NOC, which stands for National
Occupation
Classification, is Human Resources Canada's (HRSDC) classification system for all occupations. In NOC, all occupations are categorized into nine categories and five tiers, along with detailed descriptions of the duties and occupational requirements of each job position, and each position is given a specific code.
The nine categories of the NOC:
Category 1: Business, Finance, and Management
Category 2: Natural and Applied Sciences and Related Occupations
Category 3: Medical Professions
Category 4: Educational, Legal, Social, Community, and Governmental Services
Category 5: Arts, Culture, Recreation, and Sports
Category 6: Sales and Services
Category 7: Technical, Transportation, Equipment Operators, and Related Occupations
Category 8: Natural Resources, Agricultural, and Production-Related Occupations
Category 9: Manufacturing and Public ****ing Businesses
Five Tiers of the NOC:
Level 0 Managerial Tier
Level A Positions that typically require a bachelor's degree or higher to perform
Level B Positions that typically require a specialist's degree or higher to perform
Level C Positions that typically require a high school diploma or skills training to perform
Level D Positions that can be performed with just on-the-job training
NOCs contain all that Useful Information:
1. Position Overview
2. Example of a Position Title
3. Position Specific Duties
4. Position Requirements
5. Additional Information
6. Other Relevant Categories
The three more important pieces of information are the Position Overview, Position Specific Duties, and Position Requirements. Whether or not an applicant is qualified for the position depends greatly on these three factors.
NOC Code Interpretation:
Each job category will have a specific 4-digit code in which the category and level of the job can be identified. Here are two examples:
Management level positions, i.e., positions whose code begins with a 0:
Example 1: The Finance Manager's code is 0111, with the first digit, 0, representing that the position belongs to the Level0 management level, and the second digit, 1, representing that the position belongs to the Business, Finance, and Management category.
Other A, B, C, and D jobs have codes arranged in a different way than management:
Example 2: The code for a Mechanical Engineer is 2132. The first digit, 2, represents that the position is in the Natural and Applied Sciences category, and the second digit, 1, represents that the occupation is in the Level A category.
The second digit of a job in the B category is either 2 or 3; for a C job The second digit is 4 or 5; the second digit is 6 or 7 for a D position.
Immigration programs closely related to the NOC:
Canadian federal experience-based immigration
Canadian federal skilled immigration
Canadian federal artisanal immigration
Provincial nominee skilled immigration programs