I made a life-changing decision in June 2021. I decided to get out of my comfort zone, take a break from work and pursue further study abroad. Considering the academic standard, cost and safety, I finally decided to take a one-year graduate certificate program in Toronto, Canada. From making the decision to getting a college offer and the study permit, the whole process only took me 3 months.
And now I am going to share with you my application timeline.
Disclaimer: This is just my personal experience. Please refer to the IRCC website for the latest study permit application information.
Application Timeline
Early May: IELTS Test
Most colleges require applicants to demonstrate their level of English language proficiency through English proficiency tests, such as IELTS, TOFEL or CAEL. Some colleges or programs allow applicants to take English upgrade courses to replace the test. Don’t forget to check the requirement of the college and program that you want to apply to.
I booked an IELTS Academic test in mid-April through British Council and took the test in early May. Personally, the two-week period was sufficient for me to get familiar with the test format. Obviously, it was impossible to improve my English within two weeks. All I did was complete the practice test on the IETLS official website and do some practice on Road to IELTS, a free online IELTS preparation platform offered by British Council.
I chose to take the test on paper instead of on computer because I always prefer doing tests on paper. However, if you take IELTS on computer, you will have more test dates to choose from and can receive the test result much quicker – just in 3-5 days! On the other hand, test results are available online 13 days after taking IELTS on paper.
Early June: College Application
After receiving the IELTS test result, I started applying for college programs. I applied for 3 graduate certificate programs from 3 colleges in Toronto.
Mid to late June: College Offers
I received the offers from two of the three colleges within two weeks after application. One more week later, I received the official letter of acceptance from the remaining college, which was my first choice.
Early July: Study Permit Application
After accepting the college offer, I started my study permit application online immediately.
First of all, I made a medical exam appointment. The medical exam is required for international students who are going to stay in Canada for more than 6 months. Also, the medical exam must be done by specific panel physicians. Only one medical centre in Hong Kong is on the list so the appointment is very full. I had to wait two weeks before I could do my body check. Meanwhile, I took the passport photo because a passport-size digital photo had to be submitted with the application.
After completing the medical exam, I submitted my study permit application. The list of documents/forms that everyone is required to submit is case-specific. The documents and forms that I submitted were as follow:
- Scanned passport
- Digital passport photo
- Letter of acceptance from where you intend to study
- Letter of explanation
- Medical exam information sheet
- Means of financial support (bank statements for 4 consecutive months with CAD$833 x number of months I will stay + tuition)
- Study permit application fee payment transaction receipt
- IMM 1294E Application for Study Permit Made outside of Canada
- IMM 5257B Application for Temporary Residence (with the travel history of the past 5 years)
- IMM 5707E Family Information
Two days later, I was required to make an appointment to give biometrics. I faced a special case – I went to the center twice to give biometrics twice because the first attempt failed to collect my fingerprints. Therefore the whole biometric collection process took me almost two weeks.
After that, all I needed to do was to wait for the email from IRCC.
Early August: Study Permit Correspondence/Port of Entry Letter
Two weeks after I had submitted all required documents, I received the correspondence letter (or port of entry letter). As stated in the letter, the study permit will be issued to the letter holder on their arrival to Canada following an examination by an immigration officer.