Getting Canadian Transcripts and Degrees Evaluated for US Admission
By Muntasir • Published Sep 18, 2026 • Updated Sep 20, 2026
Most US schools read your Canadian transcript directly without a third-party evaluation, but Quebec CEGEP records, some graduate applications, and a few strict schools may still require a NACES-member report.
🎓 Outside Quebec, a Grade 12 diploma after 12 years of school counts as equivalent to a US high school diploma.
📩 In Quebec, US schools generally want to see your Secondary V diploma plus CEGEP coursework, since Secondary V alone is only 11 years.
💵 If a school asks for a NACES-member evaluation, pick a member listed at naces.org and choose the US-academic report, not the Canada-immigration version.
⏱️ Order your evaluation as soon as an admission offer requires one, since transcript requests from your old school can take weeks.
Why Canadian transcripts usually need less processing
Canadian secondary and university records already arrive in English, outside Quebec's French-language schools, and use grading systems many US admissions staff already recognize. Because of this, most undergraduate applications from Canada go straight into the standard review process, without an outside credential evaluation. Graduate programs, some transfer applications, and schools with strict documentation policies are more likely to require one, so check each program's application checklist before you assume you need it.
How Canadian systems map onto US expectations
Nine provinces and three territories run a 12-year system that ends in Grade 12, with a diploma such as Ontario's Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or British Columbia's Dogwood Diploma. US schools generally treat this as equivalent to a US high school diploma.
Quebec runs differently. Students finish Secondary V after 11 years and earn a Diplome d'etudes secondaires (DES), then complete some or all of a CEGEP program, a 2-year pre-university diploma called the DEC (Diplome d'etudes collegiales), before entering a 3-year Quebec bachelor's degree. Because the DES alone represents 11 years of school, not 12, many US schools want to see at least some CEGEP transcript alongside the DES to treat your record as equivalent to a full US high school education. Policy varies by school, so confirm directly with each admissions office, and mention your CEGEP program and year in your application if you are applying before you finish it.
At the university level, a 3-year Quebec bachelor's degree built on top of CEGEP, and a 4-year bachelor's degree from another province, both function as a completed undergraduate degree for US graduate admission, since the CEGEP years cover ground that other provinces cover inside the 4-year degree. Some US graduate programs ask applicants to explain this structure in their application, since it looks shorter on paper than a typical 4-year US degree.
Grades: percentages, not GPA
Most Canadian schools grade on a percentage scale rather than a 4.0 GPA. US admissions offices that read Canadian transcripts directly are used to this and convert it internally using their own scale. If a school requires an outside evaluation instead, the evaluator converts your percentage average into a US-style GPA and documents the conversion in the report, which gives you one consistent number to send to every school that requires it.
If you are transferring credit, not just applying fresh
Community college and university transfer applicants need individual course credit evaluated, not just an overall diploma equivalency. A course-by-course NACES report lists each course you took with an assigned US credit and grade value, which the receiving school's registrar then reviews against its own transfer credit policy. Even with a course-by-course report in hand, the final decision on how many credits transfer, and toward which requirement, belongs to the receiving school, not the evaluator.
Timing your evaluation against application deadlines
Work backward from your earliest application deadline. Request your official transcript from your school as soon as you decide which schools need an evaluation, since school registrars can take one to several weeks to process a transcript request during busy periods like the end of a semester. Add the evaluator's stated processing time on top of that, and build in a buffer week for delivery and any follow-up requests for missing documents.
How to order an evaluation if you need one
Check whether your target school's application checklist requires a credential evaluation or NACES evaluation. Many Canadian applicants never need this step.
If it does, pick a member from the current list at naces.org . World Education Services (WES) is the member most Canadian applicants use, since it evaluates for both Canadian immigration and US academic purposes.
Select the academic or admissions evaluation product, not the immigration-focused Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) product built for Canada's own immigration system. They are priced and processed separately, and only the academic report is meant for a US school.
Request your official transcript directly from your Canadian school's registrar and have it sent to the evaluator, not to you, since most evaluators require documents to arrive straight from the issuing institution.
Check current fees and processing time on the evaluator's site before you order, since both change. Rush processing is usually available for an added fee if your deadline is close.
Many Canadian schools now send transcripts electronically through a secure platform such as Parchment rather than mailing a sealed paper copy. Check which delivery method your evaluator or target school accepts before you request your transcript, since choosing the wrong format can add another week to your timeline.
Common mistakes
Ordering the Canada-immigration ECA report by mistake instead of the US-academic version.
Choosing paper mail delivery when your evaluator or school accepts faster electronic delivery instead.
Sending a Quebec CEGEP transcript without the underlying Secondary V record, leaving a gap in your file.
Waiting until an application deadline is close to request transcripts, when your old school may take weeks to process the request.
Assuming every school needs an evaluation, and paying for one your target schools never asked for.