Ray of hope - FSW - 1

[scylla]

My score is nowhere this good and never will be unless I do masters or learn a whole new language. It's been 48 hours I'm in the EE pool as an FSW candidate with CRS score 471. I was originally thinking of requesting EOR (to max out writing; from 7 to 7.5), but then I decided not to. Just an hour ago I wrote here why. I'd love to hear your opinion about my assumptions & current position, if you please.

If immigrating to Canada is a priority for you, then you should do whatever it takes to increase your score, even if this is just by a few points. A single point can make the different between being selected - or missing the cut off, then waiting a bunch of months for the score to drop, then losing points due to age which then reduces your chances further and ultimately missing your chance of being selected. This has happened to many people here.

You've made a bunch of assumptions about what is going to happen regarding the draws and scores. No one here can tell you what will happen. However new people enter the pool each day and my guess is that there's a lot more than 11K now in the pool with more points than you.

Ultimately this comes down to priorities. If immigrating is a big priority, increase your score, even if it's just by a few points. If not as much of a priority, then don't bother. It's your call.

 

[Carmen01]

Hey guys, I'm trying to increase my IELTS scores to get that 8-7-7-7. I got so close with my first try, but even if I get it I will score a CRS of 464.
In other words, I don't seem to stand a chance building on what I read in the past couple of pages. I have no way of hitting 471 or over. Even more, taking IELTS is almost 2/3 of my monthly salary. So I guess I should just give up and limit my losses, right? Or do I stand a chance later on in your opinion?

What’s your NOC? Have you considered PNP?

 

[guelphite]

Hey guys, I'm trying to increase my IELTS scores to get that 8-7-7-7. I got so close with my first try, but even if I get it I will score a CRS of 464.
In other words, I don't seem to stand a chance building on what I read in the past couple of pages. I have no way of hitting 471 or over. Even more, taking IELTS is almost 2/3 of my monthly salary. So I guess I should just give up and limit my losses, right? Or do I stand a chance later on in your opinion?

I don't see a future in which FSW draws go back down to 464. I don't think it is worth spending 2/3 of your salary on the IELTS to get to that.

I don't say this lightly because I know it is hard, but unless you can do a PNP stream I think learning French might be your best/only option. The government is highly committed to maintaining a certain level of Francophone immigration outside of Quebec, and FSW-type streams (either provincial or country level) are the only way to achieve that.

@mushymush has good strategies for learning French from scratch. I did it but started from A2/B1 so didn't have as far to go. You may need to adapt in your case bc of finances but it is probably a better investment than sitting the IELTS just to get a score that will never get you an ITA. And it will be way less than a degree. Plus, you won't need to spend as much money to learn once you get to the B1 level.

Bottom line, if you can score at high B2 level across the board in French I think you have a high chance of immigrating to Canada. And this can be done in a year with a lot of work.

 

[Deleted member 1006777]

I don't see a future in which FSW draws go back down to 464. I don't think it is worth spending 2/3 of your salary on the IELTS to get to that.

I don't say this lightly because I know it is hard, but unless you can do a PNP stream I think learning French might be your best/only option. The government is highly committed to maintaining a certain level of Francophone immigration outside of Quebec, and FSW-type streams (either provincial or country level) are the only way to achieve that.

@mushymush has good strategies for learning French from scratch. I did it but started from A2/B1 so didn't have as far to go. You may need to adapt in your case bc of finances but it is probably a better investment than sitting the IELTS just to get a score that will never get you an ITA. And it will be way less than a degree. Plus, you won't need to spend as much money to learn once you get to the B1 level.

Bottom line, if you can score at high B2 level across the board in French I think you have a high chance of immigrating to Canada. And this can be done in a year with a lot of work.

I just have to add here that @Talal205 mentioned they currently have a score of 404. So even a high B2 in French would only get them to 468. It might actually be lower than that because the bonus for french is contingent on getting an NCLC7 in IELTS as well. So their best bet is to actually increase IELTS to get to 460+ and then french to get to 470+ (with a low B2) or 500+ (with a high B2). Unfortunately, one of the two will not suffice.

I'd say go mess around with the CRS calculator to see what combination you actually need. Based on what they've mentioned, high IELTS + french is the only way they stand a chance. Or PNP if they are in the right field of work. Incidentally 460 also seems to be the sweet spot for Ontario tech draws.

 

[jp9]

I don't see a future in which FSW draws go back down to 464.

The last draw where 464 was enough to get an ITA was in October 2019. However, before the FSW draws were paused in December the cutoffs where actually trending down, so 464 would not necessarily have been out of reach with a few more draws. See for example this CRS cutoff score chart.

When FSW draws resume in earnest – hopefully in the summer or earlier – it is entirely possible that an increase in ITAs per round can get us down to 464 levels again. In the meantime, exploring alternative strategies as you suggest may be a good idea.

 

[guelphite]

The last draw where 464 was enough to get an ITA was in October 2019. However, before the FSW draws were paused in December the cutoffs where actually trending down, so 464 would not necessarily have been out of reach with a few more draws. See for example this CRS cutoff score chart.

When FSW draws resume in earnest – hopefully in the summer or earlier – it is entirely possible that an increase in ITAs per round can get us down to 464 levels again. In the meantime, exploring alternative strategies as you suggest may be a good idea.

Anything is possible I suppose but holding out for an FSW ITA at 464 is a dream not a plan. Definitely wouldn't advise someone to spend 2/3 of their monthly salary on that.

 

[jp9]

Definitely wouldn't advise someone to spend 2/3 of their monthly salary on that.

Totally agreed. I was just pointing out that the scores may come down to that level eventually after FSW draws are resumed

 

[guelphite]

Totally agreed. I was just pointing out that the scores may come down to that level eventually after FSW draws are resumed

Makes sense. It's just a different world now . People are looking for security, and there are so few attractive English speaking countries now that Aus immigration is closed down and the US is a sh*thole...

 

[starlordavuthu]

Makes sense. It's just a different world now . People are looking for security, and there are so few attractive English speaking countries now that Aus immigration is closed down and the US is a sh*thole...

Thats quite a statement regarding US? what makes you say that?

 

[Deleted member 1006777]

Makes sense. It's just a different world now . People are looking for security, and there are so few attractive English speaking countries now that Aus immigration is closed down and the US is a sh*thole...

Hahahah aren't you a US citizen?

I lived in the US for 9 years and I loved it there, but I have to agree. The immigration policy there has destroyed my future. It is my fault though, I should've noticed it sooner and left many years ago, but I foolishly stuck with it thinking I'd get lucky (and that's all the US immigration system is. Luck.)

 

[guelphite]

Hahahah aren't you a US citizen?

I lived in the US for 9 years and I loved it there, but I have to agree. The immigration policy there has destroyed my future. It is my fault though, I should've noticed it sooner and left many years ago, but I foolishly stuck with it thinking I'd get lucky (and that's all the US immigration system is. Luck.)

Ha yeah I am. The US has benefits for sure but half the country is insane and the government is cruel and dysfunctional. Sorry you got screwed over.

 

[starlordavuthu]

Hahahah aren't you a US citizen?

I lived in the US for 9 years and I loved it there, but I have to agree. The immigration policy there has destroyed my future. It is my fault though, I should've noticed it sooner and left many years ago, but I foolishly stuck with it thinking I'd get lucky (and that's all the US immigration system is. Luck.)

I dont think luck has anything to do with US immigration, I know I wont get my green card till 2031 or may be longer so does anyone who applied for green card, it just depends on where you are born (may be that has to do something with luck). US has its advantages and disadvantages but its a great place to live and build your life.

 

[Deleted member 1006777]

I dont think luck has anything to do with US immigration, I know I wont get my green card till 2031 or may be longer so does anyone who applied for green card, it just depends on where you are born (may be that has to do something with luck). US has its advantages and disadvantages but its a great place to live and build your life.

It's called an H1B lottery. Lottery. For a reason. The only realistic path to residence is a work visa, which is based on luck. Or hey, a diversity visa. Guess what, that's a lottery too (and I'm not eligible for it anyway, so again, bad luck yeah?). So yeah it looks to me like it does have something to do with luck.

Like I said, I loved living there, but like guelphite said, the government has gotten increasingly dysfunctional, and I don't think living in fear of losing healthcare or worse, being forced to leave becasue you lost your job (as was my case) is a life I want.

 

[starlordavuthu]

It's called an H1B lottery. Lottery. For a reason. The only realistic path to residence is a work visa, which is based on luck. Or hey, a diversity visa. Guess what, that's a lottery too (and I'm not eligible for it anyway, so again, bad luck yeah?). So yeah it looks to me like it does have something to do with luck.

Like I said, I loved living there, but like guelphite said, the government has gotten increasingly dysfunctional, and I don't think living in fear of losing healthcare or worse, being forced to leave becasue you lost your job (as was my case) is a life I want.

Once you are in US I dont see how it is related to luck? I do agree about H1B lottery system. When I moved to the states on work visa I know what I signed up for, I know there is a unrealistic long wait time for GC, I know I can loose my job anytime and I may have to leave the country, I know healthcare is very expensive but hey so does a million other folks just like me and still decided to move to US, life goes on.

Government has gotten increasingly dysfunctional - I dont think this will effect a common folk in any drastic means, 3 presidents changed during my stay in US and nothing really changed for me (for better or worse).

 

[guelphite]

Once you are in US I dont see how it is related to luck? I do agree about H1B lottery system. When I moved to the states on work visa I know what I signed up for, I know there is a unrealistic long wait time for GC, I know I can loose my job anytime and I may have to leave the country, I know healthcare is very expensive but hey so does a million other folks just like me and still decided to move to US, life goes on.

Government has gotten increasingly dysfunctional - I dont think this will effect a common folk in any drastic means, 3 presidents changed during my stay in US and nothing really changed for me (for better or worse).

I imagine if you're a non-white immigrant with a high paying job, the US is the easiest country in the world to feel like you can blend in and just "live"? Could be wrong as I am a white US citizen by birth. But those things would be attractive to me too, when I put myself in other people's shoes... I guess it's what you value most.