“How hard is it for an international student to get into Canadian universities for an undergraduate degree ?
I can share my personal experience. I am an international student in Canada
- I rubbed my ass for 3 years for getting into IIT (prestigious college in India ) but couldn’t get computer science there. Then I gave the exam again, still my rank in IIT was not good enough to so I could get computer science.
- Then I gathered information about universities in Canada and USA and figured out what procedure I need to follow to get into universities in North America.
- I planned for going to Canada or USA and it was already august. I did not want to waste another year so I though I will take admission in the semester which starts from January itself.
- My parents were unaware of what I am doing and were planning me to put into a private college in India, but I didn’t want that. It took me many days for me to convince my parents for studying abroad and I finally got the permission.
- I remember I had only 20 days to prepare for the next SAT exam. I started my preparation.
- I studied around 16 hours per day everyday with full determination because I knew that universities in Canada are very expensive and I need scholarship if I wanted to study there.
- I studied around 16 -17 hours everyday and then I gave the examination. I scored 1450/1600 in the new SAT.
- Next was TOEFL. I had only 15 days to study for TOEFL. I did the same. I studied around 16 hours everyday till the day of my examination. The results were good. I got 108/120 in TOEFL.
- I applied at universities in Canada and USA and got admitted into all of the universities I applied. I found University of Waterloo provided me with pretty good amount of scholarships, so I decided to go there.
- I thought now I am done as I have got scholarship and everything is fine but something terrible happened. My student visa got rejected. I was in shock. I couldn’t believe that why would they reject my visa. I tried to figured out the reason and reapplied for my Canada visa.
- I couldn’t sleep because I was very worried what would I do if my visa gets rejected again as my parents were continuously asking me to take admission in India but I wanted to study abroad. My future was dependent on it
- Finally, came the day of 8th may 2017. My study permit was accepted and I was ready to fly to canada.
SO, this was my story for getting into Canadian university. Canadian universities look at lots of things like for admitting you in Canada like your marks, SOP, letter of recommendation, extracurricular activities and some other factors. If you are good student and serious about studies, you can surely come to Canada for your education.
Another factor which you should consider is the cost of studying in Canada:
Expense: The total cost of living and food on campus can be around $1700/month + tuition ( Depends on the University)
Earnings: You can work in Canada. Generally most students who work part time earn around $11/hour during your classes and Full time during summer breaks. SO, during summers, you can earn around $1600/month and around $600/month during your classes.
EXPENSE > EARNINGS
But there is always a hope: If you live off campus, you can save lots of money. I have got a house worth $450/month for rent and I spend around $160/month on food+$70 (extra costs) which makes it around $700.
Conclusion: It is not that difficult to study in Canada. All you need is determination and hard work. GOOD LUCK!!