Computer Systems (CS) Group
Education
- Whose responsibility is it to provide documentation to prove that courses taken by a candidate correspond to two years of a post-secondary education?
- Is the manager respecting the minimum educational requirement if he/she only requires a “successful completion of two years of an acceptable post-secondary educational program in computer science”?
- Does the federal public service accept foreign educational credentials from candidates?
Specialization
- Can a manager ask for a specialization other than computer science, information technology or information management?
- Must a manager request all the programs listed in the Qualification Standard for positions classified as CS or can he/she select the relevant ones and/or add any others that are also appropriate?
Grand-parenting or acquired rights
- What is meant by a "grand-parented" employee in the context of the CS education standard? What are they entitled to?
- If a "grand-parented" CS is appointed indeterminately to another occupational group and subsequently wishes to be appointed or deployed back to the CS Group, is he/she still deemed to meet the minimum educational standard (i.e. does the grand-parenting provision continue to apply to him/her)? What happens if he/she is appointed or deployed to a position in an organization that does not staff under the authority of the PSEA, or leaves the public service altogether?
- What is the status of former employees of the CS Group who are now working in organizations that do not staff under the authority of the PSEA, e.g. Parks Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency?
- What is the status of former employees of the CS Group who are now working at the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)?
- What happens to a CRA employee (CS) who was appointed after May 10, 1999, who does not meet the CS qualification standard and who is being considered for an appointment or deployment in an organization that staffs under the authority of the PSEA?
- What happens when a CS employee applies to an advertised process for a position in the CS Group and the educational requirement is raised above the minimum? Is the employee deemed to meet the higher educational requirement if he/she has acquired rights?
Alternatives
- Is a manager obliged to use the alternative to the minimum education (i.e. an acceptable combination of education, training and /or experience)?
- Could the manager accept an alternative to education when requesting higher than the minimum educational standard when staffing positions classified as CS?
- If a candidate meets the minimum educational standard for the CS Group by means of an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience, does he/she meet this requirement for all CS positions?
- Can a manager decide that a secondary school diploma is the minimum he/she is prepared to accept under education when an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience is used as an alternative to the minimum educational standard for the CS Group?
Education
1. Whose responsibility is it to provide documentation to prove that courses taken by a candidate correspond to two years of a post-secondary education?
It is the candidate's responsibility to provide the appropriate documentation from the recognized educational institution to show that the courses taken correspond to two-years of a post-secondary education. As stated on Note 2 of the CS Group Qualification Standard, it is the recognized educational institution (e.g. community college, CEGEP or university) that would be in a position to determine whether the courses taken by a candidate correspond to two years of a post-secondary program at that institution.
2. Is the manager respecting the minimum educational requirement if he/she only requires a “successful completion of two years of an acceptable post-secondary educational program in computer science”?
Yes. Computer science is one of the specializations accepted for the CS Group. However, if the manager decides to restrict the specialization to only one specific program, this constitutes raising the minimum educational standard.
3. Does the federal public service accept foreign educational credentials from candidates?
The federal public service will accept foreign educational credentials as long as a recognized credential assessment service has deemed them comparable to Canadian standards. If the candidate was educated outside of Canada, he/she must have his/her certificates and /or diplomas assessed against Canadian educational standards. This will enable him or her to provide proof of Canadian equivalency when applying for a job in the federal public service.
The Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (CICIC) assists persons who wish to obtain an assessment of their educational, professional and occupational credentials by referring them to the appropriate organizations. The CICIC does not itself grant equivalencies or assess credentials, nor does it intervene on behalf of individuals or in complaints to the Public Service Staffing Tribunal. For more information on the assessment of foreign educational credentials, visit the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials website.
Specialization
4. Can a manager ask for a specialization other than computer science, information technology or information management?
Yes. The educational standard for positions classified as CS provides for the possibility of asking for a specialization other than those listed, however the specialization must be relevant to the position being staffed. The manager is responsible for establishing the qualifications for a position.
5. Must a manager request all the programs listed in the Qualification Standard for positions classified as CS or can he/she select the relevant ones and/or add any others that are also appropriate?
The manager can list as few or as many programs as he/she wishes, depending on the needs of the position. Alternatively, a manager may also choose to include a field that is not listed, as long as it is relevant to the duties to be performed.
Grand-parenting or acquired rights
6. What is meant by a "grand-parented" employee in the context of the CS education standard? What are they entitled to?
An “employee”, as defined in section 2 of the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA), is grand-parented if, on May 10, 1999, he/she was an indeterminate incumbent of a position in the CS Group. Under this provision, the employee is deemed to meet the minimum educational standard for the CS Group. However, if the individual ceases to be an "employee" for whatever reason (except as in # 9 below) or if the manager raises the educational requirement for a given process, the grand-parenting provision no longer applies.
7. If a "grand-parented" CS is appointed indeterminately to another occupational group and subsequently wishes to be appointed or deployed back to the CS Group, is he/she still deemed to meet the minimum educational standard (i.e. does the grand-parenting provision continue to apply to him/her)? What happens if he/she is appointed or deployed to a position in an organization that does not staff under the authority of the PSEA, or leaves the public service altogether?
As long as the employee was an indeterminate incumbent of a position in the CS Group on May 10, 1999, and remained an employee as defined in section 2 of the PSEA, that employee may leave the CS Group and return and retain his/her "grand-parenting" protection. However, if the person ceases to be employed in an organization that staffs under the authority of the PSEA, or leaves the public service altogether, he/she would no longer be considered an "employee" and would lose his/her grand-parenting protection. If that person subsequently wishes to return to an organization that staffs under the authority of the PSEA, he/she would need to meet the minimum educational standard in order to be appointed to a position classified as CS.
8. What is the status of former employees of the CS Group who are now working in organizations that do not staff under the authority of the PSEA, e.g. Parks Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency?
Since these organizations do not staff under the authority of the PSEA, an individual who has chosen to work in one of these organizations would no longer be considered an “employee” and would, therefore, lose his/her grand-parenting protection. He/she would need to meet the minimum educational standard for appointment back into the CS Group.
9. What is the status of former employees of the CS Group who are now working at the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)?
A former CS who became a CRA employee maintains his/her grand-parenting protection as long as this person was an indeterminate CS on May 10, 1999. CRA’s enabling legislation provides its employees the right to be considered for appointments or deployments as if they were “employees” as defined in the PSEA. However, if an employee moves to a separate agency that does not staff under the authority of the PSEA, the grand-parenting provision would no longer apply and the person would need to meet the minimum educational standard if he/she wishes to return to an organization that staffs under the authority of the PSEA.
10. What happens to a CRA employee (CS) who was appointed after May 10, 1999, who does not meet the CS qualification standard and who is being considered for an appointment or deployment in an organization that staffs under the authority of the PSEA?
The grand-parenting protection applies to indeterminate CSs who were in the group on May 10, 1999. If an employee was appointed to a CS position at CRA after May 10, 1999, and does not meet the minimum educational standard, he/she would not have grand-parenting protection and would need to meet the minimum educational standard in order to be appointed to a position classified as CS in an organization that staffs under the authority of the PSEA.
11. What happens when a CS employee applies to an advertised process for a position in the CS Group and the educational requirement is raised above the minimum? Is the employee deemed to meet the higher educational requirement if he/she has acquired rights?
No. Acquired rights/grand-parenting protection do not apply when the educational requirement is raised above the minimum. The employee would need to meet the higher educational requirement.
Alternatives
12. Is a manager obliged to use the alternative to the minimum education (i.e. an acceptable combination of education, training and /or experience)?
No. There is no obligation for a manager to use the alternative. The PSEA provides deputy heads and their delegates with the flexibility to develop hiring processes that best meet their organizations’ strategic objectives and human resources plans. In any given CS appointment process, the hiring manager is delegated to determine if a combination of education, training and/or experience would be acceptable as an alternative to the minimum educational standard. When used, the alternative must be specified on the Statement of Merit Criteria.
13. Could the manager accept an alternative to education when requesting higher than the minimum educational standard when staffing positions classified as CS?
Yes. At the manager’s discretion, he/she could accept an employer-approved alternative for the higher level of education as long as that alternative does not go below the minimum educational standard. When used, the alternative must be specified on the Statement of Merit Criteria.
14. If a candidate meets the minimum educational standard for the CS Group by means of an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience, does he/she meet this requirement for all CS positions?
No. Whenever the minimum educational standard is met via the alternative, it is met for the specific position only and candidates must be re-assessed for any other appointment for which this alternative has been specified by the manager.
15. Can a manager decide that a secondary school diploma is the minimum he/she is prepared to accept under education when an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience is used as an alternative to the minimum educational standard for the CS Group?
Yes. If education is used as part of the combination (i.e. education and experience; education and training; education, training and experience), the manager may specify that candidates must possess at least a secondary school diploma. In this situation, the manager would not accept any alternatives for a secondary school diploma—however, equivalencies granted by provincial and territorial authorities (e.g. General Education Development, (GED) which is a secondary school equivalent), must always be accepted as equivalent to the respective level of education.
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