Credentials evaluation and translation

[Scotriel 2]

Hi everyone, I'm looking to have my french diplomas evaluated for the (in)famous i-944, went on internation education evaluation inc. website. At the end of the process they tell me if the diplomas need translation, it's $60 per page! Can I submit a translation I made myself or does the translation have to be performed by the evaluation agency?
And what if I have my diplomas translated by a certified translator along with my birth certificate and then submit their translation to the evaluation agency, would it be cheaper?

 

Any feedback on different experiences appreciated

[19jimmybean 9]

If it needs to be certified translated try out www.languex.co, they charge 20 $ per page and its translated within a 24 hour window

[pegagn 23]

I had mine translated by a translator found on the ATA website. It cost me 85$ for two diplomas and transcripts. 

[JACKP 56]

If you have the your latest Degree from here , you dont need to evaluate 

Edited May 20, 2020 by JACKP

[irishoxford 38]

31 minutes ago, JACKP said:

If you have the your latest Degree from here , you dont need to evaluate 

Not true.  You need all foreign transcripts evaluated (including secondary education), even if you have degrees from the U.S. since.

[JACKP 56]

11 minutes ago, irishoxford said:

Not true.  You need all foreign transcripts evaluated (including secondary education), even if you have degrees from the U.S. since.

Yeah topic is debatable , as this is new and there is no successful results from the people who filed I-944 . I recently applied with attorney and this was their words . I know its better safe then to receive RFE , depend on how long and how much are you willing to wait and spend to evaluate . If i have to , i would only evaluate the latest one .  

[Scotriel 2]

Just now, JACKP said:

Yeah topic is debatable , as this is new and there is no successful results from the people who filed I-944 . I recently applied with attorney and this was their words . I know its better safe then to receive RFE , depend on how long and how much are you willing to wait and spend to evaluate . If i have to , i would only evaluate the latest one .  

The i-944 is asking about the education's history so I'm not taking any chance of getting an RFE even if I don't think it really matters in my case. I didn't graduate here at all anyways. Some evaluation companies can send results within 5 business days so... I'll do it

Thanks for the replies!

[irishoxford 38]

11 minutes ago, JACKP said:

Yeah topic is debatable , as this is new and there is no successful results from the people who filed I-944 . I recently applied with attorney and this was their words . I know its better safe then to receive RFE , depend on how long and how much are you willing to wait and spend to evaluate . If i have to , i would only evaluate the latest one .  

The instructions aren't as debatable as your attorney might think they are.  They are very clear: 

"Foreign education should include an evaluation of equivalency to education or degrees acquired at accredited colleges, universities, or educational institutions in the United States. For a list of organizations that provide equivalency evaluation, see the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES), at http://www.naces.org/members.htm."

Given the way in which the form is written, and given that it requires high school information in the boxes re: previous education, one can also presume that the equivalency stretches back to high school education.  "Education and degrees" here are in the plural form as well.  At no point does it say that having a higher-level American degree will waive those requirements for equivalency if you had a lower-level degree (or high school education) from elsewhere. 

As you said, there are no "successful results" from people who have so far filed the I-944, but bear in mind that USCIS, as of recently, has the latitude to reject forms without sending an RFE or RFIE.  The idea of "(not) willing to wait (to gather information)" is precisely why that rule is in place: to stop placeholder applications, which are all the more tempting in a form like the I-944 that requires a lot of gathering of documentation. 

Do I think they should do it the way your attorney thinks they should do it?  Absolutely.  That's not the way the instructions are written though, and claiming otherwise as an absolute will end up getting people here RFIEs (or possibly denied).  

   

Edited May 20, 2020 by irishoxford