Being a country known for its high-quality education, Canada attracts more than 130,000 students almost every year to pursue their studies. As a home to some of the best universities in the world, Canada is known for providing a homely culture to students around the world and promises numerous possibilities to students in their career. After deciding to study in Canada, the next step for a student would be to apply for a Canadian Student Visa. Although the process is not quite complex, but there are few things you should be kept in mind before applying for a Student Visa to pursue higher education in Canada. If you are planning to pursue your higher education in Canada, you should start the visa application process as soon as you can. There are numerous steps in the process and any minute mistake can shatter your dreams.
This article focuses on some important tips that every student should know before applying for Canadian Student Visa to make the process easier.
Need a Student Visa or permit
This is one of the most crucial things to address first. Are you in need of a student visa or just a permit for the course you have decided to pursue? Under some conditions, you generally don’t require a student visa for studying in Canada but you would only require a permit. A student visa is not applicable to the students if the duration of the course that you’re trying to get admission in is less than six months. However, you would need an electronic travel authorisation and you need to get apt clarification regarding that.
Important Documents
To apply for a study visa in Canada you will need a lot of documents and it is advisable to prepare them in advance before commencing the visa application process. These documents are a valid passport, filled-in application form, recent passport-sized photographs, letter of acceptance from the University, proof of funds to fund your study program and your stay in Canada for the specific duration, and a letter of explanation highlighting the reason for choosing Canada as your study destination.
Knowledge of Languages
If you don’t belong to an English-speaking country, then you will be required to qualify in one of the approved language tests and submit your results. Some of the English language tests that are accepted by Canada include IELTS Academic, PTE Academic, C1 Advanced, and TOEFL iBT.
Biometrics
As a part of your application process, you will also have to submit your biometrics data to the Visa Application Centre. But again, this process depends on your nationality and some of the students having nationalities of specific countries are excused from this step. Take a thorough look, if it is applicable to you and if you have to, then you may have to pay an extra processing fee of CAD 85 for this procedure.
Interview Round
Interview round is one of the crucial steps for Canada Visa and you may also be required to visit the visa application centre for a face-to-face interview. This would also require another minor additional fee. Organise your documents and work on your English skills before the interview round, Throughout the interview listen carefully and stay positive,
Waiting Period
After you are done with the application process, there is nothing much left to do except to wait for the authorities to approve your application. Although the typical processing time usually takes 90 days but there is possibility that you would be able to receive your visa shortly.
There is also an alternative option for achieving faster processing times and that is using the Student Direct Stream. This is available to students from the countries like Antigua and Barbuda, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, India, Morocco, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Senegal, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Vietnam.
