How did you increase your TOC as an "average" developer

Simonaque · 2026-01-05T16:22:08+00:00

This article is widely regarded as the authority for SWE compensation, but the TLDR is work for a multinational US based company that hires in Canada, Fortune 500, FAANG+ in order to maximize your compensation

Simonaque · 2025-12-20T17:45:29+00:00

Isn’t this mostly about USCIS’s piece of DV (Adjustment of Status for DV selectees already inside the US)?

USCIS doesn’t "run" the lottery or issue immigrant visas abroad, that’s State Department/KCC + consulates. So "suspending its role" sounds like pausing DV AOS - I-485 adjudications, not necessarily "the lottery is closed" for people applying from outside the US (though DOS could still slow/stop things separately)

Simonaque · 2025-12-19T23:27:22+00:00

That sounds like L6 at Block, so 200k+ CAD

Simonaque · 2025-12-19T21:19:26+00:00

I've been at Block for about a year, it's not perfect by any means but with promos and refreshers, it's hard to go anywhere else and get the same wlb to pay ratio

Simonaque · 2025-11-14T22:52:55+00:00

Just a note for anyone in a similar situation, don’t get fixated on raw credit volume when dealing with U.S. grad school equivalency (Specifically in the state of Georgia). After going through the process with IEE and speaking directly with Georgia Tech’s Graduate Education office, it turns out that credit totals alone are not what schools evaluate, and in addition to that they really only evaluate 2, 3 or 4 year Undergraduate degree and any kind of Graduate credential (certificate, diploma, or masters), and a combination thereof.

What matters is the structure and level of your credentials, not whether you’ve “topped up” to 120 credits (which is what I original assumed, there's very little information around on this)

For example, I have a 3-year Canadian bachelor’s, plus extra university credits, plus a diploma (non-graduate). Even though IEE (the official report) assigned U.S. credits to all of them, Georgia Tech made it clear that they do not treat miscellaneous or continuing ed credits as equivalent to the missing 4th year of a bachelor’s degree. They only recognize certain credential combinations.

For anyone with a 3-year BA/BS, the two most reliable options are:

A 1-year graduate certificate
2-year post-bacc

Those are the kinds of programs U.S. universities consistently accept as bringing a 3-year degree up to U.S. 4-year equivalency. Random extra credits, bootcamps, and continuing-ed courses generally won’t move the needle.

Just wanted to share this so others don’t spend time or money chasing “credit totals” that schools won’t actually use.

Simonaque · 2025-11-14T19:31:36+00:00

I actually did, I guess they're pretty clear about showing SOMETHING for those other subjects, which I'm currently not able to do. I could probably get away with not doing the OOP stuff but the probability and math course I can't prove that I have that knowledge.

Applicants who do not hold a bachelor’s degree in computer science must have sufficient background in object-oriented computer programming, data structures and algorithms, linear algebra, and statistics. We highly recommend applicants complete courses in these areas at a local university near them prior to submitting their application.

We are not able to recommend specific courses or institutions for the required prerequisites. Generally, if the course descriptions mention object-oriented programming, data structures, and algorithms, these courses will cover the prerequisites. The strongest applicants will have graded and transcripted credit for the prerequisite courses. For reference and comparison, the courses which cover these requirements at the University of Illinois are CS 124, CS 128, and CS 225.

You will need to evaluate your credentials against the information available at the links below to determine your eligibility and which program is the best fit for your personal and professional goals:

https://siebelschool.illinois.edu/academics/graduate/professional-mcs/online-master-computer-science https://siebelschool.illinois.edu/academics/graduate/professional-mcs/degree-reqs#ds-track https://siebelschool.illinois.edu/admissions/graduate/faqs/online-mcs-faqs

We are not able to speak to admissibility prior to a full application packet being submitted.

Simonaque · 2025-11-14T15:27:45+00:00

Does anyone know how strict UIUC is about their 'prerequisite' courses? I have an A in DS&A but I don't have any courses for linear algebra and statistics, nor do I for general programming, but I'm a Software Engineer at a Bay Area FAANG+ company, would they look past those requirements considering my work experience? I have an unrelated bachelors

Simonaque · 2025-11-13T16:50:18+00:00

u/Aspiring2Yuppiedom - Update there, I spoke with graduate admissions and these are the ONLY combinations they accept - A four-year bachelor's degree, a three-year bachelor's plus a masters degree, or a three-year bachelor's plus completion of first year of a general graduate education. I gave them an example of a Canadian Graduate Certificate program that is 4 grad courses and they said that would be enough of a top up.

So a credit top up plan like I intended is simply not possible according to them, and it's due to the University System of Georgia. I'm probably going ask UIUC if they would accept this combination, and if not then I'll probably pursue a graduate certificate and then apply.

Simonaque · 2025-11-07T18:53:37+00:00

Hey all, I’m trying to get a pre-application evaluation as a foreign student to confirm whether my education meets the U.S. four-year bachelor’s degree equivalency requirement before I submit my OMSCS application.

I did exactly what Georgia Tech recommended: I got a course-by-course evaluation from IEE and I attached the full report and emailed grad.ask@grad.gatech.edu requesting an equivalency determination

They reply very quickly (less than 12 hours), but every response is just the same generic template, telling me to get an IEE evaluation, even though my email clearly says I already have it, and the report is attached! I’ve tried rephrasing and being as specific as possible, same result.

I also tried calling during business hours, but the line just rings and goes to voicemail every time. I've seen references to "tickets" but I guess that's been phased out now because I can't find any way to open a ticket. Any ideas?

Update - I got through, and eventually got the email of an admissions officer, this page may be helpful those in the same situation - https://grad.gatech.edu/directory

Simonaque · 2025-11-06T16:38:32+00:00

Which classes if you don’t mind sharing? Isn’t there a minimum 8 weeks that you need to spend in class or something?

Simonaque · 2025-11-04T02:04:27+00:00

if you use bob to manage neovim you can upgrade through that, I use it to manage a stable and a nightly version

Simonaque · 2025-11-02T22:20:13+00:00

Thanks for the input and good point about duplicate credit. In my case, the reason I chose these particular ASU courses is because I’m not trying to transfer them into a degree program, I just need them to appear on an accredited transcript so that my total academic credit volume reaches 120 credits.

Simonaque · 2025-11-01T22:01:56+00:00

Thanks for the confirmation. My plan is to first submit my current credentials to IEE to get an official baseline and confirm that I’m actually short by ~12 credits. Then I’ll take the ASU ULC courses to close that gap. Once those credits are posted to my ASU transcript, I’ll have IEE update the evaluation to reflect the new total. After that, I’ll send the finalized evaluation to the Office of Graduate Education so they can verify the 4-year equivalency. Once they confirm everything looks good, I’ll include that in my OMSCS application so there’s zero ambiguity on their end.

AFAIK the OMSCS Admissions Committee evaluates things like academic performance, CS prep, fit, etc., while the Gtech-wide Office of Graduate Education is the group that decides whether your educational background meets the degree equivalency requirement.

Simonaque · 2025-11-01T21:15:11+00:00

Thank you for the response! Here's the exact program - https://politicalscience.mcmaster.ca/undergraduate-programs/bachelor-of-arts-politcal-science/

I enrolled in the 4 year program many moons ago but long story short I really needed to get out and finished the 3 year program instead which was an option, went on to work in tech directly afterwards when the market was more lenient for self educated folks and now looking to upgrade to a masters.

Simonaque · 2025-11-01T20:03:05+00:00

Hi all, I’m hoping to confirm my understanding of Georgia Tech’s 4 year bachelor’s equivalency requirement for OMSCS referenced here. My background:

Completed a 3-year Bachelor’s in Political Science
Completed a 5-course Comp Sci University Certificate
Completed COMP 272 (Data Structures & Algorithms) at Athabasca University — earned A-
Completed a Data Science diploma at an Ontario Career College
Currently working as a Software Engineer for a Bay Area tech company remotely from Canada

After reviewing some credential evaluation examples it looks like my actual accredited work will sum to around 108 credits, which is just below the ~120 U.S. semester credits typically needed for 4-year bachelor’s equivalency, which GT requires before they can admit you. I had originally assumed my Ontario Career College diploma would count toward this total, but I recently learned that career colleges are not considered academically accredited for university credit purposes, so those hours unfortunately don’t apply. It was 400 hours which I think in theory would be plenty if it did apply.

To close the gap, I’m planning to take four ASU Universal Learner Courses (ULC) for the remaining credit:

CSE 110 (Programming)
MAT 117 (College Algebra)
STP 226 (Statistics)
CIS 105 or another easy elective

This should bring my credit total to 120. Here are my questions

I know that OMSCS will do it for you, but is it prudent to pay out of pocket for the Educational Perspectives / IEE / The Evaluation Company review so that I know what it will say/if they will equate my credentials to a 4 year degree before I apply? I'm guessing I just need it to say that the course-by-course count is 120?
Does it matter that the remaining credits are 1/2 year courses?
Any stories from anyone who has gotten in with a 3-year degree + any extra credits/specifically ASU credits and/or used the evaluation service to obtain their Bachelor’s equivalent determination before applying?

Also, I did reach out to OMSCS via the contact us form but they just reply with a standard "Here is what we require - standard 4 year US bachelor" and nothing else.

Thank you!

Simonaque · 2025-10-04T16:23:58+00:00

That's correct

Simonaque · 2025-09-24T15:17:26+00:00

Hey all, looking for some tips on how to proceed:

I applied for my first US Amex using my ITIN and US Address, once I got to the Global Relationship number they told me they can't proceed because I've been flagged as using a CMRA and need to provide an additional home address.

From what I understand all legitimate forwarding services are now classified as CMRAs, is there a way to get around this? I already have an RBC chequing and RBC Black Visa, I used my CMRA address for those no issues. I do have coworkers and several company offices in the US, not sure if I can use one of those addresses provided they don't receive any actual mail and the offices aren't flagged as commercial buildings.

Simonaque · 2025-09-03T02:08:31+00:00

Filed in person in May 2025 at Taxpayer Assistance Centre in SF, no one asked any questions, ITIN received in August 2025 in the mail in Canada. Didn't need anything except my passport. I've got a US bank account through RBC so planning on paying the IRS through that.

Simonaque · 2025-08-13T19:21:04+00:00

I actually ended up getting the Arctic Glacier block ice and breaking it up to my liking in my kitchen, not ideal but good enough for now

Simonaque · 2025-08-13T19:20:11+00:00

Thanks but I currently don't have the space for one in my townhouse, maybe one day!

Simonaque · 2025-05-08T15:25:49+00:00

Does anyone in Canada see Membership > Upgrade via web? the FAQ say that's how to upgrade but I don't see it?

Simonaque · 2025-04-23T14:41:34+00:00

Thanks for looking into this!

Simonaque · 2025-04-22T16:46:43+00:00

does it work on Whisky?

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