Upforsex:
Good evening all. Please with a budget of 3.5m -4m, can I study in Canada? Masters in Canada. Specifically humanities. The money quoted above is the overall budget for everything till I land there. Please respond. Thank you

Except you get a scholarship or a sponsor, what you have is insufficient. Studying in Canada is expensive, and it is almost impossible to get work that will pay for both your tuition and living expenses as a student in Canada.

Anamekele:

I will be arriving 6th . I want know if they will charge me for extra luggage if my load is 25kg instead of 23kg

It depends on the agent that'll check you in. Ideally, many would ignore, but some may ask for "roger".

OtunbaTee:


Ok..cos I'm resuming May 2021...so chilling till April, or what do you think?

You can actually travel mid-late March or in April. The goal is to travel as soon as feasible so that you won't get trapped should the situation worsen.

awys:

Boss I applied since October 2020 oo but going for May 2021 but yet to hear from them ooo which is more than 5months ahead!!! Or I applied too early

Others factors are there too, but applying early generally gives an edge. Sometimes, your application may be stuck in document/secondary verifications (aka, recommend interview). Other times, it may just be out of sight (they'll just forget about it). You have to continue putting more pressure on them.

Rani001:
What's the best time in a year to submit an application?

There are usually three main intakes in a year:
Fall
Winter
Summer

I want to believe that study permit quotas would be evenly spread across the three intakes. If we assume that Canada intends to issue 50,000 study permits in 2021, this number would be divided by the three terms (and with recourse to all the factors I had enumerated).

Based on this logic, the best time to apply should be 5-6 months before the start date of the term (or even earlier). This isn't always feasible as some schools offer admission very late, but if you do get the admission letter early, apply around 5 months before the start of term. This is not to say those who will apply late will get rejected. I'm only saying that you will have less players on the board when you apply early and that can be a good thing.

Cuddles7:
Thanks for this indepth analysis.



My spouse applied to Saskatchewan....is that place a common destination too?

Well, it's not as popular as Ontario, but it gets a lot of attention. Saskatchewan and Alberta easily trail Ontario in terms of number of applicants.

However, you shouldn't worry. Even in the same Ontario that is in high demand, people get approved on a daily basis. My analysis is not meant to discourage anyone from applying to any province. It's just to state the facts that should be considered when dealing with the rejection of relatively strong applications, and to also encourage future applicants to think outside the box.

OtunbaTee:


But one can't enter till one before resumption max Abi?

Yes. My post was basically for those in the Winter term.

awys:
The MYSTERY behind this CANADIAN STUDY PERMIT is yet to be unravelled and it's rather baffling when people said they have more than the 30k CAD in the statement well explained and even a financial table was drawn out but yet they still got DELAYED based on FINANCIAL STATUS I find it disturbing when people come to explain what they did and we'll explained yet it was delayed I was so surprised and still thinking from that yesterday that it's only the VO'S that understands what they want .It's like the more you present a well detailed Application the more they frown at it cuz am yet to unravel what they really really want like OTUNBA TEE said there is no perfect Application and also as FRATERMATHY said it's still the same way the VO'S make mistakes refusing QUALIFIED APPLICANT'S
It's really really disturbing seriously
So sorry for the delays please get the GCMS NOTES let's really see their concern on this Financial status and personal Assets gan gan. Maybe the more they see the money outregeously high they believe it's too good to be true cuz seeing people with 70k CAD and above is outregeously high for them and starts to suspect the source that's what I feel though!!! Forgetting that people have companies which has been in existence for years and also people have a very high paying jobs in which they could save up.

Concerning the refusal of qualified applicants, there are other factors that one should consider apart from sheer mistakes on the part of the VO. I've started to realize that Canada allocates a limited number of study permits every year. It's a technique they use in controlling immigration to Canada. Just as there are PR limitations (i.e. They may issue a specific number of PR visas each year and every country gets a certain quota of that), so too do they restrict the number of study permit approvals. Apart from this, they also give higher quotas to more populated countries and they favour those from certain countries too.

Beyond the politics of quota, they also aim to evenly distribute international students across the nation. The implication of this is that those applying to study in Ontario are bound to have more issues than those applying to study in Manitoba. If they allow every student to study in just one province, that won't be good for the economy of the other provinces.

Furthermore, they assign specific quotas for students applying to study in colleges, and at various levels in Universities. This is why PhD students may likely get better approval rates than those applying for a Masters (because there are fewer PhD applicants). The higher you go in the academic ladder, the easier it becomes to get the permit (especially if there is a logical progression in your career).

Another factor is that in some countries, like Nigeria, applicants submit fake documents. This adds to an overall suspicion of everyone's application. In a bid to verify documents, the VOs can misjudge the real facts of the matter. Sometimes, because of the high number of applications, they won't have the patience to do in-depth verifications and will simply reject the applicant so that his/her next application would clear those doubts.

Note that what I've said are based on my personal observation of the process. The lessons to learn from these are:

1. Submit your application for a study permit as early as possible. Don't wait till the last minute before you do so. It may backfire.

2. Apply to study in other provinces like Manitoba, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, North West Territories, etc. It shouldn't always be in Ontario. I have a strong hunch that Quebec bound applicants get higher approval rates than those headed to Ontario.

3. As much as possible, apply to programmes that are logically cognate with your previous educational or work experience.

4. Save the VOs the stress of verification and submit authentic documents. Some VOs can know if a document has been tampered with via Photoshop or other apps. Others see certain documents frequently and can easily detect if something is awkward about a specific document. They are trained to find faults, especially in applications from certain countries.

5. If you're rejected, the best advice is to defer your admission to the next intake and apply at the point when many people would not have submitted their applications.


My people usually say "misiagware o" when we have exhausted our thoughts.!

lentomac:

Hi Fratermathy,

Do you suggest a Sept. 2021 intake who has gotten PPR travel to Canada aswell?

There is no urgent reason for anyone in that category to travel now. Many of these restrictions are reactionary and may gradually fizzle out before September, as long as the vaccines continue to be distributed and a new vaccine-resistant strain doesn't become a problem. Those for September intake should consider travelling by mid-late July/early August.

Mzflexydeeva:
Good afternoon everyone, please I am relatively new here and don't even know where to start reading. I would like someone to help out.
I am a master holder, it's my first time trying any travel process. Want to do my PhD in Canada. Would appreciate someone just pointing me in the right direction. I already know what school j want to apply to

The right direction could be any direction. It's better to do some research (as you claim to have done) and ask specific questions. PhD is not the same across Canada and across all disciplines. What works for Anatomy won't work for History. What obtains at UAlberta won't necessarily apply to UCalgary, despite being in the same province. No one can give a wild card overview of PhD programs and their admission processes in one post .

So I'll return the question to you: what direction do you want to be pointed to? If you can help us, I'm certain we'd help you very well.

iampaulsmith:
Hi Fratermathy. I sent you a mail yesterday on our previous conversation, please do check it out. Thanks

I've replied.

If you've received the PPR, I strongly advise that you travel to Canada ASAP. Further travel restrictions may be underway. No one knows for sure if they would affect students but currently, all flights to and fro Mexico and the Caribbean would be stopped until April 2021. This would definitely affect students in those countries who need to travel. The list of countries can increase at any time too.

Apart from country-specific bans, they are trying to force all travellers to start their quarantine in a government designated hotel (which would be very expensive). This is only a hint of greater restrictions to come. The Quebec government is putting pressure on the Canadian government to even extend these restrictions and make them tougher. Again, I don't know the extent to which students will be affected or even if they would be affected at all, but if you have your PPR and for some reason you're delaying your travel, you should reconsider.


If you're Montreal bound, I'm happy to help you settle down to the best of my ability and as far as time allows. I won't be able to give you money, but I can provide you information, accommodation options, minor assistance (I can even drive), and a friendly walk/drive around the city to show you around if you want. I enjoyed these things from others when I arrived, and I'm glad to return the favour.

Sugarbunny94:
IT HAS ENDED IN PRAISES!!!!

Applied November 8 with my 4 months old baby.

BVL January 29th
PPR January 29th

Fully Funded scholarship at McGill University.

I looked for scholarship for 4 Years!!!

Faculty of Engineering.

Ph.D.1 (No masters)

I switched from my undergraduate major to a new one.

IT IS INDEED A MIRACLE!!!

Thank you Nairaland Family for your assistance from the beginning of my application to the end.

Special thanks to @ JustMellow and Frankrobbn.

God bless you guys.

Congratulations!

If you ever need assistance in Montreal or with McGill related issues, feel free to reach out. Bienvenue au Montreal!

I congratulate those who got their PPRs before the medical requests, but that is an exception to the norm and not how IRCC actually operates. There are lots of reasons why that could have happened, and one of them is that the VO in charge of those applications made a mistake. Whether we ascribe that mistake to supernatural causes is a personal thing, but just as VOs make mistakes in rejecting qualified applicants, so too do they make mistakes in matters of procedure.

Everyone wishes for such exceptions, but let's treat them as exceptions so that we don't set a new rule of expectation. Typically, VOs assess eligibility, and once an applicant is determined eligible, they move on to admissibility. Even though many applications fail at the point of eligibility, admissibility is a serious issue too. Applicants with criminal records, falsified documents, incorrect or misrepresented facts about self and application in general, bad immigration records, serious health complications, or who pose threats to public health are deemed inadmissible, even when they have successfully passed eligibility. A PPR that comes before the MER can become useless if the recipient is deemed inadmissible at any point. (I'm sorry if this sounds negative but the good thing is that Nigerians seldom fail admissibility)

Personally, I wouldn't want to get a PPR before MER because that can be quite a tricky position to be in. It's better than nothing, but it's very open-ended. I was among the AIP people, and I can't totally explain how it felt to wait for admissibility conditions to be passed when you already passed eligibility.

If you're religious, your prayer should be for your application to be finalized as quickly as possible and with recourse to all due processes. If you're not religious, just hope that VOs don't use your application to experiment with "new procedures". Those who sailed through the AIP trauma can easily be found in the previous thread. You really don't want to be in that zone.

Good luck to all TRV hopefuls.

He didn't even pretend about the reason for his ministry. He went straight for the jugular.

No religious person has the right to criticize them. All religions evolved by virtue of historical necessities. This, too, follows that paradigm.

Golan007:


Or disgruntled students.

No matter how disgruntled students are, murdering a lecturer is usually not the first or most feasible line of action. Something else is at play here.

Marvel4u:
Please I need clarification.
Is proof of fund required for Canadian study permit if you are admitted to a fully funded PhD program?
Or whats the required proof of funds with full scholarship?

Normally, it shouldn't be required if the funding covers everything, but I've seen some cases where they reject applicants on the basis of financial assets because they didn't submit their personal SoA. My advice is that you should submit your SoA but the amount in it needn't be too much - just show enough to prove that you can take care of miscellaneous expenses by yourself.

If you don't have the money at all, you could also get a close relation
to "gift" you money and then explain the nature of the gift in your S.O.P. However, I wouldn't advise you to get a sponsor or to borrow a huge amount of money. It's always best to keep your application simple and direct. Submitting too many things may come off as desperation, especially if you're a fully funded PhD student. Too many documents also means the VO would have more things to scrutinize and there could be loopholes you hadn't thought about. Just keep things simple and submit only essential documents that prove your eligibility, home ties, and proof of funds.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, package your home ties very well. Whether you have all the funding in the world or not, prove to IRCC that you have material, economic, social, and family ties to Nigeria.

Uzomachukwu:


Yeah, PhD in English. We don't really have Winter intake. I will only be joining those in my cohort from the Winter term up. The exception was made, I guess, because my funding for the first two years will be coming from outside the Department (that's, from the College of Graduate Studies). So the Department doesn't have to worry about providing funds for me until my 3rd and 4th year. But I'll expectedly be graduating a term after other members of my cohorts who started in the 2020 Fall term.

We should connect. I'll send you a pm.

Uzomachukwu:


Thanks a lot, Fratermathy. I started online at first, just to have a taste of the pudding. But I later deferred to the Winter term after a week. Now as the new term begins on January 11, I'll have to committedly start online with others and then hopefully travel during the midterm break in February, that's if my permit is out by then.

It's nice that your school has winter intake. You're going for a PhD in English, right?

Uzomachukwu:


That might actually be the issue with my application. What is sad is that I actually checked with USask's International Students' Centre on two different occasions, and the advisors I Zoomed with both mentioned that with my funding, it wasn't necessary showing any other POF.

If only I had found Nairaland then!

Don't assume that it's over yet. My application was delayed for over 6 months before I got approval. Many fully funded students get approved without submitting their personal bank statements. The main issue is whether you established home ties well.

At any rate, you shouldn't worry until you have something concrete and I am hoping it's an approval.

Uzomachukwu:


This is the most interesting, most exhaustive and (at least to for me) most useful landing gist I have read in this forum.

Thank you so much, Akanni, for making out the time to narrate your experience. You have given us so much important information in one post alone. I've read your post three times already and as well
taken screenshots of it. The luggage tips and other airport wahala you've so clearly detailed for us here are really going to come in handy when I eventually start my own journey.
----
Aah, IRCC! I never believed I could be waiting for BVL and final decision up till this time. Damn! It's 2021 and I'm still refreshing my GCKey account, searching for new update. This is perplexing, very.

No choice now than to order GCMS notes.

As a PhD student who has a 4.17 in undergrad (2015), a 5.0 in MA (Dec. 2019), several published academic papers and a Dean's fellowship (full funding: tuition waiver, living expenses of 22k CAD and option of Graduate Assistantship for extra cash not counted towards my funding package), I had thought that getting a study permit would be easy and fast. But, yeah, it's 6 months and 15 days now, and old boy is still anxiously refreshing his GCkey account. How so sad!

At this point, I'm even beginning to get mad at IRCC. But then, it's their country, and as they'll quickly remind you, study permit/visa is a privilege not a right. Still, it's all so sad!

I'm really sorry about your delay. I have been there and I know how terrible it feels to wait for IRCC to finalize your application. You have a strong profile. More than 90% of PhD applicants get approved (especially when they have funding). Continue sending reminders and webforms. You'll smile soon. Did you start online?

sugarleireina:
LANDING GIST

The Canadian government has also been calling to confirm that I am adhering to the self isolation plan, such an organised country!

That's interesting. No one called me or any other person I know. This must be a recent development. Congrats on your successful landing. Vancouver has a better weather than other parts of Canada (and it rains a lot there). It's also quite an expensive city to live in, but I'm sure you already know that.

MadeMan01:

Eligibility started on December 3

"as of the time the GCMS notes were generated".

If they've started it now, you can only be patient to hear from them or order another GCMS note.

MadeMan01:
Dear house,
October 9 applicant here.
I requested my GCMS notes on November 24 and it came in today. Gurus kindly advise @Frankrobbn1 @Lekiboboe @Chocs @Akannitommy @ConradAce @Legacyedition @MzMisty and others, kindly advise. See attached screenshot of page 1&2 of GCMS

Kindly interprete

They've not started your eligibility check as of the time the GCMS notes were generated. You've finished admissibility and that a good thing. If you pass eligibility, you're good to go. Just be hopeful.

olasubomy:


Thanks a lot for the update but just to enquire further, would it be possible you post the source of this info so one can read more details. I am not really clear about the update.

https://montrealgazette.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/federal-officials-to-deliver-briefing-on-covid-19-as-case-counts-in
crease/wcm/b4f7ef22-4e5f-4d1a-8339-887ddf84c930

Important news for travellers: The federal government says it plans to require air travellers to test negative for COVID-19 before landing in Canada. All passengers on flights entering Canada will require a negative PCR test three days before their arrival. No news yet on when the requirement will be in place. Will update as we hear more.

ConradAce1:



Please I got a friend with a Masters GPA of 3.58 in Educational Measurement and Evaluation
Is it possible to have a PHD scholarship with this GPA & what areas of study can he further in & institutions.
Thanks

I really don't know if it's possible. She may try but I would advise only those with 4.00 and above to apply to research programs so that they'd be more competitive. Those with lower CGPAs but still in the 2:1 range should try Masters by coursework as admission is less competitive. They could also get some funding but it's rarely full funding. Your friend could also apply for a second Masters (by research) and increase his/her chances of admission. Canadian research programs are extremely competitive because the schools are fewer and there are many people aiming for the funding offers. In my department at McGill, over 100 people applied to a program that takes less than 5 students every year.

However, people do get lucky, so she could try less competitive schools like Memorial University, University of Manitoba, University of Winnipeg, etc. They also have some pretty decent funding in those schools but the competition would be reduced due to their ranking and location. If the person has research experience or publications, all the better and s/he can even raise the bar a little higher and look at Concordia University, University of Victoria, and University of Calgary.

Alternatively, the person could try US schools. The US has more schools and they don't really focus so much on high GPA like Canadian schools.

francisgodstime:
International relations.. is it scholarship proposal?

No, it's a research proposal. You'd have to write one. Do you intend to apply in this application round which usually ends between January 5th-15th (to receive funding), or you want to apply later next year? There may be some schools that won't ask you to get a supervisor before applying, but others would do that. Getting a supervisor can sometimes take time but it all depends on you and the nature of your proposal.

Your proposal must also be written with admissibility in mind. Think of an issue that would be topical and "fundable" and write a proposal of 2-4 pages. The proposal is usually more like a statement of purpose than a real academic proposal (as we understand it in Nigeria). You should personalize the proposal and state your personal and academic motivations for the research, your thesis or proposition, methodology, expected findings, why Canada and the institution are best place for your work (you can write this part later when you've identified schools), and maybe a short bibliography.

francisgodstime:
Yes I have bsc in political science with a cgpa of 4.04 on a 5 points scale... pls how can I go abt d scholarship

First things first..

You need to write a strong proposal. Draft something of between 2-4 pages. Once you have your proposal, the next thing is to identify schools and potential supervisors. I could help you by narrowing your scope. What specific area of Political Science are you interested in? Comparative Politics, Policy Studies, International Relations, Strategic Studies, or what?

francisgodstime:
ok... pls do u knw any full scholarship I can apply for

If you have a strong 2:1 (4.00 and above) or a First Class, you can apply to Masters by thesis programs and get full funding. If not, then I don't know of any other scholarship scheme that can work for you.

francisgodstime:
pls which country can I travel with 1million to 2million

Definitely not Canada, except you are going on full scholarship.