Canada opens up immigration to foreign PhD students
By Laura Payton, CBC News
Posted: Nov 2, 2011 12:35 PM ET
Last Updated: Nov 2, 2011 2:01 PM ET
Source - CBC, Canada
International students working on PhDs in some sectors will have a quicker route to immigrating to Canada, the government said Wednesday. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)
Canada will start accepting some PhD students as part of a class of immigrants with experience in the country, the government said Wednesday.
Gary Goodyear, minister of state for science and technology, announced the government is expanding the Canadian experience class to include PhD students in certain streams, noting the country lacks people with expertise in science, technology, engineering and math.
The experience class is aimed at skilled temporary foreign workers and international students who want to stay in Canada.
Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, who Wednesday welcomed the 10,000th permanent resident to enter Canada through the program, said Canada used to send people who wanted to become citizens back to their country of origin to have them start on the seven-year waitlist.
Before the program, "we would say excellent. You now have a degree or a diploma that will be recognized by a Canadian employer, you have some work experience in Canada, you have perfected your English or French language skills … now please leave the country and if you want to immigrate, get in the back of a seven-year-long queue," Kenney said.
"That didn’t make any sense at all. Because these are folks who are pre-integrated, they are set for success."
To be eligible, PhD students need to have done at least two years of study toward the degree and be in good standing at a recognized post-secondary institution in Canada. They can start applying Nov. 5 under the federal skilled workers program.
Graduates who are less than a year out of the program are also eligible to apply.
Goodyear said expanding the program tells innovators around the world that Canada is ready to welcome their ideas.
"Research in these fields contributes greatly to our overall national competitiveness in the global market," he said.
The news conference comes the day after Kenney tabled in the House of Commons the government's immigration targets for the next year.
Kenney told MPs last month that Canada needs to accept fewer applications in the family class of immigrants, which has a large backlog. He said speeding up processing alone won't take care of the backlog of parents and grandparents trying to join family members in Canada.
By Laura Payton, CBC News
Posted: Nov 2, 2011 12:35 PM ET
Last Updated: Nov 2, 2011 2:01 PM ET
Source - CBC, Canada
International students working on PhDs in some sectors will have a quicker route to immigrating to Canada, the government said Wednesday. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)Canada will start accepting some PhD students as part of a class of immigrants with experience in the country, the government said Wednesday.
Gary Goodyear, minister of state for science and technology, announced the government is expanding the Canadian experience class to include PhD students in certain streams, noting the country lacks people with expertise in science, technology, engineering and math.
The experience class is aimed at skilled temporary foreign workers and international students who want to stay in Canada.
Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, who Wednesday welcomed the 10,000th permanent resident to enter Canada through the program, said Canada used to send people who wanted to become citizens back to their country of origin to have them start on the seven-year waitlist.
Before the program, "we would say excellent. You now have a degree or a diploma that will be recognized by a Canadian employer, you have some work experience in Canada, you have perfected your English or French language skills … now please leave the country and if you want to immigrate, get in the back of a seven-year-long queue," Kenney said.
"That didn’t make any sense at all. Because these are folks who are pre-integrated, they are set for success."
To be eligible, PhD students need to have done at least two years of study toward the degree and be in good standing at a recognized post-secondary institution in Canada. They can start applying Nov. 5 under the federal skilled workers program.
Graduates who are less than a year out of the program are also eligible to apply.
Goodyear said expanding the program tells innovators around the world that Canada is ready to welcome their ideas.
"Research in these fields contributes greatly to our overall national competitiveness in the global market," he said.
The news conference comes the day after Kenney tabled in the House of Commons the government's immigration targets for the next year.
Kenney told MPs last month that Canada needs to accept fewer applications in the family class of immigrants, which has a large backlog. He said speeding up processing alone won't take care of the backlog of parents and grandparents trying to join family members in Canada.