# Help for Masters in Electrical engg.



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

Fall 2014 | MS | EE | GRE 317 | TOEFL 106 | Acads 7.98| Jadavpur University
Hello everyone,

I am from Kolkata. I am a 2012 pass out from Jadavpur university(electrical engg.).
Here is the synopsis of my profile-

1) HS score- 90%
2) B.E grade point 7.98/10.
3) work exp- 1.5yr+
4) Extracurricular - 2 yr voluntary member of NGO

My GRE score 317( v-153 Quant 164) and TOEFL-106 (r- 29 S-24 W 25 L 28)

Publication- 1
(one more in submitted for validation)
I am looking for MASc./ MEng in Canada in Electrical engineering with focus on Renewable energy.
I've shorted down the following universities

1.Alberta University
2.Dalhousie University
3.McMaster University
4.The University of British Columbia
5.WATERLOO UNIVERSITY
6.Carleton University

Please evaluate my profile and comment on my choice of university or any thing that you could suggest to
get good funding opportunities or job prospects.

Thanks again and your kind comments are solicited.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

At first glance your grades (79.8% average) don't make you competitive, especially not at places like the University of Waterloo (it is not called Waterloo University), McMaster, the University of Alberta (it is not called Alberta University), or the University of British Columbia. Your grades are good enough to apply, but they are not going to be competitive with the others applying who will have higher averages so it is highly unlikely that you would be accepted.

You would have a better chance at Dal and Carleton but I suggest you contact the graduate officer in the engineering department at each university.


----------



## JGK (Dec 12, 2009)

I was going to add that the University of Alberta (UoA) is going through a financial crisis at present and is looking at:

Teaching cutbacks;
Significantly increasing tuition fees;
Raising the entry requirements for its undergraduate programs

However if you don't meet the UoA requirements already?


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

I'd say that, for UBC at least, don't bother applying if you don't have at least an 85% average or better (honours designation would be even better), as you'll be competing with all of the UBC Engineering students (those with higher averages than you and some with honours designations in their degrees) as well as other international graduate students for a very limited number of spaces.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> I'd say that, for UBC at least, don't bother applying if you don't have at least an 85% average or better (honours designation would be even better), as you'll be competing with all of the UBC Engineering students (those with higher averages than you and some with honours designations in their degrees) as well as other international graduate students for a very limited number of spaces.



The same goes for the University of Waterloo which is the best engineering school in the country (I went to Waterloo, but not for engineering) and McMaster which also has a great engineering program (I was at Mac for my PhD program but, again, not in engineering). The OP's grades are nowhere near competitive enough for any of those three schools. He would be wasting the application fee by even applying. Others, like Carleton and Dal, might be more realistic.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> I'd say that, for UBC at least, don't bother applying if you don't have at least an 85% average or better (honours designation would be even better), as you'll be competing with all of the UBC Engineering students (those with higher averages than you and some with honours designations in their degrees) as well as other international graduate students for a very limited number of spaces.



Hello sir,
Thanks for your reply .
I am really confused really. I am really in need some advice. 
Following are my queries. 
1) in UBC I am going to apply for Masters in Clean energy program.

Will that be as competitive as masters in electrical engg. Do I have a shots in the programs? What do you think?

2) I know DAL and Carleton are more realistic choices. But I am worried about future prospects ( chances of getting job ) . What is your suggestion?

3) I forgot to mention concordia in the list. I heard they have gr8 programs there for MEng in Electrical engg. What is your thought abt the university.

As you know I'll be taking a huge financial burden over my shoulders in order to pursue Masters in canada. How realistic will it be if I don't get into Top ranked universities like Waterloo or UBc and go for DAL, Windsor or Carleton in terms of JOB prospect. 
I am desperately in need of some expert advice and I am counting on seniors like you for some. 
Thanks again for your time and looking for your reply.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

colchar said:


> The same goes for the University of Waterloo which is the best engineering school in the country (I went to Waterloo, but not for engineering) and McMaster which also has a great engineering program (I was at Mac for my PhD program but, again, not in engineering). The OP's grades are nowhere near competitive enough for any of those three schools. He would be wasting the application fee by even applying. Others, like Carleton and Dal, might be more realistic.


Hello sir,
Thanks for your reply .
I am really confused really. I am really in need some advice. 
Following are my queries. 
1) in UBC I am going to apply for Masters in Clean energy program.

Will that be as competitive as masters in electrical engg. Do I have a shots in the programs? What do you think?

2) I know DAL and Carleton are more realistic choices. But I am worried about future prospects ( chances of getting job ) . What is your suggestion?

3) I forgot to mention concordia in the list. I heard they have gr8 programs there for MEng in Electrical engg. What is your thought abt the university.

As you know I'll be taking a huge financial burden over my shoulders in order to pursue Masters in canada. How realistic will it be if I don't get into Top ranked universities like Waterloo or UBc and go for DAL, Windsor or Carleton in terms of JOB prospect. 
I am desperately in need of some expert advice and I am counting on seniors like you for some. 

I am tagging all you seniors who replied hope you don't mind.
Thanks again for your time and looking for your reply.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

JGK said:


> I was going to add that the University of Alberta (UoA) is going through a financial crisis at present and is looking at:
> 
> Teaching cutbacks;
> Significantly increasing tuition fees;
> ...


Yes I saw it their website. MEng program is on hold . 
So i am going to refrain from applying in the university . 
Thanks again.


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

neelsama said:


> Hello sir,
> Thanks for your reply


First off, I am a female.



neelsama said:


> I am really confused really. I am really in need some advice.
> Following are my queries.
> 1) in UBC I am going to apply for Masters in Clean energy program.
> 
> Will that be as competitive as masters in electrical engg. Do I have a shots in the programs? What do you think?


The competition _*is*_ stiff for applicants from India. I think that you _*will not*_ be admitted, as you _do not_ meet the minimum required grade  for admission to the Masters Program at UBC. 

UBC says that for students specifically from India, the following 

_Minimum University Requirements_

The minimum university requirement can be found on the Faculty of Graduate Studies website. * Note that these are university-wide minimum requirements and not specific to ECE. Departments will also have their own minimum requirements in addition to the university-wide requirements._* Below are the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department requirements for those countries from which we receive the largest number of applications.*_


_*India*_
Applicants for the Masters' programs should have a 4 year Bachelor's degree with a final standing of First Class with Distinction, or a First Class Master's degree. Applicants from IIT's must have a final standing of 8/10. Applicants for the Doctoral program must have a First Class Master's (M.Eng. or M.Tech.) degree and a First Class 4-5 year Bachelor's degree. A TOEFL or IELTS score is required even if the medium of instruction at your university was English.




neelsama said:


> 2) I know DAL and Carleton are more realistic choices. But I am worried about future prospects ( chances of getting job ) . What is your suggestion?


I would say that you should look at going to either Dalhousie or Carelton, as I highly doubt that you would be admitted to UBC, let alone Waterloo (you need a First Class standing to get into Waterloo).

Be aware, however, that the competition to get into Dalhousie and Carelton may be high as people who can't get into the top schools will often try lower ranked schools to get their degrees.



neelsama said:


> 3) I forgot to mention concordia in the list. I heard they have gr8 programs there for MEng in Electrical engg. What is your thought abt the university.


Concordia is a good school.



neelsama said:


> As you know I'll be taking a huge financial burden over my shoulders in order to pursue Masters in canada. How realistic will it be if I don't get into Top ranked universities like Waterloo or UBc and go for DAL, Windsor or Carleton in terms of JOB prospect.
> I am desperately in need of some expert advice and I am counting on seniors like you for some.
> Thanks again for your time and looking for your reply.


Nobody can predict your chances of a job prospect once you've completed your schooling... it depends on the economy and a number of other factors.

As a foreign national, you will need a work visa of some sort to be able to work in Canada, so what work there is available will have some degree of competition to it, and given that you will likely require sponsorship, you'd need some outstanding credentials to persuade an employer to hire you over a Canadian applicant.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> First off, I am a female.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Hello ,

1st of sorry for my addressing blunder.

Regarding UBC and waterloo I am in confusion.
In my mark sheet two forms of marks ar given:
CGpA 7.98/10
% marks 74.8%(first class) 

according to requirement website of UBC 
"First Class/Division 1 (65%) or Very Good (8 on a 10-point scale)"

So according to 1st criteria I qualify ain't I? 

again in some other University websites they convert % grade into grade point out of4. 

So which one should I consider CGPA or % MARKS ? Awaiting reply 
SB


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

neelsama said:


> Hello sir,
> Thanks for your reply .
> I am really confused really. I am really in need some advice.
> Following are my queries.
> ...


Yes, any graduate program will be highly highly competitive and your grades are not good enough.





> 2) I know DAL and Carleton are more realistic choices. But I am worried about future prospects ( chances of getting job ) . What is your suggestion?



If those are the only schools you can get into then isn't it better to get the degree from somewhere rather than not get it at all?





> 3) I forgot to mention concordia in the list. I heard they have gr8 programs there for MEng in Electrical engg. What is your thought abt the university.



Will be much harder to get into than Carleton or Dal.






> As you know I'll be taking a huge financial burden over my shoulders in order to pursue Masters in canada. How realistic will it be if I don't get into Top ranked universities like Waterloo or UBc and go for DAL, Windsor or Carleton in terms of JOB prospect.



People generally care that you have the degree, not where it came from.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

colchar said:


> Yes, any graduate program will be highly highly competitive and your grades are not good enough.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Hello ,

Regarding UBC and waterloo I am in confusion.
In my mark sheet two forms of marks ar given:
CGpA 7.98/10
% marks 74.8%(first class) 

according to requirement website of UBC 
"First Class/Division 1 (65%) or Very Good (8 on a 10-point scale)"

So according to 1st criteria I qualify ain't I? 

again in some other University websites they convert % grade into grade point out of4. 

So which one should I consider CGPA or % MARKS ? Awaiting reply 
SB


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

neelsama said:


> Hello ,
> 
> 1st of sorry for my addressing blunder.
> 
> ...



GPA is your cumulative marks (usually on a four point scale but some schools use a five point scale).

That 74.8% is nowhere near first class at schools like Waterloo and UBC (on their own scale for their own students). At those, first class would be 80% or higher and most likely 85% or higher. You might have first class grades at the school you went to, but that does not mean that those grades would be considered first class at Waterloo or UBC. Your grades are about 10% below that. And CGPA (Cumulative Grade Point Average) is the most important one and your grades in that are not high enough for either Waterloo or UBC. 


Regardless of which of those numbers you look at (and why the heck would they give two different numbers...what kind of grading system do they use over there???), the numbers you have provided would not make you competitive at a school like Waterloo. They have a minimum grade point below which they will not even accept your application. But having the minimum does not mean that you will be accepted, it simply means that you can apply. In order to be competitive with the other students applying you need to exceed their minimum requirements - and by a wide margin.

I did my undergrad at Waterloo and did my Masters in a graduate program that they run jointly with Wilfrid Laurier University (three blocks down the street from Waterloo) and the University of Guelph (about half an hour's drive away from the other two). Based on my experience at Waterloo as an undergrad and as a grad student in one of their graduate programs I know just how good a school it is, just how hard it is to get good grades there, and just how hard it is to get into their graduate programs. The grades that you have posted here will not get you into Waterloo. I doubt they even meet the minimum requirements for them to accept and process your application. But even if you did meet their minimum requirements your grades would not make you competitive - why bother applying to a school at which you have no chance of being accepted? And UBC is just as tough as Waterloo. Far better for you to concentrate on schools that have lower entrance qualifications as you might have a chance of being accepted at those whereas you have no chance of being accepted at schools like Waterloo, UBC, and Mac.


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

Does your transcript indicate 1st Class/Division 1 on it?

If not, then UBC will consider the 8 on a 10 point scale, which is something that you simply _do not_ meet.

I still doubt that you will get in, as competition is extremely tight and there are people from Canada with _higher_ grades than you who won't get in to the Masters program at UBC.

I've known people in other faculties who have failed to get into a specialty program/post graduate degree program at UBC even though they more than met the minimum entry requirement.

You can apply, but I feel that you will be wasting your time and money.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> Does your transcript indicate 1st Class/Division 1 on it?
> 
> If not, then UBC will consider the 8 on a 10 point scale, which is something that you simply _do not_ meet.
> 
> ...


Ya 1st class is written on my transcript.


----------



## neelsama (Nov 22, 2013)

colchar said:


> GPA is your cumulative marks (usually on a four point scale but some schools use a five point scale).
> 
> That 74.8% is nowhere near first class at schools like Waterloo and UBC (on their own scale for their own students). At those, first class would be 80% or higher and most likely 85% or higher. You might have first class grades at the school you went to, but that does not mean that those grades would be considered first class at Waterloo or UBC. Your grades are about 10% below that. And CGPA (Cumulative Grade Point Average) is the most important one and your grades in that are not high enough for either Waterloo or UBC.
> 
> ...


Thanks for taking time for your reply.


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

I also know that when I applied to UBC as an undergraduate, while I met the minimum requirement for admission, they did not offer me a spot in the Bachelor of Arts program, as my grades weren't competitive enough. 

I went to a Vancouver area school, I speak English perfectly _and_ I met the minimum admission requirement, but because there were more applicants than spaces, I had to find a different school to go to.

Again, while you may pass the minimum requirements to get into Grad School at UBC, your grades aren't competitive enough for UBC to offer you a spot... they're only interested in those applicants who can prove that they have the best grades and GRE scores out of the pool of applicants who are going to apply for September 2014..


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> I also know that when I applied to UBC as an undergraduate, while I met the minimum requirement for admission, they did not offer me a spot in the Bachelor of Arts program, as my grades weren't competitive enough.
> 
> I went to a Vancouver area school, I speak English perfectly _and_ I met the minimum admission requirement, but because there were more applicants than spaces, I had to find a different school to go to.
> 
> Again, while you may pass the minimum requirements to get into Grad School at UBC, your grades aren't competitive enough for UBC to offer you a spot... they're only interested in those applicants who can prove that they have the best grades and GRE scores out of the pool of applicants who are going to apply for September 2014..


Hi there. Thank you so much for your informative posts. 
I did my Bachelors of Mechanical (Biomedical) Engineering Honours degree (WAM of 71.66 or a GPA of 5.7 out of 7) at the University of Sydney. I went on the link you posted earlier. There is no mention of a grade requirement for Australian University graduates. As an Indian citizen living in Australia as a permanent resident, would the stricter Indian rules apply to me as well?
Btw I intend to apply for a masters in system design engineering or bio-electronic engineering or other related areas so if you were to rate universities in terms of their prestige, how would you rate, Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Regina, McGill, Toronto, Waterloo? Also would it be possible for me to get need based financial aid in Canada? Do all universities in Canada require a GRE score? Its just that I'd like to avoid doing a standardised exam if I can help it?
Thanks again for your help
With regards
Abhishek


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

abhishek.jayakumar said:


> Hi there. Thank you so much for your informative posts.
> I did my Bachelors of Mechanical (Biomedical) Engineering Honours degree (WAM of 71.66 or a GPA of 5.7 out of 7) at the University of Sydney. I went on the link you posted earlier. There is no mention of a grade requirement for Australian University graduates. As an Indian citizen living in Australia as a permanent resident, would the stricter Indian rules apply to me as well?



They care about where your degree came from, not where you came from.




> Btw I intend to apply for a masters in system design engineering or bio-electronic engineering or other related areas so if you were to rate universities in terms of their prestige, how would you rate, Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Regina, McGill, Toronto, Waterloo?



They are all roughly equal in terms of prestige. Some are better in some areas than others (ie. Waterloo is the best engineering school in the country) but overall they are roughly the same.




> Also would it be possible for me to get need based financial aid in Canada?


Doubtful. Why would they give need based financial aid to someone who isn't Canadian? There are plenty of Canadian students who need that aid. And if you require need based financial aid why are you even considering coming here? You obviously cannot afford to do so and foreign students pay much higher fees than Canadian students do. You would also have to prove to the immigration authorities that you could support yourself while you were here studying. If you require need based aid you obviously cannot support yourself.




> Do all universities in Canada require a GRE score?


No, It varies by university and by program. I went trhgouh both a Master's and a PhD program and I've never taken the GRE.




> Its just that I'd like to avoid doing a standardised exam if I can help it?


Why? If it is a requirement at a school there is no way to avoid it.


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

If you ever decide to go to McGill, you'd better be prepared to read, listen to and speak French.

Whilst Canada is officially a bilingual country and McGill is an English language university, the majority language in the province of Québec (where McGill is located) is French. 

Whilst you _might_ be able to get away with speaking _some_ English in Montreal (the city in which McGill is located), you arrive expecting that _everyone_ speaks French and are more or less unwilling to speak English to you... it's true that this is not always/necessarily the case (there are some Francophones in Québec who can speak English and are happy to speak it as needed, some who simply cannot speak English, whilst others who _can_ speak English but just flat out _refuse_ to speak English). but if you arrive in Montreal with a good grasp of the French language, you'll survive.


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

colchar said:


> They care about where your degree came from, not where you came from.
> They are all roughly equal in terms of prestige. Some are better in some areas than others (ie. Waterloo is the best engineering school in the country) but overall they are roughly the same.
> Doubtful. Why would they give need based financial aid to someone who isn't Canadian? There are plenty of Canadian students who need that aid. And if you require need based financial aid why are you even considering coming here? You obviously cannot afford to do so and foreign students pay much higher fees than Canadian students do. You would also have to prove to the immigration authorities that you could support yourself while you were here studying. If you require need based aid you obviously cannot support yourself.
> No, It varies by university and by program. I went through both a Master's and a PhD program and I've never taken the GRE.
> Why? If it is a requirement at a school there is no way to avoid it.


Oh right. That makes it a little bit easy for me then I suppose. When you say Waterloo is the best engineering school in the country is that because of its research potential or the high employability of students graduating from it? If I cant get into Waterloo then which one would be the next best university in Canada in terms of the teaching content as well as predicted job growth trend in the province? Ideally I would want to work in a biomedical related field or company on a hands-on role such as a Service Engineer or a Technical Officer. Would you have any idea with regards to the biomedical engineering jobs market in Canada? As in which cities and provinces have the best prospects? I am planning to come there on a 2 year WHV next year when I get my Aussie citizenship. In your opinion, Is it easy for biomedical engineering graduates with Aussie qualifications like me to get hired in the first place? It would be helpful if I knew what cities or areas that I should target to maximise my chances of employment. The masters degree would just be one of the means to the end of getting paid employment there.
With regards to the need based funding, I was just curious if it was like the US wherein you get Teaching Assistantships to sort of work for the money that the University pays when it funds you.
As for GRE, I just think its a massive pain to go through for one university.


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> If you ever decide to go to McGill, you'd better be prepared to read, listen to and speak French.
> 
> Whilst Canada is officially a bilingual country and McGill is an English language university, the majority language in the province of Québec (where McGill is located) is French.
> 
> Whilst you _might_ be able to get away with speaking _some_ English in Montreal (the city in which McGill is located), you arrive expecting that _everyone_ speaks French and are more or less unwilling to speak English to you... it's true that this is not always/necessarily the case (there are some Francophones in Québec who can speak English and are happy to speak it as needed, some who simply cannot speak English, whilst others who _can_ speak English but just flat out _refuse_ to speak English). but if you arrive in Montreal with a good grasp of the French language, you'll survive.


That would be a good experience eh ? I've always wanted to visit a francophone country. I think it would be a good experience to learn a new language and visit a region which is linguistically possibly even culturally different to the rest of the country (Unity in Diversity). But unfortunately McGill is prohibitively expensive (as are other universities on the eastern side) for international students like me. So McGill might not make the final cut.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

abhishek.jayakumar said:


> When you say Waterloo is the best engineering school in the country is that because of its research potential or the high employability of students graduating from it?




Quality of teaching, quality of program, quality of faculty, difficulty of program (one of the hardest programs in the country if not the world), employability of graduates, reputation of program, grades of students entering (both undergrad and grad students), etc. 





> If I cant get into Waterloo then which one would be the next best university in Canada in terms of the teaching content as well as predicted job growth trend in the province?


I have no idea.





> Would you have any idea with regards to the biomedical engineering jobs market in Canada?


Nope.






> In your opinion, Is it easy for biomedical engineering graduates with Aussie qualifications like me to get hired in the first place?


No idea.





> With regards to the need based funding, I was just curious if it was like the US wherein you get Teaching Assistantships to sort of work for the money that the University pays when it funds you.



Yes, you get teaching assistant positions in grad school but that is not need based funding, that is employment. They are two different things. But what you will get paid to TA would be offset by the high cost of international student fees.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

abhishek.jayakumar said:


> That would be a good experience eh ? I've always wanted to visit a francophone country. I think it would be a good experience to learn a new language and visit a region which is linguistically possibly even culturally different to the rest of the country (Unity in Diversity). But unfortunately McGill is prohibitively expensive (as are other universities on the eastern side) for international students like me. So McGill might not make the final cut.



Tuition at McGill is lower than tuition at Waterloo. If McGill is too expensive then Waterloo would be too.


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

colchar said:


> Quality of teaching, quality of program, quality of faculty, difficulty of program (one of the hardest programs in the country if not the world), employability of graduates, reputation of program, grades of students entering (both undergrad and grad students), etc.


Haha in saying this. You just piqued my interest. I love challenges. Im definitely applying for Waterloo now ha ha.



colchar said:


> Yes, you get teaching assistant positions in grad school but that is not need based funding, that is employment. They are two different things. But what you will get paid to TA would be offset by the high cost of international student fees.


Oh right fair enough. Tbh in smaller universities such as Saskatchewan and the lot the tuition fees really arent that high. In fact they are cheaper than what I would pay in Australia as a commonwealth supported student. I wish it was the case the bigger universities as well. Would have made my choice so much easier.


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

colchar said:


> Tuition at McGill is lower than tuition at Waterloo. If McGill is too expensive then Waterloo would be too.


It costs around 8k all up for tuition fees per year isnt it for Waterloo? May be I am missing something here.


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

colchar said:


> Tuition at McGill is lower than tuition at Waterloo. If McGill is too expensive then Waterloo would be too.


It costs around 8k all up for tuition fees per year isnt it for Waterloo? Or am I missing something here.


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

I highly doubt that tuition/books/fees at McGill is only going to cost CAD $8k.

My brother went to UBC as an in the 1990's and was paying CAD $10k/year for tuition, books, program and dormitory fees.

Perhaps you are looking at the UNDERgrad tuition costs, because this winter, a school year at McGill will cost the international Grad student CAD 17,281.10$ for tuition and related fees, _*not* including_ accommodation... see here for McGill's fee schedule.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

abhishek.jayakumar said:


> Haha in saying this. You just piqued my interest. I love challenges. Im definitely applying for Waterloo now ha ha.



Just make sure you have extremely good grades or there is no point in applying. I went to Waterloo and know just how tough a school it is.





> Oh right fair enough. Tbh in smaller universities such as Saskatchewan and the lot the tuition fees really arent that high. In fact they are cheaper than what I would pay in Australia as a commonwealth supported student. I wish it was the case the bigger universities as well. Would have made my choice so much easier.



Fees have nothing to do with the size of the university as it all depends on the province in which they are located.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

abhishek.jayakumar said:


> It costs around 8k all up for tuition fees per year isnt it for Waterloo? May be I am missing something here.




At Waterloo it costs $7310.08 _*per term*_, not per year, for international students so a total of $21,930.24 per year (as a grad student you are registered in all three terms each year).

At McGill the fees for international students are $17,281.10 per year.

So tuition fees at McGill are lower than at Waterloo.

And none of those fees include the cost to live here - rent, food, transportation, etc. And having lived in Waterloo for ten years I know that student accommodation is at a premium in the areas around the universities and therefore comes at a cost, especially if you want somewhere remotely decent to live. The University of Waterloo is at 200 University Avenue West and Wilfrid Laurier University is located at 75 University Avenue West. So the two schools are three blocks from each other (I went to Waterloo for undergrad and Laurier for my Masters in a program run jointly by Waterloo, Laurier, and the University of Guelph which is about 30 minutes away) and all of the students from both schools tend to live in the same small geographic area, or student ghetto (approximately 15,000 full-time students from Laurier and approximately 30,000 full time students from Waterloo). 

Because of this housing is at a premium and you would have to budget $500-$1000 per month in rent. Even if you only paid $500 per month (and you would be lucky to get a place that cheap) that works out to be $6000 per year just for rent. When that is added to the cost of tuition you are now looking at $27,930.24 per year.

And then there are other costs - utilities are almost always extra on top of the cost of rent. Then there is food, transportation, textbooks (the costs for these are probably much higher than you think), etc.

So you are looking at a minimum of $30,000 per year and probably closer to $35,000 per year. And you'd have to prove to immigration authorities that you had that money before you would be allowed into the country.


----------



## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

> With regards to the need based funding, I was just curious if it was like the US wherein you get Teaching Assistantships to sort of work for the money that the University pays when it funds you.


I highly doubt that you'd ever qualify for needs-based funding as an international student... it's hard enough for _Canadian born_ university students to get needs based funding (the government has lots of criteria for means testing how much money you qualify for in a student loan... for example, if you're an undergrad and you live with your family, that will reduce the amount that the government is prepared to offer etc etc), so why would the government give money to foreign students that it won't give to its own citizens?

You could try applying for bursaries and scholarships from the community, but they won't come close to covering your costs while in Canada.


----------



## abhishek.jayakumar (Dec 6, 2012)

Oh right.. but its just amazing to see how much the tuition fees vary between different universities inspite of them all being in the same country.

Like Saskatchewan charges 5k per year as tuition for international students
https://sesd.usask.ca/archive/programs/2012/info/tuition.php

whereas UBC charges 16k per year.
Master's - Graduate - Tuition Fees - Fees - Vancouver Academic Calendar 2013/14 - UBC Student Services

and U of T charges 37k per year.
Graduate | Mechanical and Industrial Engineering | University of Toronto

Maybe Its got something to do with the respective provinces' PNP programme? Ontario seems to offer permanent residency to masters students with or without a job offer no sweat.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

abhishek.jayakumar said:


> Oh right.. but its just amazing to see how much the tuition fees vary between different universities inspite of them all being in the same country.



No, it isn't amazing if you understand that education is a provincial responsibility in Canada and not a responsibility of the federal government. Each province is in control of education within that province and sets tuition fees, etc. according to circumstances and policies in that province.

I have already mentioned that in this thread.






> Like Saskatchewan charges 5k per year as tuition for international students
> https://sesd.usask.ca/archive/programs/2012/info/tuition.php



You ever been to Saskatoon? They need the lower fees to attract students from other countries. Plus, their provincial government probably subsidizes education to a greater degree than does the government of B.C.





> Maybe Its got something to do with the respective provinces' PNP programme? Ontario seems to offer permanent residency to masters students with or without a job offer no sweat.



People can apply but that doesn't mean that they will be accepted.

Ontario is accepting 1300 _nominations_ but how many of those will actually be accepted? And not everyone in Ontario is happy about programs such as this so if our current government is turfed in our next election (with their record they likely will be), an election that could come at any time, the new government might kill programs like this right away. 

The current government also offered funding to universities for international students to study here at the graduate level while simultaneously decreasing funding offered to Ontario born students and Canadian students from other provinces. A lot of people were _very_ angry about this (and with good reason!) so I can see an incoming government canceling that program too.


----------

