I am unsure about the format of my CDR report. What should I do?

Answer:

Most of the engineers who wish to work in Australia fail to make a successful CDR (Competency Demonstration Report) report. Even after making determined efforts their applications get rejected due to the wrong format of the report. Many engineers are unaware of the correct format in which the CDR report needs to be written. Since a CDR proves your competency in the field of engineering and English language, its contents must be represented in a suitable format. The Migration Skills Assessment (MSA) has specified all the instructions that must be followed while writing a CDR report in its booklet. The assessing authority, Engineers Australia (EA) considers only those reports which strictly comply with the instructions of the MSA.

The format of your CDR report

You can refer to the following format to write your CDR report. The components of a CDR include:

• Personal Information
• Application Form
• Education
• Employment
• Report

All these components must be included in the CDR report and need to be written according to the EA standards specified in the MSA booklet.

1. Personal Information

Your personal information must include the following 5 things:

• A passport size photo that is current and clear.
• Your prime ID (Passport bio-data page/Birth Certificate/National Identity Card).
• Name change documents if your current name is different from the name in academic documents.
• CV/Resume that must include a complete record of your activities.
• The evidence of English language proficiency.

2. Application Form

In the application form of your CDR report, you have to nominate an engineering occupation as per your choice. Although the chosen occupation is not guaranteed yet your details must be relevant to the competencies required for the occupation.

3. Education

You must include all the certificates and transcripts of your degree and academics. You have to provide all the additional qualification details if you hold more than one engineering degree. Also, if you are enrolled in any other training program, you have to provide information about the same.

4. Employment Details

You need to provide evidence of your work in the form of complete documents. If the language of the documents is not English then both the translational and the original language documents must be included.

5. The report

Now comes the actual report. Many people fail to handle this section. It consists of the following three sections:

• CPD (Continuing Professional Development): It needs to be in the format of a list and includes all the updates about your activities that enhanced your engineering knowledge after undergraduate study. It must be limited to a single page of A4 size.
• 3 Career Episodes: Give an account of your engineering experience in these career episodes. Each career episode is about 1500-2500 words long and not more than that. The paragraphs must be numbered and subheadings must be organized.
• Summary Statement: Write a single summary statement for all the three career episodes. You need to include the analysis results of these episodes in your summary statement. It indicates the competency elements that you have described in the career episodes.

Follow this format while you write a CDR report. You will definitely be able to write a good report.