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By: Alex Nikotina
Published On: October 2, 2017If you are looking into a career as a Canadian Immigration Consultant, you need to meet a few requirements, such as being a Canadian permanent resident or citizen, taking an accredited Immigration Consulting program, and having the necessary language proficiency. After you finish these requirements, you are eligible to become a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) by passing the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC) Full Skills exam.
Immigration Consulting is a very rewarding field: after all, you have an opportunity to change people’s lives by helping them find a new home in Canada. At the same time, being an immigration consultant is not an easy task. Canadian consultants need to not only know the Canadian immigration law and continuously keep up with its updates and changes, but also need to be in a good standing with the regulating body, ICCRC.
The first step to getting the ICCRC accreditation and becoming a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant is passing the ICCRC Full Skills Exam (FSE). If this is making you nervous – you are not the only one. After all, you would need to demonstrate not only the factual knowledge of the immigration law but also an ability to apply that knowledge in different client situations. This means that you really need to be prepared for the exam! Here are a few tips to help you get ready for the FSE and set your expectations on track.
ICCRC Full Skills Exam is a 3-hour-long multiple choice exam. Each question is comprised of a scenario-based situation, and your goal is to choose the best suitable answer in accordance with the Canadian immigration law. The exam is open-book, but don’t count exclusively on that. After all, textbook materials can help you when you are in doubt or need to confirm a clause, but they will not be helpful if you don’t know your material at all.
Helpful tips:
ICCRC publishes a study guide that helps you prepare for the FSE. The guide describes several major sections that exam-takers need to focus on. The latest study guide for RCICs was published on February 1, 2017, outlining the following focus areas for 2017:
Check out the latest study guide for RCICs for more information and further breakdown. Please remember that the study guide from ICCRC is “not intended to serve as an independent preparation tool”, as you are expected to have learned the materials through your immigration practitioner program, as well as other preparation programs and/or resources. This guide only provides focus areas for review before you take the exam.
Helpful tips:
Even if you excelled in your Immigration Consulting program, you should not underestimate the power of preparation. Take a look at the sample questions from ICCRC and make sure you know how to reply to those. If you want to have access to more sample questions or are looking for a refresher before you take the exam, taking an ICCRC Full Skills Exam Prep course can be beneficial for you. You can also practice with your colleagues or classmates by testing each other on different terms, or by discussing various real and/or hypothetical immigration cases. Do whatever helps you study, but remember: practice is what will help you prepare, both for the FSE and for your future as an immigration consultant.
Helpful tips:
The last thing you want to happen is being turned away at the exam doors (you’ll be surprised, but it happens more often than it should). Make sure you bring an original government-issued photo identification, as well as two separate full-colour copies of that ID. Remember that provincial health cards are not accepted!
Helpful tips:
The information contained in this post is considered true and accurate as of the publication date. However, the accuracy of this information may be impacted by changes in circumstances that occur after the time of publication. Ashton College assumes no liability for any error or omissions in the information contained in this post or any other post in our blog.