FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: REGISTRATION

Q1. HOW DO YOU BECOME A P.GEO. FROM A GIT REGISTRATION?
A. Fill out a change of designation form to apply to become a practising geoscientist. To become a practising geoscientist you must complete the Competency-Based Assessment. The references should be sent to PGO directly from the referee. Once the change of designation application has been completed and the fee has been paid, the applicant is able to take the PPE exam at any time. When all documents are received, the application will be put forward at the proceeding registration committee meeting.

Q2. HOW DO YOU TRANSFER FROM ANOTHER JURISDICTION?
A. As a full practising registrant in good standing in another jurisdiction you can apply for practising registration with PGO under the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT). To apply for registration with Ontario, please click on this link. Please note that this does not apply to GIT's.

Q3. WHAT OPTIONS DO YOU HAVE IF YOU DO NOT MEET ALL THE KNOWLEDGE REQUIREMENTS?
A. If your application is denied or deferred due to deficiencies in knowledge requirements there are several options open to you. The Registration Committee may recommend, as appropriate, that you take one or more technical exams provided by PGO, APEGA and/or PEO, or take an appropriate course through an accredited institution, either in person or through an online course. 

Q4. DOES THE APPLICATION FEE COVER THE FIRST YEAR OF REGISTRANT DUES?
A. The application fee is separate from the registrant dues. Once the application fee has been paid, your application will be reviewed by the Registration Committee. Once accepted as a registrant, you will be required to pay the registration dues for that year, in order to activate your account and use the appropriate designation. The only exception to this is for GIT registrants who applied within 6 months of graduating from an undergraduate B.Sc. degree. They still have to pay the application fee, but the first year of dues will be covered under the PGO GIT registration promotion.

Q5. WHAT ARE THE STEPS NEEDED FOR AN APPLICATION BY AN APPLICANT WHO HAS A DEGREE FROM OUTSIDE OF CANADA?
A. An applicant whose undergraduate geoscience degree has been awarded outside of Canada must be assessed for equivalency, on a course-by-course basis, by an assessment service. One such organisation that provides both certified translation services and academic assessments is World Education Services (WES). Transcripts should be sent directly to WES from the applicant’s university. Once the assessment has been completed, WES will send the transcripts directly to PGO.

Q6. IS THERE A WAY TO DETERMINE THE STATUS OF MY APPLICATION?
A. There is no way to check the application status online at this time, however you can email applications@pgo.ca with the subject heading “application status” and an update will be provided to you.

Q7. HOW DO I KNOW WHEN MY REFERENCES AND TRANSCRIPTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED?
A. If you have applied using the online application and your references use the link that is automatically emailed to them, you should receive an automatic email receipt telling you that your references have been received. Once your transcripts have been received and entered into the system, you will receive an email from PGO telling you that they have been received. If your references are submitted through email, you will also receive an email from PGO with an update. If in any doubt, email applications@pgo.ca.

Q8. WILL PGO ACCEPT COPIES OF TRANSCRIPTS OR TRANSCRIPTS SENT FROM THE APPLICANT?
A. For applicants educated in Canada: PGO will only accept transcripts sent directly from the issuing university/institution. Transcripts or copies of transcripts sent from the applicant will not be accepted.
B. For applicants educated outside of Canada, transcripts must be sent directly to an assessment service (WES) for course-by-course equivalency assessment.

Q9. I TRIED TO LOG IN TO MY STUDENT ACCOUNT, BUT IT IS NO LONGER ACTIVE.
A. Your student registration is only active for as long as you are a student. When you apply for a student registration, you are asked to enter your expected date of graduation. The graduation date you entered is the date that your student registration expires. You can update this field accordingly if you anticipate that your graduation date will change.

Q10. HOW DO I LOGIN TO MY APPLICATION?
A. Once you start your application, you can log in at any time to edit or add more information or to complete your application. However, once your application has been submitted, you can no longer log in. If, after your application has been submitted, you need to update or change your information you can email applications@pgo.ca.

Q11. WHAT IS MY PGO.CA USERNAME?
A. If you have tried to log in to PGO.ca and realized you have forgotten your username, here is an easy way to remember it: PGO.ca usernames are your last name, followed by your four-digit registration number.