Canada is one of the best countries for students who want to study, live, and work in. Also, it is a very popular destination for Indian students. In fact, according to Statista (2020), there were over one million registered Indians in Canada as of December 2019, and 530,540 international students in Canada by 2020. It is important to have a guide for Indian students who want to study in Canada.

According to a survey known as ICEF- Agent Barometer, the most important factors for international students to choose Canada are affordability, safety and work opportunities. Nonetheless, Canada also counts with an excellent outstanding education system that offers great benefits for international students. Some of these benefits are:

  • International recognized education
  • Advanced quality education
  • Accessibility to scholarships
  • Multicultural society
  • Possibility of immigration
  • Opportunities of employment

If you wanna have more information about the benefits of studying in Canada, please go to the article ‘The benefits of Studying in Canada: Opportunities for International Students‘.

Tuition

The tuition in Canada can vary depending on the institution the person is interested in, the type of program, courses selected per term, the year of enrollment to the institution and if it is a part-time or full-time student.

Tuition fees in Canada are usually less expensive than in many other countries such as the US, UK or Australia; the average tuition in Canada for international students can go from CAD$17,000 up to CAD $30,000 annually depending on all the factors mentioned above. The average cost approximately for Indian students would be INR $1,211,600 up to INR $1,817,401 per year.

Living Expenses

Students need to consider various living costs such as transportation, food/groceries, rent, communication, health insurance and other expenses. In Canada, besides tuition, rent is one of the highest fees to pay for international students. To have a better idea of the cost of each category above, please refer to the list below that you can find in another article ‘Cost of living in Vancouver‘ on the Acsenda website which has more detailed information about the expenses and how to save money and budget as an international student.

The costs of living in Canada can vary, however, to give an estimate per person in Canadian dollars:

  • Rent (Housing/Accommodation) – $500 to $2000 per month ( INR 30, 283 to 121,135)
  • Groceries/Food – $300 to $700 per month (INR 18,170 to 42,399)
  • Public Transportation – $100 to $175 per month (INR 6,056 to 10,599)
  • Data plan for cellphone – $35 to $150 per month (INR  2,119 to  9,085)
  • Provincial health insurance – $75 per month (INR 4,542)

Have in mind that these costs can vary depending on many factors, those numbers are an estimate of what the costs are in Canada at the present time but they can fluctuate at any given moment.

Work as an international student

International students that are aiming for full-time studies are allowed to work part-time up to 20 hours per week as stated on the Canadian government website. Students can work full-time up to 40 hours per week in holidays or scheduled breaks allowed by the institution.

Also, after finishing the program of studies, students have the opportunity to apply to the Post-Graduate Work Permit Program (PGWPP) which is a program for international students who graduate from a designated learning institution (DLIs) to obtain an open work permit that allows them to remain in Canada working full-time up to three years after graduation depending on the duration of their program of studies.

Travel Restrictions

There are different requirements that the Canadian Government has dictated for international students but for the two most important ones before coming to Canada:

  1. Acquire a study permit or letter of introduction from a designated learning institution (DLIs)
  2. Attend a designated learning institution (DLIs) that has stipulated a COVID-19 plan approved by the provincial government
  3. If possible being vaccinated with both doses or one dose of Johnson and Johnson in order to qualify as a fully vaccinated traveller

Therefore, read carefully all the requirements, exceptions, pre-entry testing, accepted vaccines, etc., that the Canadian Government implemented for travellers in the COVID-19 pandemic on the Government website.

Essential documents

Additionally, to apply for the study permit, the Canadian visa and any other documents required by the government. Remember it is important to have ready with you the documents that are necessary for all these processes. Some of the documents that you will need are:

  • Valid passport
  • Proof or Letter of Acceptance
  • Proof of Funds
  • Passport size photographs
  • Immigration Medical Examination
  • English Language Proficiency Test score
  • Credit Card

For more information regarding documents needed for the application of the study permit please go to the Canadian website. Also, there is a document checklist where you can organize what the document needs.

In case you need more help with what is needed before coming to Canada or while you are here, please contact us.