Good morning everyone
I write to you today regarding my experience of getting a study permit. Truth be told the following is more of a diary entry rather than an advisory article. Truth be told, I am writing this document to give you an insight as to how much patience is valued when you are applying in Canada.
I applied for admission in "Confederation College" on one of their PS programs sometime in Mid-September if I recall correctly. A collection of Canadian Colleges were having an expo in my country and during the visit I showed my interest in furthering my educational goals.
The Director of International Educations showed an interest in my talents and asked me to apply through an organization known as the CUAC. Once I went there I got acquainted with one of the counselors in that organization. Needless to say that they were ALL very helpful and rather serious about what I am getting myself into. The information they provided was quite clear and once I assured them that I am willing to apply for the college they promptly set up an appointment with me the next day (Imagine that, how inspiring)!
The next day I went to their office and to my surprise, the director of international education was right there waiting for me! We had a long talk and after which she saw my English was excellent and decided to waive the requirement for an IELTS exam! Sadly, I was a bit short on finances then and there. The program demanded that I paid all of the 1st years tuition fees in advance and I didn't have that kind of money at that moment. The wonderful director then made an installment payment option available to me. The installment allowed me to apply for admission and proceed with my endeavors.
A few days later I received an acceptance letter from the college! I was bouncing all around the house in glee and for a second I forgot that I had to apply for a visa too (Silly me)! So back to work I went. I made an MRP in a span of a few days, obtained all my documents together and finally appeared before the VFS on the 4th of December. The woman at the VFS was quite nice too but tried skipping a few important documents from my application. One particular document is the photocopy of my previous passports.
Now, my previous passport is full of visa's and not having them in my application was a bit of a grind but I didn't say anything. I still got my visa but I think that the travel history of an individual is very important and should be included. So if you have the option, please request them to attach it with your application, it may mean the difference between a visa approval or a denial.
Then came the waiting, which was rather short compared to the one that'll be mentioned later. In 2 calendar weeks I received a response from the high commission requesting for a medical checkup. I proceeded with it asap and sent the medical on the 2nd of January 2013. The medical services alerted me of my FedEx package concerning my application and my medical reports landed on the 10th of January if I remember correctly.
The waiting started again, this time more strenuous than the last. It was the 20th of January and I have been browsing all day looking for visa refusals after medicals, processing time after medicals etc! My classes were to start on the 4th of Feb so I was wondering if I should book tickets or not, in all the stress I purchased a ticket for the 29th (if I recall correctly
).
The 24th came, 25th, 26th...... Still no response. I wrote to the embassy and they said that processing was going normally. My time was running out! What do I do? I wrote to the College and Lo and behold, the director responded me again. The 29th of January came and went and I missed my flight due to no visa. I was devastated. Will I wait for 6 months and reapply in September? But then, the college wrote to me saying that they will wait for me till the 15th of Feb! Horray! More time. But should I be happy? What if I get rejected?
I started waiting again, rebooked my flight on the 12th of Feb so that I can land in Thunder bay on the 13th and allow myself ONE DAY of rest. The dates closed in again! It was terrifying and then it happened. The visa acceptance came! My mind just went numb for a second! Is it true? I checked the mail again, the sender and made sure that it wasn't a spam. IT WAS NOT! I GOT A VISA! I could hardly contain myself. To see All those weeks of waiting and waiting finally bear fruit is an incomprehensible ecstasy.
What have I learnt from this experience? The value of patience and to never give up. There is so much that I didnt write in this post, so much fine details that can never really be put into a single paragraph. Life for me, has returned to what is was before. But I will never forget how I nearly went nuts, seeing my life flash right before me, as I grew into a better man.
I write to you today regarding my experience of getting a study permit. Truth be told the following is more of a diary entry rather than an advisory article. Truth be told, I am writing this document to give you an insight as to how much patience is valued when you are applying in Canada.
I applied for admission in "Confederation College" on one of their PS programs sometime in Mid-September if I recall correctly. A collection of Canadian Colleges were having an expo in my country and during the visit I showed my interest in furthering my educational goals.
The Director of International Educations showed an interest in my talents and asked me to apply through an organization known as the CUAC. Once I went there I got acquainted with one of the counselors in that organization. Needless to say that they were ALL very helpful and rather serious about what I am getting myself into. The information they provided was quite clear and once I assured them that I am willing to apply for the college they promptly set up an appointment with me the next day (Imagine that, how inspiring)!
The next day I went to their office and to my surprise, the director of international education was right there waiting for me! We had a long talk and after which she saw my English was excellent and decided to waive the requirement for an IELTS exam! Sadly, I was a bit short on finances then and there. The program demanded that I paid all of the 1st years tuition fees in advance and I didn't have that kind of money at that moment. The wonderful director then made an installment payment option available to me. The installment allowed me to apply for admission and proceed with my endeavors.
A few days later I received an acceptance letter from the college! I was bouncing all around the house in glee and for a second I forgot that I had to apply for a visa too (Silly me)! So back to work I went. I made an MRP in a span of a few days, obtained all my documents together and finally appeared before the VFS on the 4th of December. The woman at the VFS was quite nice too but tried skipping a few important documents from my application. One particular document is the photocopy of my previous passports.
Now, my previous passport is full of visa's and not having them in my application was a bit of a grind but I didn't say anything. I still got my visa but I think that the travel history of an individual is very important and should be included. So if you have the option, please request them to attach it with your application, it may mean the difference between a visa approval or a denial.
Then came the waiting, which was rather short compared to the one that'll be mentioned later. In 2 calendar weeks I received a response from the high commission requesting for a medical checkup. I proceeded with it asap and sent the medical on the 2nd of January 2013. The medical services alerted me of my FedEx package concerning my application and my medical reports landed on the 10th of January if I remember correctly.
The waiting started again, this time more strenuous than the last. It was the 20th of January and I have been browsing all day looking for visa refusals after medicals, processing time after medicals etc! My classes were to start on the 4th of Feb so I was wondering if I should book tickets or not, in all the stress I purchased a ticket for the 29th (if I recall correctly
).The 24th came, 25th, 26th...... Still no response. I wrote to the embassy and they said that processing was going normally. My time was running out! What do I do? I wrote to the College and Lo and behold, the director responded me again. The 29th of January came and went and I missed my flight due to no visa. I was devastated. Will I wait for 6 months and reapply in September? But then, the college wrote to me saying that they will wait for me till the 15th of Feb! Horray! More time. But should I be happy? What if I get rejected?
I started waiting again, rebooked my flight on the 12th of Feb so that I can land in Thunder bay on the 13th and allow myself ONE DAY of rest. The dates closed in again! It was terrifying and then it happened. The visa acceptance came! My mind just went numb for a second! Is it true? I checked the mail again, the sender and made sure that it wasn't a spam. IT WAS NOT! I GOT A VISA! I could hardly contain myself. To see All those weeks of waiting and waiting finally bear fruit is an incomprehensible ecstasy.
What have I learnt from this experience? The value of patience and to never give up. There is so much that I didnt write in this post, so much fine details that can never really be put into a single paragraph. Life for me, has returned to what is was before. But I will never forget how I nearly went nuts, seeing my life flash right before me, as I grew into a better man.