository of documents on site.
- College staff have received training and education on assessing
the authenticity of documentation which assists in the identification
of accurate and current documentation.
- Information provided by the Applicant can trigger processes that
require us to conduct research and consult other jurisdictions in
ensuring assessments are accurate. |
| e) Describe how previous
assessment decisions are used to assist in maintaining consistency when
assessing credentials of applicants from the same jurisdictions or
institutions. | - The database used at the
College is a repository of information that has been collected over a
number of the years. The database retains the results of prior
credential assessments of educational programs that were evaluated by
WES and further reviewed by College staff.
- Results of the evaluations completed by WES, are stored in the
database for use in assessing Applicants that have applied with a
program that has previously been assessed.
- If a program is reviewed and approved, the information is
captured and the next Applicant from the same program is assessed based
on the previous assessment.
- Documents of previous assessments are also available to staff for
reference. Comparison often helps even in checking authenticity of
documentation submitted by Applicants. |
| f ) Explain how the status
of an institution in its home country affects recognition of the
credentials of applicants by your organization. | -
The status of an institution in the home country is not significant.
The content of the programs are evaluated to ensure the competencies
expected in an equivalent Ontario nursing program are present. |
| g) Describe how your organization accommodates applicants with special needs, such as visual impairment. | - All Applicants are provided with an opportunity to request special accommodations for an exam.
- The documentation that the College requests once a special
accommodation request has been received is dependent upon the request
and may include, for example, a diagnosis from a specialist for those
requesting special accommodations due to a medical condition or
impairment, or a psycho-educational assessment for those who are
requesting special accommodation arising from a learning disability.
- The specialist's information will indicate a diagnosis and a
recommendation regarding what special accommodations are necessary to
assist the Applicant and how the accommodation might compensate for the
disadvantage(s) that may be faced by the Applicant if they did not
receive special accommodation.
As mentioned earlier the types of accommodation provided are:
a) Separate Room
b) Time and a Half extra time
c) Double time extra time
d) Reader
e) Recorder
f) Software assisted reader
g) Calculator |
| h) State the average length
of time required to complete the entire registration process, from when
the process is initiated to when a registration decision is issued. | -
As stated earlier, average length of time has not been calculated to
date as there is a significant amount of time in obtaining
documentation and for an applicant to meet a requirement (i.e. pass the
exam) that is not within the control of the College but rather in the
control of third parties (education facilities, employers, translaters,
and other registering bodies) and the applicant. |
| i. State whether the average time differs for internationally trained individuals. | - Yes, the time is significantly different. |
| ii. If the average time
differs for internationally trained individuals, state whether it is
greater or less than the average for all applicants, and the reasons
for the difference. | - International Applicants take longer to register than Ontario applicants.
- International Applicants require
1) verification of their education program from the school which
takes time to receive and validate documentation as it is up to the
school to provide, while Ontario Applicants programs are approved prior
to students being enrolled in them;
2) verification of their practice from current and past
employer(s) takes time to receive and validate documentation as it is
up to the employer to provide, while Ontario Applicants practice is
usually contained in their approved program;
3) fluency in English or French may require passing a test, while
Ontario Applicants meet this by graduating from an approved Ontario
program;
4) International applicants exam pass rates are usually lower than Ontario applicants particularly do to communication issues;
5) general retrieval of documentation takes time to communicate, clarify, receive and validate; and
6) translation may be required of documents received from third parties. |
i) If your organization conducts credential assessments:
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| i. Explain how you determine the level (e.g., baccalaureate, master’s, Ph.D.) of the credential presented for assessment. | Vist the WES website for this information. (www.wes.org) |
| ii. Describe the criteria that are applied to determine equivalency. | -
Apart from the level of the credential, the College analyzes the
transcripts to determine if the competency elements are present.
- With the assistance of educators (University and College
partners), the College has been able to summarize the competencies in
programs offered in Ontario into elements.
- The presence of these elements in the programs completed by
Internationally Educated Nurse Applicants is used for meeting the
competencies and for determining the equivalency to a current program
in Ontario.
- If the program does not meet the requirement the applicant is
allowed to demonstrate that the basic program and any additional
nursing education and/or practice is equivalent to a current Ontario
program for registration by completing a Baccalaureate Equivalency
Table. Instructions are provided to assist the applicant. |
| iii. Explain how work experience is taken into account. | - Work experience is not considered in credential assessment. |
j) If your organization conducts competency assessments:
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| i. Describe the methodology used to evaluate competency. | -
For Applicants whose program was previously assessed by WES as
equivalent to an approved Ontario Baccalaureate in Nursing program for
Registered Nurse Applicants or an approved Ontario diploma in Nursing
program for Registered Practical Nurse Applicants, an assessment by the
College is completed to determine whether their program includes the
required competencies.
- Apart from the level of the credential, the College analyzes the
Applicant's transcripts to determine if the competency elements are
present.
- For Applicants whose program is not deemed equivalent to an
approved Ontario baccalaureate in nursing for Registered Nurse
Applicants or an approved diploma in nursing for Registered Practical
Nurse applicants, their program is also reviewed to determine which
elements may be absent from their transcripts and other supporting
documents.
- The Registered Nurse Applicants who have completed additional
education or work experience in nursing are asked to complete and
submit an Baccalaureate Equivalency Table ("BET").
- Applicants are asked to complete the table in order to provide
evidence of the nursing competencies in their work experience and/or
additional education.
- The Baccalaureate Equivalency Work Group, described above,
reviews the Applicant's original nursing education, additional
education and work experience and the BET.
- The Baccalaureate Equivalency Work Group's opinions are then
provided to the Registration Committee who completes a similar review
of the Applicant's file. |
| ii. Explain how the methodology used to evaluate competency is validated, and how often it is validated. | -
The Entry to Practice Department at the College remains up to date and
acts as a resource in constructing and developing competencies in the
nursing profession.
- The College has formed strong relationships with nursing
educators and institutions of higher education also involved in the
development of nursing competencies and nursing programs.
- The elements that are engaged to determine program equivalence
for both national and international Applicants are frequently reviewed
by the College's Entry to Practice Department to ensure currency and
validity.
- When competencies change or are amended, the Entry to Practice
Department reviews the elements to ensure that they remain reflective
of the current nursing competencies. |
| iii. Explain how work experience is used in the assessment of competency. | -
The Applicant is offered an opportunity to submit any documents they
believe may be helpful to the Registration Committee in assessing their
applications.
- Applicants often submit job descriptions and employer references
to the Registration Committee. The Applicant may also choose to draw on
their work experience in completing their BET table.
- The Registration Committee reviews all of these documents when completing an assessment of competency. |
k) If your organization conducts prior learning assessments:
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| i. Describe the methodology used to evaluate prior learning. | - The Applicant is encouraged to submit additional documents they would like reviewed by the Registration Committee.
- Some common examples of documents submitted by Applicants include
job descriptions, employer references, course descriptions and a BET
table.
- These items are first reviewed by the Baccalaureate Equivalent
Work Group for Registered Nurse Applicants. The work group's opinion
regarding competency equivalency is then provided to the Registration
Committee.
- The Registration Committee reviews all applicant documentation to
decide whether the Applicant has evidence of the required competencies
and then determines equivalency. |
| ii. Explain how the methodology used to evaluate prior learning is validated, and how often it is validated. | -The Baccalaureate Equivalent Work Group applies their nursing knowledge, skill, and judgement in assessing applications.
- The work group is comprised of nursing experts that are active in
the community of nursing education. The work group provides a report on
the competencies that are present and/or absent from the applicant's
information.
- The elements that are used to determine program equivalencies are
reviewed and updated by the Entry to Practice Department that is
involved in the development of nursing competencies. |
| iii. Explain how work experience is used in the assessment of prior learning. | -
The Applicant's job descriptions and employer references are reviewed
by both the Baccalaureate Equivalent Work Group and the Registration
Committee for evidence of the competencies required for either
Registered Nurses.
- The Applicant's job descriptions and employer references are
reviewed by the Registration Committee for evidence of the competencies
required for either Registered Practical Nurses.
- The applicant is asked to draw on their work experience in
completing their BET table. The Registration Committee reviews all of
these documents when completing an assessment of competency. |
l) If your organization administers examinations:
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| i. Describe the exam format, scoring method and number of rewrites permitted. | - Multiple choice format
- Pass marks are set using the modified Angoff method.
- 2 rewrites are permitted (according to regulation). |
| ii. Describe how the exam
is tested for validity and reliability. If results are below desired
levels, describe how you correct the deficiencies. | - The exams are national examinations provided by a third party vendor (Canadian Nurses Association and Assessment Services Inc.
- All Canadian jurisdictions (except Quebec) participate in the blueprint development, item writing, and exam review.
- Validation and reliability testing is done by Psychometricians at the third party vendor.
- Exams are not administered if found not valid or reliable.
- An Examination Administration Committee (composed of
representatives from the participating jurisdictions) reviews the item
bank and sets exams pass scores using the modified Angoff method.
- Jurisdictional reviews also occur to ensure that jurisdictional issues are addressed. |
| iii. State how often exam questions are updated and the process for doing so. | - Questions are retired based upon changes to the blueprint, which is reviewed every five years.
- Questions are retired based on frequency of use and validity testing.
- Questions are added to the item bank each year following appropriate testing. |