What are my chances?

[USA_student_to_Canada]

Hello!

I am currently pursuing my masters in the USA but I am planning on applying for a Canadian Graduate certificate (1.5 year with CO-OP) instead as the specific program I applied to is more specialized, focused and relevant to what I want to study. The thing is my parents are Canadian citizen and are well established in Canada. I personally don't have any ties back home and no next of kin. I cannot apply for express entry as I dont satisfy the minimum points.

My question is, based on these conditions how hard will it be to get a study permit issued? I already have a visitor visa and travel to Canada on an off 2-3 times a month (post pandemic and I live close to the border in USA.)

 

[primaprime]

I assume you're not a US citizen, and there's some reason your parents are Canadian citizens but you aren't.

You need to show ties to your country of citizenship and convince the visa office that you don't plan to overstay illegally with your parents. You also need to explain why a graduate certificate is relevant to your future prospects if you already have a master's. It's a clear step down and doesn't show the logical academic/professional progression you need to show in order to be approved for a study permit.

 

[USA_student_to_Canada]

I assume you're not a US citizen, and there's some reason your parents are Canadian citizens but you aren't.

You need to show ties to your country of citizenship and convince the visa office that you don't plan to overstay illegally with your parents. You also need to explain why a graduate certificate is relevant to your future prospects if you already have a master's. It's a clear step down and doesn't show the logical academic/professional progression you need to show in order to be approved for a study permit.

I actually don't have a master's. I am currently enrolled and pursuing a Master's in the US. The courses are not exactly very specific for what I am trying to pursue. Yes my parents got their pr when I was 22 so I was technically independent.

 

[primaprime]

Even if you don't finish your master's the application form asks what you have been up to, so they'll still probably want to know why you're dropping that to pursue a lower level of studies in Canada. What field are you looking to get into?

 

[USA_student_to_Canada]

Even if you don't finish your master's the application form asks what you have been up to, so they'll still probably want to know why you're dropping that to pursue a lower level of studies in Canada. What field are you looking to get into?

Data science and analytics...the current masters program that I am in is teaching stuff in java which is not very relevant to the field( you need a python base). The stats professors are also very subpar, the machine learning class only teaches us supervised and unsupervised learning and there's not other electives to specialize in NLP or AI. Is a graduate certificate a step down? The conditions for that are to have a bachelor's in the field of study. So I don't see how it's a step down?

Also my credits for completed courses will get transferred if the courses match.

 

[Impatient Dankaroo]

Data science and analytics...the current masters program that I am in is teaching stuff in java which is not very relevant to the field( you need a python base). The stats professors are also very subpar, the machine learning class only teaches us supervised and unsupervised learning and there's not other electives to specialize in NLP or AI. Is a graduate certificate a step down? The conditions for that are to have a bachelor's in the field of study. So I don't see how it's a step down?

Also my credits for completed courses will get transferred if the courses match.

It's a step down because graduate certificates are a joke. What institution are you considering?

 

[USA_student_to_Canada]

Either conestoga or durham. I have applied for both.

 

[scylla]

Either conestoga or durham. I have applied for both.

This level of study doesn't make sense given you are currently pursuing a Master's in the U.S. It's a big step down. You'd want to take a post graduate diploma at a minimum.

Do you want to work in the data science field in Canada? If so, your planned studies in Canada won't get you there. You need a Master's or a PhD to really be considered. If your current Master's isn't working out for you, transfer to a different Master's in Canada.

 

[USA_student_to_Canada]

No I checked the diploma is taken after highschool. Graduate Certificate is taken after your bachelor's. Please check your sources. Or if you have more details please share that with me

 

[Impatient Dankaroo]

Here, read this: https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/truth-about-post-graduate-certificates-diplomas-in-canadian-colleges.697767/

I did my Bachelor's in US, did a 1 year grad cert in Canada and am now doing a Master's in Canada

 

[Impatient Dankaroo]

No I checked the diploma is taken after highschool. Graduate Certificate is taken after your bachelor's. Please check your sources. Or if you have more details please share that with me

Post graduate diploma/certificate in Canada is basically a money making/immigration scheme targeted at foreign students from places like India, Philippines, Nigeria, Pakistan and other places. The diplomas themselves aren't taken that seriously by employers nor are the professors and curriculums good. And like Scylla says below, the job market here is a lot more competitive and threshold is a lot higher. For Data science, you'll need either a relevant Canadian BS or a MS unless you go to a recognizable name in the US, e.g. Berkeley, UChicago, etc.

 

[scylla]

No I checked the diploma is taken after highschool. Graduate Certificate is taken after your bachelor's. Please check your sources. Or if you have more details please share that with me

I was born in Canada. Extremely familiar with the education system here. Graduate certificate is a lower level of education than a Master's and it doesn't make much sense for you to be studying this here if you want to go into data science and given you're already pursuing a Master's. IRCC will wonder why you are quitting a Master's for a lower level education. You'll need to explain this in your application.

Two other important points. These certificates are pretty low value to employers here. Since your objective is to become a PR, you'll want to take a program that is at least 2 years in length so that you qualify for a 3 year PGWP. Low chances PR will materialize for you with just a 1 year program.

 

[Ironclad]

Hello!

I am currently pursuing my masters in the USA but I am planning on applying for a Canadian Graduate certificate (1.5 year with CO-OP) instead as the specific program I applied to is more specialized, focused and relevant to what I want to study. The thing is my parents are Canadian citizen and are well established in Canada. I personally don't have any ties back home and no next of kin. I cannot apply for express entry as I dont satisfy the minimum points.

My question is, based on these conditions how hard will it be to get a study permit issued? I already have a visitor visa and travel to Canada on an off 2-3 times a month (post pandemic and I live close to the border in USA.)

I have almost the same profile as yours and I got my SP approved in fact I even paid the fees to my lawyer to start the Judicial Review process so as to be prepared once I get the presumed rejection but unbelievably it got approved by the Edmonton VO and the lawyer was shell shocked. Mind you, It's very hard to overcome family ties and the chances are 1 in 10,000 .

 

[Ironclad]

No I checked the diploma is taken after highschool. Graduate Certificate is taken after your bachelor's. Please check your sources. Or if you have more details please share that with me

Choosing a good DLI is one of the very basic first step. You need to go for a second Masters and a diploma is a strict No for your case. If you end up messing up your first attempt, you will be digging your own grave. Do not apply without doing proper research and gathering expert opinions from these forums or seek professional help. Some have been approved after taking graduate diploma after Masters but its very risky, usually the ones who get approved have good grades which might had convinced the VO.

 

[USA_student_to_Canada]

Choosing a good DLI is one of the very basic first step. You need to go for a second Masters and a diploma is a strict No for your case. If you end up messing up your first attempt, you will be digging your own grave. Do not apply without doing proper research and gathering expert opinions from these forums or seek professional help. Some have been approved after taking graduate diploma after Masters but its very risky, usually the ones who get approved have good grades which might had convinced the VO.

May I ask which college you applied to and what type of program was it?