My grandfather kept his rejected degree for 50 years. Decades later, Canada still deskills immigrants

When I told my grandfather I was accepted into my PhD program, he disappeared into the basement and returned with a worn black briefcase. Inside was a letter from Ontario’s Ministry of Education dated 1974. The letter acknowledged that he held a Bachelor of Science in Radio and Electronics Engineering from the Philippines. But it also concluded that his education was equivalent only to Ontario’s now-defunct Grade 13. He kept that letter for more than 50 years. Canada has long relied on highly…