how to pay for your study in Canada

Thinking of how to pay for your study in Canada? This is for you.

You will see info on
- Possible sources of funding
- Internal, External scholarships, and Research grants
- How/where to search for scholarships
- How to position yourself for funding consideration

Money

The truth is, studying in Canada will cost you money & you will even pay more as an international student compared to a local student.

So, as you begin your admission application it is not out of place to start thinking ahead about where the funds for the study will come from.

As a foreign student, you also need a convincing proof of financial support to successfully get your visa.

The proof of funds required for a Canadian study visa is at least the cost of first-year tuition and $10,000 CAD (for living expenses).

I have identified these four (4) possible sources of financial support & provided more information about each in the thread.

1) Personal funds
2) University (internal) scholarships
3) External scholarships (from organizations/government)
4) Research Grants (from supervisors)

1) Personal funds

This is financial support by self, parents, relatives

Importantly, if funds are from a third-party (i.e an Uncle), it is highly advisable to prove that they have enough funds to support you & still cater to their own financial or family commitments at home.

Read also : Scholarships & Jobs in Canada.

1b) Showing genuine proof of excess available funds, financial investments, properties, or other economic assets are some of the ways to do this. You can also show proof that the individual financially supporting you has a history of doing so for you in the past.

2) University (internal) scholarships

Many Canadian universities have entrance scholarships for new students. You mostly do not need to apply separately, as considerations are made with the admission application. It is, however, important to know what the uni/program offers.

2b) If scholarship consideration is a big part of your study in Canada plan, knowing what is available will help you to prioritize which uni/program to apply to.

To know available funding in a university, run a Google search with "university name & available student funding."

2c) If graduate funding is your target use the "university name + graduate funding" in your search.

A Google search of "University of Saskatchewan Graduate Funding" will give you this bit.ly/34TnsVe. This was how I found the full Masters scholarship I got from Usask. After using the guide to narrow down the 3 schools I wanted, I used the example given on searching for funding.

That way, I prioritized Usask because of the available funding for my program. Thanks to God, I got both the admission & scholarship.

3) External scholarships (from organizations/Government)

Aside universities, there are lots of organizations/govt scholarships

Search using
- scholarshipscanada.com
- yconic.com
- univcan.ca

I'll regularly post this as I have more info. Stick around!

3b) Many external scholarships are mostly available after you have an admission offer.

If you have an offer already, please make friends with the office staff in your department/program, they are your go-to for info about these scholarships & can provide you useful guide.

3c) The beautiful thing about these secretaries (from my experience) is that they are available & accessible, and they are always willing to help.

They are there to help you & give you the necessary information. If you are not in Canada yet, send them emails, they will respond!

4) Research Grants (from supervisors)

This is where strategic positioning is needed. A lot of faculty members have research grants for particular studies.

If you are, for instance, required to find a supervisor before applying, it is advisable to let them know your flexibility.

4b) Even with a full Masters scholarships, my supervisor also gave me additional funding for aligning my research with part of a study he had a grant for.

In fact, if I had insisted on doing what I proposed alone, I may not have completed my Masters within 2 yrs.

Be strategic!

4c) I once posted about the U15 universities in Canada. You can be strategic and consider them especially for a research-based program in Canada.

Those are the top 15 Universities where faculty members usually have good research grants. I hope this is of help & it takes you one step closer to fulfilling your goal of studying in Canada

If you have any question please reply below. I also have some info to share very soon about Canadian study visa rejections & some things to do if refused, don't miss it.

Cheers!

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