Graduate Studies - MASc vs MEngg

This document is originally written by Md. Shafayet Islam, MASc Student (Concordia Univeristy).


Year of Publication: 2017


©PBSCU Any unauthorized use of this article, including copying or editing is prohibited. If you want to use the article, you need to take permission from us: pbscuadm@gmail.com or from the author and you must mention the author's name and the group's name in all cases.



Graduate Studies in Concordia University, Montreal



Masters of Engineering (MEng)


Why pursue a Master's in Electrical and Computer Engineering in Concordia?

The Master of Engineering (MEng) is 2 Year coursework based graduate program that is designed for engineering graduates who want to enhance their technical and professional skills to have a competitive edge in today’s job field. University ranking is on par in terms of research opportunities and current Canadian job market.


Link: http://www.concordia.ca/academics/graduate/electrical-engineering-meng.html


Program Information:


45 Credit (10 Courses * 4 Credit each + One Seminar Course * 1 Credit) to complete the degree requirements


Time Limit:


Full-time students must be completed within 12 terms (4 years) from the time of initial registration. For part-time students, the time limit is 15 term (5 years). Usual semesters are Fall and Winter. Very few courses are offered only in Summer semester. If need be, one can take leave of absence for summer semesters prior to application to graduate program coordinator. No leave is granted for regular semesters unless urgent occasions. Related documents are MUST in order to avail this leave.


N.B. applying for part-time studentship will put visa application at risk as it intends to more of a working intention rather than studying in Canada.


Application Requirements:


Application Deadline:


Fall Semester (September - December): Before Feb 15


Winter Semester (January – April): Before June 15


Summer Semester (May-August): October 15


Tuition Fees:


Approximately $29,000 CAD (including health insurance) for 2 years Master’s program.


Source: http://www.concordia.ca/admissions/tuition-fees/calculator.html


Co-Op Education:


Option available in expense with higher CGPA (>=3.4 out of 4.3) and placement availability.


Funding Options:


Usually MEng students are not privileged with any sort of bursaries or funds. Very less possibilities of managing TAships unless recommended by faculties. Since this is a course based program, expect loads of course work, library hours, group project discussions, collecting class materials of previous semesters from course mates and lastly sleepless nights before midterms and finals with handful of stresses, but money / fund issues shouldn’t be one of them.


Switching to Masters of Applied Science (MASc)


Lucrative Research Assistantships, Teaching Assistantships, internal and external funds, Departmental funds, Professors grunt, Provincial and Federal Scholarships etc. may seems like a no brainer choice but getting it is not that easy as it sounds. Provided you have enrolled for MEng, the only possible way to switch it to MASc is to convince the supervisor of your interest UPFRONT. It may be done by taking his/her classes or may be consulting directly in their office hours. Common notion is to create a good impact and top scores in respective courses with clear understandings in the material which automatically creates a mentionable attention in professor’s mind for prospective researcher. If they have vacant positions in their lab, they will contact you by themselves with the offer. Since this eases the complexity of finding some student from distant places rather than from their own class, don’t expect this task to be that easy to achieve. Lucrative Research Assistantships, Teaching Assistantships, internal and external funds, Departmental funds, Professors grunt, Provincial and Federal Scholarships etc. may seems like a no brainer choice but getting it is not that easy as it sounds. Provided you have enrolled for MEng, the only possible way to switch it to MASc is to convince the supervisor of your interest UPFRONT. It may be done by taking his/her classes or may be consulting directly in their office hours. Common notion is to create a good impact and top scores in respective courses with clear understandings in the material which automatically creates a mentionable attention in professor’s mind for prospective researcher. If they have vacant positions in their lab, they will contact you by themselves with the offer. Since this eases the complexity of finding some student from distant places rather than from their own class, don’t expect this task to be that easy to achieve. But Nothing is Impossible. Right?


Application Procedure:


Gather all the required documents first. That should include the followings:


1. CV. One recently updated with academic project/research experiences and/or job experiences (if any).


2. Three (3) Copies of LOR. Preferably from academic (2) and industrial (1, if any) experience. Hard copies will be needed to submit. Online submission at a later date is also available if it’s not ready during paper submission.


3. One copy of 2-page SOP.


4. One copy of Official mark sheet of respective university


5. One copy of Attested Provisional Certificate/ Degree Certificate


6. One copy of IELTS score.


7. 100CAD application fee.


Then apply through here http://www.concordia.ca/admissions/apply-now.html

before deadline approaches. For any particular case based inquiries, shoot your mail at grad-program@ece.concordia.ca. It might take some time to respond but in general, they are quite helpful.


After submitting the application, it takes near around 4-6 weeks for them to reply with either positive or negative feedback. Keep 1-2 weeks in the buffer while applying for Fall semester as this is the pick season.


CAQ:


Once admission letter has been issued, next step is to apply for CAQ. Once admission letter has been issued, next step is to apply for CAQ. Once admission letter has been issued, next step is to apply for CAQ. This is a provincial study permit certificate issued by Immigration Quebec for international students to study in Quebec province only. . . The complete study permit will be issued by Citizenship and Immigration Canada after landing in Canada. This costs around $111CAD. Any online transaction methods (VISA, MasterCard, Virtual Debit Card etc.) is allowed. The details can be found here: http://www.immigration-quebec.gouv.qc.ca/en/immigrate-settle/students/obtaining-authorizations/certificat-acceptation/fees-required.html


Study Permit Application: This information are from 2017


Roughly it takes around 3-4 weeks to get the online confirmation for Quebec study permit (CAQ). Once it comes into the hand, one can apply for student visa application.


The followings are needed to submit in order to apply for student visa:


1. Notarized photocopy of all the academic certificates (PSC,JSC,SSC,HSC,BSc,MSc etc.)


2. Notarized photocopy of first 5 pages of old passport / first 2 info pages of Machine Readable Passport.


3. Police Clearance certificate. Necessary information can be found in here Guide: http://www.online-dhaka.com/english/619_689_2063_0-police-clearanc--certificate.html ; Bangladesh Police Website: http://www.police.gov.bd/tab.php?id=4


4. Birth Certificate in English


5. Updated CV à One copy.


6. Study Plan à the very same context of SOP used for university application with an addition of country ties and strong reasoning for returning to home country is a MUST.


7. Few passport size photos just in case. Though VFS will take photos and fingerprints by their own.


8. Notarized photocopy / Original copy of IELTS score.


9. Documents of Currently studying degree (If applicable.)


10. Job Certificate (If applicable)


11. Marriage Certificate (If applicable)


12. Relationship Documents (If applicable)


13. Financial Evidence


a. Sponsor:


i. Affidavit of Financial Support Documents/Property Evaluation


ii. Relationship Proof Documents with Sponsor (Usually notarized photocopy of passport)


iii. Bank Solvency Certificate


iv. Bank Statements for >=6 Months


v. Source of Income (Provident Fund, Salary Certificate, Trade License, LC Documents, Invoice, Dealership agreement etc.)


vi. Company Memorandum & Audit Report for companies.


vii. Ownership documents (Fixed Assets i.e. residential lands, apartment/flat tenant deed agreement, commercial land, Shop rent etc.)


viii. Income Tax Certificate


ix. Income Tax Return for last 2 fiscal years.


x. Visiting Card of the Sponsor


xi. Notarized photocopy of Sponsor’s last educational qualification certificate


xii. Letter of financial guarantee


b. Self (If applicable)


i. Job Certificate


ii. Salary Certificate


iii. Bank Statement (Salary account, personal account etc.)


iv. Visiting Card


v. TIN Certificate


vi. Tax Return (If income is above tax payable)


vii. Professional Certificates (CCNA, RHCSA, CompTIA, ITIL, VMWare, CA, PMP etc.)



VISA file submission in VFS, DHAKA:


During the visa application submission, the followings along with the aforementioned documents are needed to be provided:


1. Document Checklist. Link available from here http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5483E.pdf


2. Study Permit Checklist. Link available from here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5850E.pdf


3. Family Information Form. Link available form here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5707E.pdf


4. Application for Study Permit. Link Available here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM1294E.pdf


5. Biometric fingerprint and photograph. These will be taken in VFS.


6. Full photocopy of all the pages of passport. In case of multiple, all of those pages as well.


7. Only first 2 pages (Machine Readable Passports) of photocopy of the current passport.


8. Visa application fee of BDT 13798 in cash only. Best practice is to bring the changes as they don’t have much during fee collection. Breakdowns are all in BDT.


a. Visa fee amount à 8610


b. Biometric Fee à 4880


c. Application Service Charge à 251


d. SMS Service Charge à 57



Medical Examination Request:


After successful submission of Visa application, if everything goes according to as it supposed to be, a medical examination request followed by a unique medical report form (IMM1017E) will be mailed in the give mail address.


This medical examination includes a blood test, urine test, an x-ray of your chested area for checking simple flu related diseases. In case of heavy medical doses already been prescribed with or been operated with any major issues has to be declared during the medical examination for further procedures. Medical reports will be submitted to VFS the by the Physician panel themselves within two working days. No need to query for the medical report in the test center.


There is a list of panel physicians registered under IRCC for medical examination specifically for visa application (i.e. immigration, student, tourist etc.) purposes. These are mentioned as below:


The following Panel Physicians are available in this country - ordered by city:


1. Name: Abdul Wahab

Address: Dr. Wahab's Medical Centre

Road 12, House 3,Baridhara-1212

Telephone: (880-2) 984 7553;(880-2) 984 3439


Estimated Cost: BDT 4200


2. Lina Shahnaz Parveen Hoq

Address: Green Crescent Health Services

60 Park Rd, Baridhara Diplomatic Zone-1212

Telephone: (88) (02) - 58817335, 9862384


Estimated Cost: BDT 3800


3. Dr. A.K.M.M.R. Faruq, Dr. Anup Kanti Das Dr. Sonia Arifa

Address: IOM Migration Health Assessment Clinic

1st & Ground floor, House 13/A, Road 136, Gulshan-1,1212

Telephone: +88 0171 3481 798; +88 0177 7761 309


Estimated Cost: BDT 4000


Final Confirmation of Visa Approval


The estimated timeline for approval of student visa is around 8-10 working weeks in Singapore. Unless second security clearance issues are needed, more or less the given timeline is well maintained. There are few cases though, where visa approval comes at a much later date than completing the medical examination. Check Hall of Fame for clear overview in this regard.


Life in Montreal: Time to pack your bags!


Named world’s best student city for a reason! Highly vibrant and diversity is well observed. Night life and Summer days are where people make most of the memories. Snowfall may seem filmy and cute for the first few weeks, but once getting the hold of it there is a less chances of liking it further. Native Canadians are way over polite (!) and respectful. Here are some tips and tricks to survive in Montreal.