Starting Life in CANADA - Tips & Stories

[galbi]

Thanks, sis chinita8. We applied under the family stream. My husband's aunt in Winnipeg provided the affidavit of support, which needed to be notarized in Canada. We sent all the docs to Winnipeg and she was the one who submitted the complete package to the immigration center there. 

[chinita8]

Thanks, sis chinita8. We applied under the family stream. My husband's aunt in Winnipeg provided the affidavit of support, which needed to be notarized in Canada. We sent all the docs to Winnipeg and she was the one who submitted the complete package to the immigration center there. 

sorry for the ignorance sis, but, Is FAMILY STREAM the same or different from a Family Sponsored petiton? It's definitely different from an FSW application right? But is it the same as Provincial Nominee?

hope you dont mind me asking ... 

[galbi]

Hi, sis chinita8.

The family stream is one of the priority streams under the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program. It is different from family sponsorship in the sense that applicants under the MPNP family stream are evaluated based on their employability and 'ability to contribute to the economy of the Province' (quoted from the Letter of Approval that I received). It is called 'family stream' because the applicant has to have a close relative in Manitoba who can give assistance in terms of accommodation and basic needs while the nominee is not yet fully settled.

On the other hand, family sponsorship applies to permanent residents and/or citizens who wish to be reunited with their family. Applicants under the family sponsorship program are NOT evaluated based on their employability. It is enough that they have their parents/spouse/children who are permanent residents or citizens in good standing in Canada.

I hope it helps. 

[chinita8]

^thanks sis for the explanation. i kinda got confused for awhile there. although i was leaning towards thinking that indeed it is under the Provincial Nominee Program as i know that Winnipeg (Manitoba) is one of those that offers such. good luck to your migration and all the best to you and your family in your new life there. 

[galbi]

thanks, sis chinita8. good luck to you and to our other sisters here in the forum, too. we might leave in april to avoid the biting cold.

[chinita8]

thanks, sis chinita8. good luck to you and to our other sisters here in the forum, too. we might leave in april to avoid the biting cold.

keep us updated always sis ...

[crazee_crazee]

Hi, I just wanted to ask if anyone here has experienced transferring to a university there from a university here in the Philippines. Our family will be leaving for Canada in a few months and some of the kids are in college (Ateneo de Manila). One is in 2nd year and the concern is if his credentials/qualifications so far will be counted in Canada and if so, how will it translate?

We are also starting the university application process. Any advice, info, tips? Has anyone here done the same thing? Thanks.

[beautz]

im also considering canada as a place to settle down and work. any sis na may marerecommend na agency who can assist us of filing. I am an RN but dont know where to start. no family in Canada.

[disturbedprincess]

Hi, I just wanted to ask if anyone here has experienced transferring to a university there from a university here in the Philippines. Our family will be leaving for Canada in a few months and some of the kids are in college (Ateneo de Manila). One is in 2nd year and the concern is if his credentials/qualifications so far will be counted in Canada and if so, how will it translate?

We are also starting the university application process. Any advice, info, tips? Has anyone here done the same thing? Thanks.

me! your children are both in Universities?or just the one?and where exactly in Canada are you planning to live?coz Universities, Colleges and Secondary programs are all different, depending on the province you live. I know this because I've lived in 3 Canadian provinces already and the schools i've been into are all different.


Universities actually ask students who's not a Canadian citizen or been living in Canada for less than 3 or 4 years to take TOEFL (or any English test). It's a requirement to take the English test, tho luckily I didn't have to take TOEFL.


oh btw, in the Philippines, in schools, we call it "subject" but in Canada, we call it "course" I am just letting you know so you won't confuse yourself in the future.


I also got some of my courses credited here, I advice that before you leave for Canada, ask Ateneo for the full description of all the courses your child took so when he gets here, he can just show all the papers to the admin so they'll check if it's the same thing that they offer here.

[disturbedprincess]

and may I ask, the one studying in Ateneo, what year is he into now?


anyways, if you have anymore questions just pm me whenever you're online.

[crazee_crazee]

me! your children are both in Universities?or just the one?and where exactly in Canada are you planning to live?coz Universities, Colleges and Secondary programs are all different, depending on the province you live. I know this because I've lived in 3 Canadian provinces already and the schools i've been into are all different.


Universities actually ask students who's not a Canadian citizen or been living in Canada for less than 3 or 4 years to take TOEFL (or any English test). It's a requirement to take the English test, tho luckily I didn't have to take TOEFL.


oh btw, in the Philippines, in schools, we call it "subject" but in Canada, we call it "course" I am just letting you know so you won't confuse yourself in the future.


I also got some of my courses credited here, I advice that before you leave for Canada, ask Ateneo for the full description of all the courses your child took so when he gets here, he can just show all the papers to the admin so they'll check if it's the same thing that they offer here.

Hello! Thank you for replying! One is currently in 2nd year while the other one is an incoming freshman (just got accepted by Ateneo) but since we will be moving to Canada this summer, he won't be entering college here. We assume that when we get to Canada, he will complete Grade 12 and then go to college or university like everyone else.

For the one who's currently in Ateneo now, we're getting together all the requirements. We've payed the application fees via OUAC and OCAS. Some of the schools we applied to are York, U Ottawa, U Waterloo, and some colleges, all in Ontario.

We will land in Calgary and live there but the kids want to go to college in Ontario and try living independently. OK naman sa aming lahat yung ganun na arrangement. :p So far, we have the transcripts from both Ateneo and their high schools, course descriptions from Ateneo also, and then we're considering doing the IELTS even if some schools said kahit pwedeng hindi na.

How/why were you able to get exempt from the IELTS/TOEFL btw? At saka paano ang student loans? Alberta kasi is our province but the schools are based in Ontario...? Also any additional advice, tips, info, etc. are very much welcome!

[disturbedprincess]

Ontario?nice that's where we used to live Kingston. what program is he planning to pursue? but honestly, I don't like living in Ottawa hehe I just like visiting Ottawa but not live there. Why don't he try Queen's? it's a good school I was going there for my last years in U, but I got accepted here in Alberta kaya my sister and I moved here.

McGill
Queen's
U of Alberta are the top schools in Canada


I didn't have to take TOEFL or IELTS kasi the last University I attended in the Phils are one of the Universities they acknowledge here in Canada (meaning english is the medium of teaching). pero they asked me to do an English test para lang makita my levels of English kung pwede na for University dito.


magkaiba talaga ang way ng skools dito compared sa Pinas, dito more on essays and they really rely on textbooks. kapag my essay they expect you to write what's written in the book.

[crazee_crazee]

Ontario?nice that's where we used to live Kingston. what program is he planning to pursue? but honestly, I don't like living in Ottawa hehe I just like visiting Ottawa but not live there. Why don't he try Queen's? it's a good school I was going there for my last years in U, but I got accepted here in Alberta kaya my sister and I moved here.

McGill
Queen's
U of Alberta are the top schools in Canada


I didn't have to take TOEFL or IELTS kasi the last University I attended in the Phils are one of the Universities they acknowledge here in Canada (meaning english is the medium of teaching). pero they asked me to do an English test para lang makita my levels of English kung pwede na for University dito.


magkaiba talaga ang way ng skools dito compared sa Pinas, dito more on essays and they really rely on textbooks. kapag my essay they expect you to write what's written in the book.

Communication kasi course niya and not all schools offer that. Think Queens doesn't unfortunately. May I ask what university here in the Philippines you attended and when/how you applied to the universities in Canada? Did you ask them directly for an exemption from the TOEFL/IELTS when you sent your application? Hope you can tell us how the process was for you para lang may konting idea kami Thanks a lot.

Btw pala, is it easy to get a student loan? Eligible na ba kami?

[disturbedprincess]

ano klaseng communication sis?kasi kung sa Pinas is it MassComm?or communication as in related in Linguistics?I attended Adamson U, MassComm so kung accredited ang Adamson, accredited din for sure ang Ateneo.

When they saw my school and knew that English was the medium of teaching they said na baka nga I won't have to take the TOEFL na, provincial lang, kung babagsak, then I have to go back to Grade 12 or take english classes, pero since pumasa ako, they didn't ask me to do TOEFL na.


sa loan naman, I don't know kung eligible na kayo to apply, kasi isa sa mga requirements is dapat my good credit history ka, my job. there are 2 types of student loan kasi, one is OSAP (if they decided to attend school in Ontario, it's government) the other one is Student line of credit (funded by a bank of your choice).


about your children living independently, ahm I honestly think it's not a good idea for now, since bago lang kayo magma-migrate dito. esp winter time, ang public transpo is different my mga oras and schedules, malayo pati ang Ontario and Alberta, 4-8 hours by plane if they wanted to be "independent" talaga why not them here in Edmonton kasi sa Calgary kayo diba?malapit na lang yun. plus you have to take in mind all the expenses din, apartments are really costly.


kung sa school naman sila titira, ok din yun for first year students, kasi priority nila ang mga first years e, after that you have to find your own place na din.


and isa sa mahirap is if you don't drive so before they decided to be independent, have them take driver's ed and get a license.

[fedster]

hello, i just want to ask...  baket nagbago na yung mga professions for federal skilled worker?  i used to be eligible for IT professionals, pero ngayon manager positions na lang ang pwede.  so di na pala ako pwede mag apply as federal skilled worker?

[marssie]

Pwede na palang magbayad ngayon online using credit card? For the Application? May nakapagtry na ba?

[bubbles_sandy]

hi! paano mg-apply as immigrant sa Canada. okay ba thru agency or direct sa Embassy?

[curlytops56]

Hi All,

I'm a newbie in this site. Hope someone can help me in my inquiry.

We've recently received our visa for Canada. Can someone please tell me what airline they got for their trip to Canada and how was the experience?
Plan is for my family to go to Vancouver by June 2010.

Also, is there any IT person here that is in Canada. I'm an IT personnel and I want to know what's the most in demand job in Canada. I am targetting an Analyst or Programmer's job and I want to know what's the most in demand programming language in Canada.

I'm hoping someone can help me regarding these concerns.

Thanks & God bless.

[rics]

We've recently received our visa for Canada. Can someone please tell me what airline they got for their trip to Canada and how was the experience?
Plan is for my family to go to Vancouver by June 2010.

Korean Airlines offer affordable airfares, plus for new immigrants they offer additional baggage allowance (check with them to see if they have not changed this policy)

PAL is quite expensive but has direct flight to Vancouver
You can also try Cathay Pacific, reasonably priced also. But since you mentioned that you will travel during the summer, airfare would have a higher price for whatever airline you choose.

Also, is there any IT person here that is in Canada. I'm an IT personnel and I want to know what's the most in demand job in Canada. I am targeting an Analyst or Programmer's job and I want to know what's the most in demand programming language in Canada.

This is quite a tricky question to answer since there are a lot of factors to consider when applying for any kind of job. In demand jobs would be in the health profession definitely, IT also has an edge when it comes to job openings, but there are also a lot of IT professionals around (new grads, skilled professionals from outside of Canada plus local professionals who have already years of experience). Also factor in that a good number of companies outsource projects (technical support, programming etc.) in other countries.

As to the salary, it varies also depending on size of the organization, the location, etc. Vancouver I suppose will have a slightly higher % in salary since the cost of living is also high as compared to other big cities in Canada like Toronto and Montreal.

Now again, its hard to tell which programming language is highly in demand since it will again depend on the industry, the size of the organization, and the location of the business.

Try to check job posting at Monster just to see what jobs are out there for programmers. Good luck.

[crazee_crazee]

ano klaseng communication sis?kasi kung sa Pinas is it MassComm?or communication as in related in Linguistics?I attended Adamson U, MassComm so kung accredited ang Adamson, accredited din for sure ang Ateneo.

When they saw my school and knew that English was the medium of teaching they said na baka nga I won't have to take the TOEFL na, provincial lang, kung babagsak, then I have to go back to Grade 12 or take english classes, pero since pumasa ako, they didn't ask me to do TOEFL na.


sa loan naman, I don't know kung eligible na kayo to apply, kasi isa sa mga requirements is dapat my good credit history ka, my job. there are 2 types of student loan kasi, one is OSAP (if they decided to attend school in Ontario, it's government) the other one is Student line of credit (funded by a bank of your choice).


about your children living independently, ahm I honestly think it's not a good idea for now, since bago lang kayo magma-migrate dito. esp winter time, ang public transpo is different my mga oras and schedules, malayo pati ang Ontario and Alberta, 4-8 hours by plane if they wanted to be "independent" talaga why not them here in Edmonton kasi sa Calgary kayo diba?malapit na lang yun. plus you have to take in mind all the expenses din, apartments are really costly.


kung sa school naman sila titira, ok din yun for first year students, kasi priority nila ang mga first years e, after that you have to find your own place na din.


and isa sa mahirap is if you don't drive so before they decided to be independent, have them take driver's ed and get a license.

Hi, thanks for the info and sorry for the delayed response.

As of now, university applications have been submitted. We are now in the process of waiting and praying for good results. Hopefully, offers of admission will be made.

And yes, I think the best option (everyone was in agreement anyway) is to live on campus though of course that's an additional expense.

We still don't know how to proceed with the student loan. Since we'll be landing in Alberta and consider that to be our "home province," I assume that's where we'll be applying for student loan even if the schools are in Ontario.

The site says that 1 must be a resident of Alberta, meaning he/she should have lived there for at least 1 year w/o being a full-time student. But it also says that if you're a dependent student and your parents are residents of Alberta, then you can be eligible.

Can anyone break this down for us? If the parents reside in Alberta (newly landed but are still living/working there anyway), and the student is still dependent on them, does it mean that that student can/will get a loan to pay for university?