The sooner is better. If you apply for a university as soon as possible, there is a greater chance of getting arrange everything on time. And you have enough time to apply for another university if you are not accepted. So, don’t wait to deadline get closer.
High-ranking universities usually have an application deadline of about one year. And other universities have application deadline around six to one month before the program starts. So, remember to apply soon as possible because you have enough time submit applications and get visa on time if you’re an international student.
I hope you have already selected a degree program for your higher studies. And maybe you have also selected a university too. If you are going to study abroad this article will help you a lot “what to consider when you plan study abroad”.
How to Apply?
REQUIREMENTS
Usually nowadays, applications are made through online on the official university website. But first of all, you must fulfill the minimum requirements. This includes language requirements and admission requirements. If English is not your mother tongue you need to meet the minimum scores of a language proficiency test like IELTS, TOEFL, GRE and etc. Further, some institutes offer special intensive English programs for their international students as the Intensive English for International students in Red River College.
Local Student Academic Requirement
Admission requirements differs from program to program. But the minimum requirement is Canadian grade 12 education. This will be the minimum requirement for most of the programs
International Students Academic Requirements
- English Language Requirement: If applicant’s first language isn’t English, they must prove that they have sufficient English knowledge to understand classroom instructions, writing ability and speaking. As an example see the English language requirement of university of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada.
- General Entrance Requirement: Base on the country you have studied the requirements are, minimum 2 credits at Advance Level and 3 credits in Ordinary level in General Certificate of Education (GCE). And an IB diploma with 3 credits in Higher Level and 3 credits in Standard Level in International Baccalaureate (IB). As an example see the general entrance requirement of university of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada.
APPLY ONLINE
Almost all the universities has accept applications online and it is the fastest way to get processed your application. The online application process cane be described Follows:
- Create an account with a valid email address in the official university webpage.
- Answer all the questions in the application carefully and truthfully.
- Upload the all the required documents.
- Submit the application and pay for the application fee
Note: If you want to apply for more than one program, you must submit a separated application for that.
Application Fee
Usually application fees are non- refundable and approximate application fee is
- Domestic (Canadian) – $80
- International – $130
Application fee can be payed online with a Visa or Mastercard or Canadian citizens can pay later with a cheque or money order.
Upload Document Requirements
- All documents must be official. Avoid uploading notarized and attested documents.
- All other required documents must be official (passport, name change documents, immigration documents)
- A high-quality image of official documents for credentials review. Low-quality images or non-legible will be cause for canceling your application.
- Scan both front and back of your documents and add additional information at the back end of certain documents.
- All documents must be in English or a English translation attached
- Documents must be in PDF Format and may not exceed 5 MB.
- Naming the PDF file (full name, student number, type of document) . As an example: Jason Chan #1234567 – Passport Eric and Patrick #1234567.
Confirmation of Academic History
It’s required to verify your completed academic educations (institutes, colleges) that you have attended.
- High School Academic Documents – Graduation certificate or transcript. Must be official documents and printed in school letterhead and verify by a school official.
- School Result Sheets – Should submitted the school final exam result sheet with the seal of foreign affairs.
- Post-Secondary Academic Documents- Official graduation certificates or transcripts.
Proof of English Proficiency (if applicable)
If applicant’s first language isn’t English, they must prove that they have sufficient English knowledge to understand classroom instructions, writing ability and speaking. If English is not your mother tongue you need to meet the minimum scores of a language proficiency test like IELTS, TOEFL, GRE and etc. The Official results of completed language assessments within last two years before the date of application.
Passport Identification
Applicants must have a valid passport with them. Upload required information (passport identification, picture and address page)
Photos
Photo size is normally Passport size (3.5 cm Width * 4.5 cm height). Photo should be colored and taken in a professional studio. As a rule of thumb, the format should be in JPEG and maximum size can be is 480*640 pixels. Eyes of the applicant must be cleared and must take without spectacles. Low quality photos submission will lead to rejection of the application without any refund of fee.
Immigration Documents (if available)
Upload study permit, approval letter, work permit or visitor Visa documents.
Name Change Documents (if applicable)
If application documents don’t match your current name, you must require uploading a proof of your name change. Acceptable documents will be marriage certificate, birth certificate, Affidavit of name change.
Curriculum Vita
Usually, CV is your business card. Make sure you include all the descriptions (not a detailed one) of your jobs and extracurricular activities in the CV. It is so importance to see how your experiences and your interested program matches.
APPLICATION DEADLINE
As mentioned before, apply soon as possible, at least six months before the program starts. If you are a international student this is a must because applying early give enough time to admission and visa processing. The visa processing time differs form country to country.
- Deadlines for Canadian citizens: September (fall) – July 2, January (winter) – November 1, May (spring) – March 1
- Deadlines for international students: September (fall) – June 1, January (winter) – October 1, May (spring) – March 1
What happen if you miss the deadline?
If you miss the deadline, don’t worry. Late applications may be accepted but cannot sure that it will be finished processing before the actual program starts. But that will be fine too because if you miss the class, you can start from next intake. As a rule of thumb, the official offers of admissions are valid for up to three intakes.
MOTIVATIONAL LETTER OR STATEMENT PURPOSE
Motivation letter or statement of purpose is based on the reasons why you are applying for the program in their application. This should be clearly structured and well written. One or two pages will be enough.
This is one of the most important letters that you want to present to university admission if you want to get a funded opportunity. If you directly write to a professor with the intention of getting a supporting letter from him, then this is the one of the main document s you should use to sell yourselves. If you get a supporting letter from a professor then the acceptance is almost confirmed unless otherwise you did not do something wrong. To write a well structured motivation letter or SOP simply what you want to do is go through the list of professor’s profiles and select a professor whose researches are in line with your interest. Then study his research and write motivation letter based on the following points:
What to include:
- The reason you want to study in the relevant program. And how you learn about the program.
- Your interest in the program content. And what makes it the best for you.
- The specific factors that convinced you to select the program
- The career you are going to target for and how’s your degree going to fit for that after graduation.
How to Prepare Motivational letter or Statement of Purpose
Preparation:A motivational letter is so much importance in your preparation of documents and it is better to prepare this early as possible because it takes more time to complete.
Before you write the letter, first thing you should do is finding information about the university that you are going to apply when you are not directly writing to a professor. You can find all these details from the official university website. By going through the website, you can collect all the information you need such as their requirements, interests, activities, projects etc.
How to Start: This explain how to start the letter. The main points you should consider are
- Start with addressing the person (if you don’t know the person, “Dear sir or Madam”)
- Start the body with an attractive opening paragraph (this helps to grab readers attention)
- Including the program, you want to apply and why you want to apply for it (in short form) in the first attractive paragraph will be a good idea. You can explain thing more in the rest.
- Try to make it sound personal from the beginning while keeping the letter professional.
How to Write the Body: This is the most important section in your letter and the main points that you have to consider are
- Make a separate structure by adding the main topics you want to cover. Later you can enrich these topics one by one in the letter. This method makes it easier to write.
- Write on “why that the university and the degree program is suitable for you and why do you interest in that program”
- Provide details of your qualities, qualifications and past experiences. You can refer to your CV to get more details.
- Make sure the letter is less than a page. Try to not exceed that limit. A long letter is not a perfect letter.
- Make the letter 3-paragraph or a 5-paragraph (3 paragraphs in the body) structure.
- Try not to mention less importance stuff. This makes the letter easier to read.
How to End:
- Summarize the main points you cover in the body and mention your goal of the letter.
- End by showing your interest to the program and show your appreciation for the chance to show more of you in a letter.
- Write your name clearly and sign the letter.
Reference letters
A reference letter is a letter that describes the students’ academic history, character and achievements. This could be one or two pages in length. The main source of information for this letter will be the student’s report card or transcript.
Usually the reference letter is a seal envelop with the signature of the writer over the seal. This is to ensure this letter speaks the truth about the student.
How to Request a Reference letter: You should contact a professor or a teacher in person or by email and ask them if they are able to write a letter. It is good to prepare this before even 3 months before the registration deadline because you cannot grantee that your professors will agree to write a letter for you. If the professor refuses to write a letter, you should have time to contact the next professor on your list. And include the following when you’re requesting.
- Provide your complete name, postal and email addresses.
- Name, title and address of the person that the letter should be sent.
- Explain why you need this letter and what are you applying for.
- List the classes you have attend of this specific professor and how they became valuable for the final grades and related for the current application.
- Mention other activities you have done with the specific professor.
- Include copy of vita or resume
Note 1: Based on the country you apply and the university they may need other documents as well.
Note 2: If the university accept softcopies of documents then the uploaded documents are considered unofficial and are expected for admission review. Only once admitted will you need to provide a final, official documents need to be sent to the university admission in a sealed envelope. Specially, the official transcript is sent to the university need to be in a sealed envelope. Note that your offer of admission will be contingent upon the receipt and verification of your official documents.
