Applicant from PhD program after 5 Nov, 2011 connect here to get status

[aidina]

I think it is totally up to you.

 

[kg.jadu]

Hey guys,

I thought you might find this link useful: http://grad.uwo.ca/faculty_staff/financial_support/compensation.html. It distinguishes between the "Graduate Research Assistant" (GRA) and "Research Assistant" (RA). GRA is the research you are doing your Professor, and it is directly related to your thesis work. RA might be the research not related to your thesis, for example working for your Professor on a side project OR working for other Professor(s) from your University. GRA is not an employment, and its sole purpose is financial compensation:

To assist his/her student financially; to bring the student up to the guaranteed level of funding as stated by SGPS or the Department.

On the other hand, RA is valid employment.

What I mean is that if a Western student asks HR to write a letter detailing employment as a GRA, she is not going to get anything useful for immigration. On the other hand, if she has valid RA experience, not related to her thesis work, she may get a sensible letter from the HR. I'm not sure how these two experiences are called in other schools, but it should be similar due to the nature of work of PhD students.

Apparently, CIC is interested in the RA, not GRA. So IMHO, what hadikhan64 received is a request to explain how much time was spent on the thesis work ("GRA"), and how much time was spent on other research ("RA"). The reason GRA is less valuable than RA is that you HAVE to do it to get a degree, while RA is more voluntary and up to you. That's why most universities cap the maximum time you can work as a RA at 20 hours/week---because in addition to that, you have to do your thesis work.

If you ask me, I think this is ridiculous: You are getting this NOC 4012 experience anyways, no matter if you work as a RA or GRA. But apparently CIC officers really go by the book and want to distinguish the two.

 

[N_O]

The thing is I do not claim the time spent on my RA! A letter from HR states that how many hours I work as an RA. I know for fact that some universities in Canada do not go beyond 20hrs for RA, but UBC's HR puts 40hrs/week for RA.

So the last letter was from the HR of UBC not from your supervisor? You may this time provide them with a more specific letter from your supervisor that shows the actual number of working hours, 20 hours would be enough to be more realistic. Get a letter form your faculty for the courses you TAed, and another letter from the SGS shows how many hours the PhD full time student spends every week or semester.

 

[N_O]

What if we do not want to claim a work experience that we claimed before?
To me, if I got rejected, I do not need my work experience from my country, Only my RA would be enough.

I think it is up to you, but I prefer to provide them with any experience I have, in case the VO is not satisfied with RA.

 

[hooman2012]

I think it is up to you, but I prefer to provide them with any experience I have, in case the VO is not satisfied with RA.

Then they have more letters to look for to find problems.

 

[N_O]

Then they have more letters to look for to find problems.

 

[anjuku]

Then they have more letters to look for to find problems.

lol ;D..good one!!

 

[hooman2012]

lol ;D..good one!!

Seriously , I was not joking, I guess we better not to include something that we do not need.
It is just like an interview. The more you talk, the more they will ask question about what you said. So better not to talk too much.

 

[sarsanballa]

Guys, I was finally rejected for the reason you all know. That is unfortunate as I had other work experience from my home country that I did not claim. I did not take it seriously. Apparently, they do not consider the reference letters sent after the application date even I was told by the CIC call centre that they would consider it. I will probably prepare a new one even I am not sure if I would stay in Canada or not. I will be finishing my study in 1 year.

Sorry about your rejection, Aidina, but stay positive even though it can be difficult to do sometimes.

 

[zorroo]

For requesting the CAIPS, should we print the form, sign and scan it and then email it? Because it is a filling pdf form, but in "requester signature" part I could not type anything!

 

[JVJ]

Guys, I was finally rejected for the reason you all know. That is unfortunate as I had other work experience from my home country that I did not claim. I did not take it seriously. Apparently, they do not consider the reference letters sent after the application date even I was told by the CIC call centre that they would consider it. I will probably prepare a new one even I am not sure if I would stay in Canada or not. I will be finishing my study in 1 year.

That's really sad Aidina..I am so sorry!

I submitted my documents electronically and by mail about two weeks ago but haven't received any acknowledgement from them yet. I am getting a bit worried too...There appears to be be no way to find out what they are going to accept and what not ..

 

[salam20]

This is totally new! To ask about the number of hours spent as a PhD student!

You have to ask your supervisor to write a detailed reference letter that shows the number of hours you spent as an RA per week and the annual salary. Make sure not to contradict your first reference letter!

Ask your faculty to write a reference letter that shows all the courses you TAed, with the number of hours for each course and the hourly rate.

I am not sure about the time spent as a PhD student!

I am so worried about all these rejections!! (thinking of getting the help of immigration office for appeal or for a new application, or prepare a new application with the new ref. letters, or forget about everything until I graduate and get apply under the CEC, or Provencal)

I am truly glad to know that you got the ref. letter request, at least there is hope that if the letters we provide are not nice enough, the officer may ask for new letters.

About the PhD student hours, I guess the officer needs to know hour many hours you completed in your PhD like 54 out of 60 hours required for graduation, i understand that you may be registered as maintenance hours until you graduate as you have already completed your workload i mean the 60 hours.

I agree, you need to get the TA from your supervisor and RA from your supervisor (include the leading statements and duties as the NOC says)

 

[salam20]

please all fellows who gget the rejection letter, please consider two things:
1) Reconsideration letters– If the refusal was based on an error in fact or in law, and/or if that decision was not in accordance with the principles of procedural fairness, write to the Program Manager of the Canadian Visa Office to point out the errors and to request a reconsideration of the refusal decision;

2) Appeal – Wrongful refusals may, in certain instances, be appealed to the Federal Court of Canada or to the appropriate provincial court or, in the case of family sponsorships, to the Immigration Appeal Division.

source: http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/how-to-appeal-our-rejection-app-urgent-plssssssss-t96574.0.html

 

[aidina]

Those who got medical or document update, did you have your reference letter signed by your supervisor or who?

 

[esi110]

hello All,
I just got my rejection letter. It is such a foolish process, I have shown about four years of work experience including RA/TA and they rejected me for not meeting one year requirement. The rejection email is as follows:
"I have now completed the assessment of your application for a permanent resident visa as a skilled worker. I have determined that you do not meet the requirements for immigration to Canada.

Subsection 75(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations states that a foreign national is a skilled worker if:
a) within ten years preceding the date of their application for a permanent resident visa, they have at least one year of continuous full-time employment (37.5 hours/week) experience, or the equivalent in continuous part-time employment in one or more occupations, other than a restricted occupation, that are listed in Skill Type 0 Management Occupations or Skill Levels A or B of the National Occupational Classification matrix;
b) during that period of employment they performed the actions described in the lead statement for the occupation as set out in the occupational descriptions of the National Occupational Classification; and
c) during that period of employment they performed a substantial number of the main duties of the occupation as set out in the occupational descriptions of the National Occupational Classification, including all of the essential duties.

I am not satisfied that you meet these requirements. Your letters of reference from your employers did not list job duties or responsibilities that match the actions described in the lead statement and a substantial number of the main duties described in the NOC codes you selected. As such, you failed to demonstrate that your periods of work experience met the requirements listed above.

Subsection 75(3) states that if a foreign national fails to meet these requirements, the application shall be refused and no further assessment is required. I am not satisfied that you meet these requirements.

Subsection 11(1) of the Act states that a foreign national must, before entering Canada, apply to an officer for a visa or for any other document required by the regulations. The visa or document shall be issued if, following an examination, the officer is satisfied that the foreign national is not inadmissible and meets the requirements of this Act. Subsection 2(2) specifies that unless otherwise indicated, references in the Act to “this Act” include regulations made under it.

Following an examination of your application, I am not satisfied that you meet the requirements of the Act and the regulations for the reasons explained above. I am therefore refusing your application.

Thank you for the interest you have shown in Canada."
I am totally pissed off. Do you think using a lawyer for appealing is useful?