Competency ratings, minimums and category averages explained

Two tests, both required

The first test is per competency. Ontario sets a minimum of 1 on most competencies and 3 on five professional standards competencies, with 2 on 6.2 (Applicant Guide, August 2026). Alberta and the shared system set minimums only on eight Canadian environment competencies: 3 on 1.1, 1.6, 1.9, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 5.1, and 2 on 6.2 (APEGA CBA guide, 18 July 2026; Engineers and Geoscientists BC guide, April 2024).

The second test is per category: the plain mean of the ratings. Ontario's guide describes exactly that, the mean of the ratings in the category. The desk compares the unrounded mean with the minimum, so 2.95 does not pass a minimum of 3.

Small categories are unforgiving. Alberta's team effectiveness and professional accountability categories each hold a single competency, so that one rating is the average.

Reading the 0 to 5 scale

The guides describe the levels in slightly different words, but the ladder is the same. In our own summary:

• 0: no real exposure to the competency.
• 1: training level; you know it matters and have seen it done.
• 2: limited scope under considerable supervision; standard methods on well defined tasks.
• 3: moderate scope and complexity, mostly independent; the level the guides associate with being ready for professional responsibility.
• 4: varied, responsible work with little supervision, often guiding others.
• 5: independent leadership of complex, high-risk work; rare at the point of licensure.

Ontario's guide gives separate descriptions for technical work, for categories 2 to 6 and for professional development, and Alberta separates technical from other competencies. Read the one for the category you are rating before you choose a number.

Rate honestly, then check the arithmetic

Alberta's guide notes that new applicants tend to overestimate, and that experienced engineers often rate themselves 3 or 4 after many years. The shared system's guide says you are not expected to be at 4 or 5 and advises against rating yourself below a minimum: if you cannot honestly reach it, get more experience first.

The right order is to rate each competency by the evidence in your example, then look at the averages. If a category falls short, the fix is a stronger example or more experience, not a higher number. The competency desk shows each category's average as you rate.

Worked example: averages that pass and fail

• Ontario, team effectiveness: 4.1 rated 4 and 4.2 rated 2 average 3.00, which is met. Rate 4.1 at 3 instead and the average is 2.50, not met.
• Alberta, team effectiveness: one competency, rated 2, so the category average is 2.00, not met against 3.
• Shared system, communication: 2.1 rated 2, 2.2 and 2.3 rated 4. The category averages 3.33 and is met, but 2.1 is not met because it is a Canadian environment competency with its own minimum of 3.
• Ontario, technical competence: ten ratings adding to 27 average 2.70, not met, even though each competency clears its own minimum.

Common mistakes

• Rounding 2.9 up to 3. The average has to reach the minimum.
• Using a high rating in one competency to carry a Canadian environment competency below its minimum.
• Rating first and then stretching the example to fit the number.
• Forgetting that Alberta's single-competency categories make one rating the whole average.

Draft and check your own examples

The desk holds your experience records, validators and a Situation, Action and Outcome editor for every competency, with live counts against the limit and the rating, category and validator checks, each with its rule cited. Everything stays in this browser.

Sources

Last reviewed 27 September 2026 against:

• Applicant Guide: Navigating Competency-Based Assessment, Professional Engineers Ontario, August 2026. Used for: minimum ratings, professional standards competencies, category averages as the mean of ratings
• APEGA Competency-Based Assessment Guide for Professional Engineering Applicants, APEGA, V7.4, 18 July 2026. Used for: category minimum averages, Canadian-context minimums, scoring levels, overestimation
• Competency Assessment Guide for Engineering Applicants and Trainees, Engineers and Geoscientists BC, revised April 2024. Used for: category minimum ratings, Canadian environment competencies, not expected at 4 or 5

This guide is our own summary of the published documents, not legal advice and not a finding about your application; the regulator's assessors decide. If it disagrees with the current documents, the documents win. Competency Desk is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Professional Engineers Ontario, APEGA, Engineers and Geoscientists BC, Engineers Canada or any other engineering regulator.