Architects’ Promised Land?!
The American version of the Chamber of Architects, i.e.”The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB)“ has been doling out some pretty unusual advice to unemployed architects: “If you have enough experience and want a job, try your luck in Canada!” While on the one hand some 40.000 architects lost their jobs in just the first crisis wave in the US last year, on the other side of the border, in Canada, trained and experienced architects are in high demand.
Reasons for this unusual and almost unique world trend are plentiful. At a time when, in the majority of crisis-stricken countries worldwide, development has fallen into the background, it’s in full swing in Canada. The next unusual fact is that Canada has around 9.000 registered architects while there are 105.000 registered architects in the US (Canada is just shy of 35 million inhabitants, what is a mere tenth of the total population of the US). One of Canada’s further major problems is that its population leans toward the elderly while there is a lack of young educated professionals that are ready to step up when their older colleagues retire. Precisely due to that negative age trend it’s anticipated that the lack of architects will be felt even more in years to come.
The solution imposing itself on the Canadian government is as follows: make it easier for foreign architects with adequate work experience to come live and work in Canada. Something similar to this move made by the Canadian government cannot currently be expected in the recession-stricken US. Namely, aid in the amount of just over 1.6 million dollars was realigned to two leading architectural institutions: “The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada“ and the “Canadian Architectural Licensing Authorities (CALA)“. The main objective of the project is to facilitate foreign architects to register for work in Canada. This move is just a part of an all-inclusive government strategy named “The Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications“. It strives to fill in workplaces for various professionals which the country is currently lacking.
Experienced foreign architects who want to live and work in Canada, and meet the requirements for obtaining a Canadian license, will get a work permit for a period of no longer than one year. Those who don’t succeed in their endeavors will be required to submit additional requests or will transfer to alternative jobs corresponding to their skills and experience, and which Canadian society is also lacking in. These regulations don’t pertain to US architects already covered by the Reciprocal Trade Agreement Contract.
The government’s agency “Human Resources and Skills Development Canada“ published on its website that it wants to facilitate a migration of professionals to Canada and encourage them to use their skills and experience on the Canadian job market. As opposed to other countries, they’ll do anything so their incomers who contribute to the community feel equal to other Canadian residents and not like second-rate citizens.
There’s nevertheless a disappointed group of professionals who aren’t very charmed with this otherwise quite positive story, especially considering the current bleak times. Namely, Canadian citizens that obtained their degree in Canada, but have an American license and have been living and working in the States for awhile now are bitter on account of the government’s new policy as they hold that a return to their homeland isn’t being encouraged. In order to obtain a Canadian license and open their own office have to set aside a considerable figure for various red-tape expenses, money they don’t have in these financially challenging times. While on the other hand, the government is funding and facilitating foreigners to come to their native land.
