UK-trained midwife to leave BC after IRCC rejects UBC bridging program

A Scottish-born midwife accredited through the University of British Columbia’s bridging program says she is leaving Canada after Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) denied her work-permit application a second time. Heather Gilchrist, a native English speaker, was initially refused for not uploading an English test, saying the application did not clearly request it. After submitting the results, her file was reconsidered but rejected again because officials would not recognize UBC’s program, the only pathway for internationally educated midwives to become certified in the province. UBC says more than 80 midwives have completed the program since 2015.

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