10. More than 4 million completed evaluations

WES has completed more than 4 million evaluations. We are honored to open doors for internationally educated individuals to pursue further education, employment, licensing, and immigration. We take pride in our single report being applicable to so many purposes.

9. Extensive experience and expertisee

In 2024 WES is celebrating 50 years of experience evaluating international academic credentials. As a result, we have a robust database that reflects on 50 years of research, data, and relationships with universities, licensing boards, and education ministries from around the world. All evaluation team members utilize the same data, ensuring consistency and accuracy.

8. Research and knowledge sharing

WES conducts ongoing research on education systems, institutions, credentials, and grading scales, using that information to update our website, train our staff, and exchange industry knowledge across various forums and mediums. We share our expertise with the international education community through several resources, including World Education News & Reviews (WENR), newsletters like the WES Voice, blog posts, white papers, and conference presentations.

7. Diverse and mission-driven staff

Our 400+ staff members—who are from over 50 countries and speak over 60 languages—cannot be matched. WES staff are committed to their work because many have shared experiences with our applicants. Our staff are aware of the need and value of having international academic credentials understood, recognized, and accepted. They want others to have the same opportunities they have had, to further their education and secure employment in their field. Our work is personal to employees at WES—and every day they go above and beyond for our applicants.

6. Philanthropic commitment

As a non-profit social enterprise, WES takes its philanthropic endeavors seriously. The WES Mariam Assefa Fund (named for our first CEO) supports organizations and leaders that are focused on creating more inclusive economies for immigrants and refugees in the United States and Canada through grantmaking, impact investing, and community partnerships.

5. Driving system change

WES Global Talent Bridge collaborates with institutional partners, community-based organizations, and policy makers to help immigrants and refugees achieve their —and drive system change. Some highlights of this work include policy and advocacy, resource development, knowledge sharing, and our Skilled Immigrant Integration Program. This work creates pathways for people to use their international education, skills, and experience while addressing critical shortages communities face in many professions, like education and health care.

4. WES Gateway Program

The WES Gateway Program was launched in Canada in 2018 and in the U.S. in 2019, providing a pathway for those who lack access to complete or official academic documents. Gateway applicants are vetted by our referral partners and their evaluations are prepared at no cost. The true success of the program is that Gateway reports have been accepted by colleges and universities, employers, and licensing boards. Because these institutions trust WES, Gateway applicants don’t have to face the challenge of starting over.

3. Continual improvement and innovation

In 2019, WES embarked on a five-year goal to receive 90 percent of academic records electronically. The following year, faced with restrictions and challenges presented by COVID-19, WES quickly assembled a team to develop a process and establish secure document transmission agreements with institutions. By the end of 2020, we were receiving official documents electronically from over 8,000 institutions and examination boards. Today, we receive 85 percent of our documents electronically from more than 12,500 institutions. Our digital agreements have resulted in increased document security, faster evaluation completion times, and a significant reduction in paper waste and its impact on the environment.

2. Active Board of Trustees

WES is honored to be graced with an active and progressive Board of Trustees. It was a member of the WES Board who suggested that we create an electronic delivery portal for sending credential evaluations to institutional clients. That Board member recognized that receiving secure copies of evaluation reports minutes after completion would enable universities and employers to make admissions decisions and extend job offers more quickly. While electronic delivery of credential evaluations is commonplace today, it was groundbreaking when we launched our client portal, AccessWES, in 2003. It was also our Board that recommended delivering copies of verified academic documents with completed evaluations so that institutions would have everything they needed in a single package. Since WES verifies the authenticity of documents used for evaluation, recipients quickly embraced this added service.

1. Lifetime value of a WES evaluation

This brings us to a unique and crucial benefit of a WES evaluation (and my personal favorite)—its lifetime value. Every day, applicants log in to their accounts and order duplicate copies of evaluations—some even order a copy of a report prepared more than 20 years ago! It is a common misconception that a credential evaluation will be used once, to apply to just one school or for only one job. But we know that this is not the case. Plans change and people progress in their education and careers. Many may also mistakenly believe that once they have earned a U.S. or Canadian degree, they will no longer be asked to provide proof of their international credential. This isn’t always true. And so, WES is here for them and you—today, tomorrow, and beyond.