# Quebec Schooling



## Debbie UK (Nov 26, 2009)

Hi
We are looking at moving to Quebec. One child would be going to secondary school and the other to college. Having phoned and spoken to the English school board it seems that my daughter would not be allowed to attend an English school. 
As for college, this is really unclear as well for options available. 

As it was the head of the school that I spoke to, I would imagine this is correct but does anybody know if there is anything missed here. 

Many thanks in advance!


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## EVHB (Feb 11, 2008)

As far as I remember from my inquiry in 2010, it's depending on the kind of visa you are having:
- if you have a temporary work permit, and you can proove that your children received English speaking education or that English is the official language for at least one parent, your kids are allowed to go to Elementary or High School in English.
- if you have a permanent resident status, your kids need to attend a French speaking school.

As far as University goes, you are always free to choose between French or English.
Don't know about College, but I would assume that that's the same as for University.


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## EVHB (Feb 11, 2008)

I also found this:
Children of Bill 101 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://www.emsb.qc.ca/en/services_en/pages/registration_en.asp

I received the most usefull information when I contacted the English speaking schools in Montreal. Also the private schools. Because they, of course, would like to help you to receive English education if you are eligible! A French school or a 'real' French inhabitant of Quebec may be biased (with a preference for Frech). ;-) It seems to be a real sensitive thing for a lot of people there.


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## JGK (Dec 12, 2009)

I don't have kids but did spend 6 years working in Quebec, so i have an outsiders perspective.

Access to the English elementary school system is quite restricted so I'd really check, I found this which contains the following:

"Canada's constitution gives English and French- speaking parents the right to send their children to English or French-language schools, as long as there are enough children in the area to make a school practical. But even that limited right is true everywhere else in Canada except Quebec. In Quebec, the only children who can go to English schools are the children of Canadian citizens whose mother tongue is English. So if you're an immigrant to Quebec from the US or from England, for example, your kids can't go to an English public school. If you're a French-speaking parent from anywhere, you can't send your kid to an English public school." 

There used to be a loophole where if your child did 1 year of English education in Quebec they were eligible to enter the Quebec English school system. Consequently, many families sent their children to an English private school for 1 year the into the (Enlglish) public system. however this was stopped after much pressure from the PQ

As for college, or the CEGEP system as it's known in Quebec, they are available in french or English. St John Abbott on the West Island is an example of the English CEGEP.


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## Guest (Mar 4, 2012)

The whole instruction in English speaking schools is kind of a hot topic in Quebec from what I've noticed, and unfortunately sounds like it could make acclimation difficult for the children of immigrants.

As far as schools go, "college" in Quebec will generally refer to CEGEPs, which are kind of like transitional schools between high school and university. My husband, who was born and educated here, describes the first year of CEGEP as basically being the last year of high school, the second year is basically the same instruction you'd receive your first year of university. They do serve another purpose and I think most if not all of them offer technical or pre-professional programs. One can even study pre-medicine curriculum. 

If you aren't considered a legal resident (like a permanent resident or citizen, or more specifically if you haven't been issued a selection certificate from Quebec from the Vegreville office), you have to pay international tuition to attend, but tuition is waived for residents.

One note for CEGEPs is that I believe every graduate has to pass a proficiency exam in French. This probably isn't a problem since once can probably being proficient in the time it takes to complete a program, however, even some programs at the English CEGEPs will require fluency before even accepting you. For example, I applied to Dawson College for their radiological technologies program, and I was told that before classes commenced, students would be required to spend a couple weeks working in a French hospital and we'd be required to communicate with patients. It wasn't explicitly defined in their application requirements, but they told me at the interview.

As far as English universities go - Concordia and McGill are the options in Montreal. A couple hours away in Sherbrooke is Bishop's University. There might be others, but I'm not sure.

I notice this post was kind of old, so I hope that you've received all the information you need in time. I know the McGill and Concordia deadlines have already passed for Fall admission. 

Sorry that my response is very imbalanced, the college/university thing is something that I'm doing. My husband thinks that it might be easier for immigrants to go directly to university if they are not already fluent in French. For instance, I have a university degree already and am pursing a more useful education...I was accepted to university with no problems, but not CEGEP. Of course, there are other considerations for admission, so maybe that wasn't the entire reason.

Good luck with whatever your family decides.


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