The recent half of a decade has seen Canada emerging as one of the most favorite study destinations in the world for international students. I, as an adviser for education in overseas, am witnessing this unprecedented number of students preferring Canada for their educational goals. The excitement among students to study in Canada is noteworthy. There is no other thought, no other plan as all they want to board the bus to Toronto!
Canada's dominance in international education is owing to enviable student benefits. Sourced by IRCC, the total number of students enrolled in Canada in 2018 is staggering 572,415 and making bigger strides in 2019. This surge is not unfathomable since Canada offers students everything making it a place to realize your educational dreams. If you are still in a dilemma in deciding a country for education, below points from the perspective of a counselor will give you the insight of studying in Canada.
World-class education system:-
Whether the recognition of Canadian credentials around the world or the consistent presence of Canadian universities in the top 100 rankings, the education system is foremost. The fields such as telecommunication, computer science and Information Technology, health care, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, mechanical engineering and transportation in Canada are the pre-eminent and highly sought after by students. The education system as directly governed by provincial governments has kept a check on the system with encouragement to cross-disciplinary learning and development of transferable skills (critical thinking and communication skills). The variety of credentials gives a choice to students who can study two or three year’s program or four years bachelor degree straight away. The two years study earns you a College diploma or associate of degree which can further help you to progress into a degree through the credit transfer or an articulation. Start your education from a community College and pass in a University makes the study in Canada student-friendly.
Save your pocket:
Spend less to get the best sums up the financial aspect to study in Canada. The finances are the critical part of the planning and Canada, being one of the developed countries in the world is offering an affordable education in comparison to countries like the USA, UK and Australia. The annual cost of study and living expenses is approximately CAD$ 29,000.
Smooth sailing:
The turnaround timings for admission letters and visa are the frequent questions of students. The smooth, quick and hassle-free admission and visa process in Canada is giving students an easy time. With the inception of student direct stream (SDS) in 2018, the visa process has further fast-tracked and streamlined to the extent when decisions are given in a day or two. The financial requirements and other prerequisites for study visa are not complicated.
Post-study benefits:
The one thing that makes a country intriguing for international education is the stay back opportunity after completion of the study and Canada is the front runner if I talk about the three years post-graduate work permit or the subsequent permanent residency opportunities.
Multicultural society:
Think about an environment composed of people from 200 more countries and learning at such a place is simply incredible. Canada is a hub of multiple cultures, languages and customs. The native Canadians are known for their friendly and warm nature, making great communities with the outsiders. As per the Global peace index 2018, Canada has been placed at 6th as the most peaceful country in the world.
Field Education:
Besides a good university or college, the location and cost, what does a student look is the field education or internship. Both college and universities run programs which end at a semester involving an internship or anytime during the study. This is usually called a Co-Op, cooperative education. This benefits the students in getting the hands-on some experience during their study as they apply their classroom learning at the workplace.
Beauty with no boundaries:
The serenity, exquisite nature, diverse landscapes, cosmopolitan cities and great outdoors makes Canada a place to see in a lifetime. The places such as Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal have consistently ranked as one the best livable cities in the world.
Canada is bilingual:
Canada is officially bilingual where English is spoken predominately but Quebec, some parts of Ontario and Maritime Provinces have French spoken people. The French culture remains the most prominent part of the Canada most in Quebec which was settled by French in 1600 and remains very European in feel. Students studying in such a culture have the best of both worlds. The students can boast their prospects for an interesting career by learning a bit of French.
Scholarships:
Let us talk about the favorite question of any student, any scholarships? Well, the scholarships and grants in Canada are not sufficient if compared to USA, UK or Australia but there are many on offer which help can enable a student to alleviate some financial burden. Some well-known graduate scholarship programs available are the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS), The University of Manitoba Graduate Fellowships (UMGF), Pierre Elliot Trudeau Foundation doctoral scholarship and others from the University of Calgary and Waterloo. International undergraduate scholarships include the University of Winnipeg President’s Scholarship for World Leaders, the Lester B. Pearson International Scholarship Program at the University of Toronto, and other renowned grants offered by Humber College, York University, Carleton and the University of British Columbia. The bursarship is offered to the excellent International students who display outstanding academic performance and some grants are especially accessible to the research candidates who intend to pursue or doing research study in Canada.
About the author: Asif Jalal is working as an adviser to students for overseas education for the past close to 5 years. He is credited with having placed hundreds of students in different parts of the world. Besides, he is an aspiring writer who relishes writing blogs and poetry.