What does SDS mean? Who is eligible to apply to this wonderful stream?
Being ranked as one of the best destinations for international students, and to keep up with the dynamic education environment, Canada, in 2018, has implemented a process to facilitate the issuance of study permits for prospective countries. The list initially included China, India, Philippines and Vietnam and recently more lucky countries joined the team, Pakistan, Senegal and Morocco.
Prospective students are required to provide more up-front information about their language proficiency level, financial abilities, etc, so officers can process their applications more efficiently while the processing time does not exceed 3 weeks.
As any other application, the applicant must be eligible, meeting the minimum requirements, submitting a complete application as well as giving his biometrics the soonest possible so the officer can proceed processing the application without any further delay.
Eligibility requirements include being legally residing in the last of the countries mentioned above, having an acceptance letter from a designated learning institution, providing a proof of their financial ability to support themselves for the first year of their study, provide a medical exam report and a police certificate in case if required, a Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) of $10,000, the results of a valid language proficiency test.
By graduating from an eligible study program in Canada, the student may also be eligible for a post-graduation work permit (PGWP), which in turn helps in getting more credits when applying for the permanent residency by combining the Canadian degree and the Canadian work experience.
And talking statistics, in 2018, the number of international students who made the transition to becoming permanent residents was nearly 54,000 students.
Interested in knowing more about the subject? You can refer to the Government of Canada website here.
Bakouni 