• Possibility to work in Canada after graduation

International students who have graduated from a Canadian university or college have the opportunity to work in Canada for up to one year after they receive their degree or diploma. International students can work on campus without a work permit. Plans are being made to allow international students to work off-campus, too.

• Canada’s education system

Canada’s universities maintain high standards of academic excellence and are consistently recognized in top international rankings. Moreover, Canadian tuition fees are some of the lowest in English-speaking countries.

• Excellent health care

Relative to other countries, medical insurance in Canada is inexpensive yet the services that Canadian hospitals provide are among some of the most advanced and accessible in the world.

• Internationally recognized degrees

Each year hundreds of thousands of international students attend Canadian colleges and universities. Their degrees are recognized around the world as being equivalent to those obtained from the United States or Commonwealth countries. Canada boasts a wide range of quality educational institutions for both degrees and diplomas in technical and professional disciplines.

• Nature and four distinct seasons

While Canada has big cities, we also preserve a huge amount of unsettled land and have many national and provincial parks. Because Canada is such a large country and borders three oceans (the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic), there is significant diversity in landscape from coast to coast and province to province. Canada also has four very distinct seasons and the temperature varies a great deal throughout the year. In the winter, certain cities almost never have snow, while other cities may get a lot. In the summer, temperatures can reach above 30 degrees Celsius. With such diversity, there’s something for everyone, including indoor and outdoor recreational activities at no or little cost.

• Learn or improve another language!

For over a century, Canada’s two official languages (English and French) have been taught as second languages, which is why we are world leaders in language training. International students often choose to take language courses before beginning a regular academic program.

• Canada is a peaceful, politically stable, and safe country

Canada is a democratic country with laws that protect the rights of our citizens. Our country is also relatively unaffected by natural disasters.

• A multicultural country

Over the past century and a half, Canada has welcomed 15 million immigrants. Canada is also home to over one million aboriginal people, including First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities. Canada has a national policy for multiculturalism and works to ensure that people’s customs and traditions are preserved and respected.

• The United Nations ranked Canada as one of the best places in the world to live!

This assessment was based upon Canada’s achievements in terms of educational attainment, life expectancy, national income and general quality of life. It also took into consideration Canada’s abundance of fresh water, comfortable population density, low incidence of violent crime and model health care system.

Tuition fees for Bachelor degrees

Average tuition: 6,500 CAD/year

Examples of expensive programs:

• Dentistry (21,000 CAD/year)

• Law (11,400 CAD/year)

Examples of affordable programs:

• Social sciences (850 CAD/year)

• Education (2,000 CAD/year)

Tuition fees for Master and PhD degrees

Average tuition: 7,000 CAD/year

Examples of expensive programs:

• MBA (27,500 CAD/year)

• Engineering (37,000 CAD/year)

Examples of affordable programs:

• Design (2,000 CAD/year)

• Humanities (1,800 CAD/year)

This estimate is a guideline. Living costs vary greatly based on the type of accommodation, whether you are sharing accommodation with roommates, and your overall standard of living. All figures are in Canadian dollars (CAD).

A student visa is not required if you study for one to six months in Canada. For more than 6 months a permission to study must be requested at the Canadian embassy.

Canada has two official languages, English and French. ESC only cooperates with English-speaking universities. However, some universities offer their courses in both languages. Students do not have to be fluent in both languages to study at Canadian universities.

For students whose mother tongue is not English, a language test is required. The TOEFL test is generally accepted, but in Canada other English language tests are also accepted such as the IELTS test.

If granted a permission to study you will be allowed to work on campus. As of only recently have students who study at least 6 month fulltime in Canada been allowed to also work off campus once they applied for a work permit (up to 20 hours a week, unlimited in the semester break). This work permit will be granted under the condition of satisfactory grades and must be signed off by the university. All ESC partner higher education institutions will provide a work permit under these conditions.