Australia V/s Canada

[arorasumit]

Hi All,

I just registered to this forum but have been following it for quite sometime now and get useful information. I have been planning on leaving Delhi to go to either Australia or Canada for almost 2 months and gathering information. I think I am pretty close to making a decision but have a few questions:
1. I am 38 years old, grade 12 education, married with 2 kids. I know with my skill level, I won't qualify under FSW. The only way I can move to Canada is to apply under Study Visa and after 2 years of studying there, maybe get a job and apply under PNP. Question is if I have the money to show and ILETS band score and Letter of Acceptance from a college in Vancouver, what do you think my chances of Visa Success?
2. After all the racial attacks on Indian Students in Australia, do you think its worthwhile to go to Australia?
3. Education wise which country is cheaper. Canada or Australia?
4. Does Australia offer anything like Canada as far as PNP goes?
I would like to thank you all in advance.
Sumit

 

[Karlshammar]

1. Pretty good.
2. I'm sure there is more violence on a daily basis in India than any racial attacks in Australia.
3&4. I have to admit I don't know; I've never looked into Australia.

 

[rk2009]

1. Pretty good.
2. I'm sure there is more violence on a daily basis in India than any racial attacks in Australia.
3&4. I have to admit I don't know; I've never looked into Australia.

I was with you till #1 , but for #2, India is relatively safe for foreigners, surely they are scammed or overcharged but Physical harm i.e people burnt, stabbed etc. is relatively less than what Australia is seeing nowadays.

For an average Joe there aren't any food riots, street gangs or other issues. Obviously every country has an underbelly and India has one too. People don't necessarily seek out immigrants/foreigners to harm as it appears the case in Australia nowadays.

 

[arorasumit]

Thanks for the replies but lets not loose the focus of what we are here for.

Keep those replies coming. If anyone has any info on the prices of college courses please post it. It would be really appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[rk2009]

Here's an interesting thread

http://www.canada-city.ca/canada-immigration/posting.php?messageid=11013

and here are the cost calculators for University of Queensland
http://www.uq.edu.au/study/index.html?page=25540

and a canadian university cost calculator
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/my_money/planning/education/university_cost/tool.jsp

Also as you had suggested you haven't graduated maybe you can (only/additionally?) look at under-grad courses.

 

[arorasumit]

Thanks RK..So we are pretty much looking at same cost. Now its just the matter of picking up the country. I am sure Australian Visa is lot easier than Canadian "All things being Equal". Won't you agree?

 

[rk2009]

Thanks RK..So we are pretty much looking at same cost. Now its just the matter of picking up the country. I am sure Australian Visa is lot easier than Canadian "All things being Equal". Won't you agree?

For student visa I am not sure, as a skilled worker they are very particular and its seems tougher.

For student visa, you might want to do more research on the following factors:

• Can you work while you study in Australia.
• Can you get into PR faster or do you have to return
  

Best of luck

 

[arorasumit]

Thanks again RK.. Its amazing that when I open the newspaper in the morning, there are few ads for Australia e.g. Study in Australia and Study in New Zealand. But the ads for Canadian Immigration/study are few and far in between. Makes you think why is that? Because CHC is a pain in the neck to deal with or their guidelines are lot more strict than Aus/NZ?
One thing I have noticed is that Canadian Embassy will not issue a Study Visa if they have a reason to believe that you won't have enough ties in your home country. Interesting! They have something called Dual Intent posted on CIC website.What does that means is that Visa officer can/will not refuse your Visa based on the fact that you intend to stay in Canada after finishing your studies and if you are able to find work there. There is a provision in Immigration and Refugee Protection Act which specifically talks about Dual Intent. So, obviously the beaurocracy is lot more powerful in Canada as well than the LAW.

 

[rk2009]

Thanks again RK.. Its amazing that when I open the newspaper in the morning, there are few ads for Australia e.g. Study in Australia and Study in New Zealand. But the ads for Canadian Immigration/study are few and far in between. Makes you think why is that? Because CHC is a pain in the neck to deal with or their guidelines are lot more strict than Aus/NZ?
One thing I have noticed is that Canadian Embassy will not issue a Study Visa if they have a reason to believe that you won't have enough ties in your home country. Interesting! They have something called Dual Intent posted on CIC website.What does that means is that Visa officer can/will not refuse your Visa based on the fact that you intend to stay in Canada after finishing your studies and if you are able to find work there. There is a provision in Immigration and Refugee Protection Act which specifically talks about Dual Intent. So, obviously the beaurocracy is lot more powerful in Canada as well than the LAW.

In your situation I would say that look at the domain that you want to study in and opportunities in each country post-study. Someone in another thread noted that after metals, universities are the biggest export from Australia, probably thats why you see more ads : If you find multiple universities vying for you the Australia is better as cost would come down. This thread talks about gaining employment after getting 1 year experience in Canada: http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/federal-worker-after-one-year-of-study-in-canada-t32408.0.html

I do not necessarily think that the Dual Intent is something you should be worried about, this page http://www.cic.gc.ca/EnGLish/study/institutions/intent.asp says

An international student should first be aware that:

Federal government programs may be available to international students which permit them to stay and work in Canada after having completed their studies and, in some cases, eventually apply for permanent residency. If unable to qualify for such programs a student is required to leave Canada upon expiry of their study permit.

Asking you to go back at the end of the study is fair enough, but if you secure a job offer or are selected as part of the FSW they will let you stay, I feel this is common among all immigration policies.

 

[moneycat]

After 22 years in Australia, we have decided to leave and move to Canada. Australia is now "the world's most rip-off country", living cost is so expensive, you can find out by checking out grocery / supermarkets websites. I just came back from USA & Canada; living cost in Australia is at least 50% more than Canada (esp. food), and other items like Computers / electronics can be 2 to 3 times more expensive than USA. Petrol here is automatically 30% more because of the tax. There are many hidden costs in Australia many do not know, tax here and tax there. Inflation is a real problem here, and climate is really bad, very long summers and electricity can be very expensive. Water is going to jump 30% next year.

I laughed at Canadians when they complained that full-day parking is $24 in Vancouver Downtown now, that's our 1 hour parking in Sydney Downtown during weekdays, during weekends, you can get it for $15 to $20 a day, but in Vancouver, you can park for free!

Education quality is going down in Australia, the standard is pretty poor. Australia used to be a much better place, but over the past 5 years, things have gotten much worse, due to drought (food inflation), bad racial attacks (hurting their reputation) and loss of a large number of professionals to US, Canada, UK and Asia (avg. 70,000 Professionals leaving Australia each year), there are many new migrants, but they are mostly unskilled. We are losing doctors, accountants, financial managers, engineers..it's also a hard place to run a business because the market is too small.

Seriously, US offers the best education options & quality, Canada is a good place, as it is just next to US and living environment is quite good, I found Canadians and Americans much more "Globally minded" as well.

 

[abelkwh]

Hi Newbie

Thanks for the contrast on aust and canada, i am really surprised with what u have mentioned and that u r moving to canada from australia? are u an aussie by birth or immigrant? or where r u from originally?

I was thinking of going to australia for my PHD in sydney and yes, indeed, cost of living is damn high compared to living cost in major cities in canada, such as vancouver or toronto!

So what else can u share about the merits or demerits of living in australia, i would really be glad to hear more from u, from a first hand experience person! Would really appreciate from your wonderful insights!

Thanks