international student giving birth

[on-hold]

I think there's one problem with your plan -- if you get the PhD, there will be no more college degree for you to get; I'm not sure you can get financial aid to go back to school after you have a PhD; and if you get the MA, there is only one more degree for you to go for, and that is the PhD -- but any good PhD program will pay for you, and a bad PhD program is a waste of time. I guess I have two bits of advice:

1) The MA is better for you right now, because it's a limited program. It's a bad idea to enter a PhD program when you're not interested in the subject, since it takes years and dedication to finish.

2) The PhD is better for you right now, because it would let you work once you finished. There's a good chance the MA in linguistics will be useless, but a PhD in education will let you be an administrator.

I don't understand why you don't find a program that you like, now? It's weird that you're paying to go to school to get PR, with the objective of studying something different (that you presumably are interested in), once you are eligible for financial aid.

 

[propain]

Does uhip cover the expenses of having a kid. I dont think so.

 

[2014dell]

LOL!!! Don't feed the trolls.

Do you think it's a good idea to do a college degree/diploma while having children? It's easier to find jobs but I'm still concerned the courses are too stressful...

 

[propain]

lol

 

[Jebi]

Hi Roland,

My wife got an admit for PHD and i wanted to go as a dependent. Could you please tell me what is the best way to apply for the same....


Thanks in advance

Regards

Jabs

 

[jbrown]

hello roland27,

You want a baby, you want a PhD/Master (but don't really care which) because your real intent is Permanent Residence in Canada. You want to study something that's easy but you also want a scholarship. Well, it seems "you want it all".

...doesn't it seem like a good idea to just focus on being a mother and giving your baby all the attention and time he/she will need?
You're fooling yourself if you think you can succeed with raising a newborn and studying a PhD....one will suffer so wake up!

 

[jessica1]

Good plan

 

[rcan]

What is the Citizenship of a Child born to international student in Canada?

Hi All,

It's all confusing, in the context of changed Canadian Citizenship act/rules (2009 and 2015), pl enlighten me about "Citizenship Status" of a child born (during 2000) to foreign student during his/her study in Canada.

Thanks in advance!
-rcan

 

[YongK]

Thank you so much for your replies. Actually I don't care what these degrees would get me into. My purpose is just to be eligible to apply for PR asap (while might be flexible-scheduled to have a baby). Then I plan to get a college degree/diploma with student loan. I just want to know which degree MA or PhD, will be a better choice if I am pregnant? I am over 30 and I really want my first child! I know getting a degree and having baby together sound crazy but things just happen, it would be perfect if I find a balance.

I'm in a similar situation. Have you been able to find a balance in the end? I don't like when people think women should choose between having a baby and a professional career. A Ph.D. is almost as having a professional career, maybe even more flexible than going to work at fixed times. Also, a Ph.D. takes years, time that makes a woman possibly too old for bearing a child. There are exceptions, yes, but not all people age in the same way and it's scientifically proven that the younger the better in case of pregnancies. I read about more "negative" experiences regarding having a baby right after a Ph.D., than before or during. Let me know, maybe your experience can help me to better understand

 

[drjack]

If you have a child during your PhD, you will almost certainly need to add at least 2 years to your program length. A PhD is intensely stressful, and while it is "flexible," you do have to regularly prove that you are making progress; if you simply stagnate (e.g. you stay enrolled for consecutive semesters after the second year but don't actually do anything) you will likely be asked to exit the program either temporarily or permanently. That would be a problem.

Additionally, if you have no funding for a PhD, you should likely pursue something else. Depending on the school, any RA or TA money you could make would not even cover each semester's fees, let alone... you know, living.

There were two folks who had babies while in my program. One finished in 9 years, the other in 11.

 

[YongK]

If you have a child during your PhD, you will almost certainly need to add at least 2 years to your program length. A PhD is intensely stressful, and while it is "flexible," you do have to regularly prove that you are making progress; if you simply stagnate (e.g. you stay enrolled for consecutive semesters after the second year but don't actually do anything) you will likely be asked to exit the program either temporarily or permanently. That would be a problem.

Additionally, if you have no funding for a PhD, you should likely pursue something else. Depending on the school, any RA or TA money you could make would not even cover each semester's fees, let alone... you know, living.

There were two folks who had babies while in my program. One finished in 9 years, the other in 11.

It will never be easy, but after the Ph.D., when higher mobility is required, it would be even harder to have a newborn. After the Ph.D. you cannot wait to be 40 or 50... this would mean not having kids if you want to go for a Ph.D., which I find absurd. I don't have children and cannot relate to the parent job, but I think that any high profile position can be compared to a Ph.D. and still people have kids even if in those working positions.

Not knowing your peers, I cannot make any judgment, but I guess it's harder when the pregnancy is not planned/expected.

The Ph.D. programs I have seen are all paid, around 30,000$ per year (plus fees) and the university employs you. Of course, it depends on the field, but I remember having read of a recent law on a university website (passed in 2018, cannot find it right now) requiring the universities to pay a minimum of 30,000$ per year to Ph.D. students. Then universities can freely decide if adding funds or not to that mandatory amount.

 

[Kenny76]

Wow just stumbled on this thread. People are getting student visa when their sole intent is to get a PR by hook or crook and people like my wife who genuinely wants to a study in Canada and come back are denied visa. Something not right in Canadian visa granting system.

 

[drjack]

It will never be easy, but after the Ph.D., when higher mobility is required, it would be even harder to have a newborn. After the Ph.D. you cannot wait to be 40 or 50... this would mean not having kids if you want to go for a Ph.D., which I find absurd. I don't have children and cannot relate to the parent job, but I think that any high profile position can be compared to a Ph.D. and still people have kids even if in those working positions.

Not knowing your peers, I cannot make any judgment, but I guess it's harder when the pregnancy is not planned/expected.

The Ph.D. programs I have seen are all paid, around 30,000$ per year (plus fees) and the university employs you. Of course, it depends on the field, but I remember having read of a recent law on a university website (passed in 2018, cannot find it right now) requiring the universities to pay a minimum of 30,000$ per year to Ph.D. students. Then universities can freely decide if adding funds or not to that mandatory amount.

Well, plenty of folks do have kids after their PhDs, and this wasn't to say that you shouldn't have kids during a PhD but that it would be extremely hard to have children during a PhD if you have to abide by other rules, such as when on a study visa. The poster said they do not have funding for the PhD, and, even if you get a generous package such as $30k a year, that would expire after 4 years.

It's totally possible, I just wouldn't recommend it. It sounds like a nightmare.