Tag Archives: international students

Should I Stay or Should I Go? [Part 2: Staying]

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To the delight of my friends here, and detriment, I’m sure, of my family at home, I’ve made the decision to stay in Toronto. To be fair, it had always been in the cards for me to stay here — at least for the immediate future — should the right opportunity present itself. And well, so it has. I have been fortunate to have been offered an internship upon graduation, so, at least for the next few months, I’ll be sticking around good ol’ T-dot. In a way though, the question of whether to stay or not has been answered for me, or perhaps just put in the ‘things for future-Chad to consider’ folder which, to be frank, is bursting at the seams these days.

So what now? Well, one thing’s for sure, there’s no dearth of information for recent international student graduates looking to stay in Canada. And the process is, I’m happy to say, pretty straightforward. As long as you’ve been a full-time student for more than two years, the process is merely a formality to getting your work permit; the one limitation being that you can only work for the length of time that you’ve been in Canada for, and up to a maximum of three years. Here’s the lowdown on the application process, courtesy of the fine folks at the International Student Centre.

What you’ll need:

  • First, you’ll need to be within the ninety days since your notification from the university that you’ve completed your course requirements;
  • You must have a valid study permit at the time of application;
  • And you must provide proof of completion of your program. A letter from your registrar and your official transcript will be enough.

The Process:

You can make your application online or by mail. But first, you’ll have to go to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website and download the following:

  • Guide (IMM 5580)
  • Application to Change Conditions, Extend My Stay or Remain in Canada (IMM 1249)
  • Document Checklist (IMM 5583)

Then, all you have to do is to pay the processing fee of $150 online or with a fee receipt form (available at CIE) at any bank.

The Future You:

For those of you that are looking to stay in Canada for the long haul, what you’ll want to do is start pursuing is your permanent residency. Coincidentally, there’s an article posted in the Toronto Star just this morning, that outlines how you can go about doing so. But either way, you’ll still need to apply for your work permit like every other international student before you can be eligible.

If you have any more questions, or a personal experience with staying in Toronto after graduation that you’d like to share, leave us a comment below, we love comments! :)

Hasta la próxima semana!

Chad

Should I Stay or Should I Go? [Part 1 - The Question]

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I started this post almost two months ago. I am certain that this effectively sums up how difficult it is for me to answer that question and I’m sure equally so for many international students, as they come to the end of their university careers. It’s almost cruel to have to choose: should I stay here, and continue the life that I started here in 2007? Or go back home and return to the one that I left so long ago? After making my home here at U of T and establishing myself in my most defining years, as an adult and as a Torontonian, do I just give it all up? I have no doubts that this is as much a conundrum for the student that has what I call, “a first home,” whether it be a few hundred or a few thousand miles away. There are so many things consider.

Friends vs. Family

Is there really a distinction? My friends at university have become my family, and my family in Trinidad, my friends. But I’ve grown accustomed to a life where I can have both. I have the luxury of being able to fly home two or three times in a year for a few weeks at a time, and more often than not, this is enough to satiate my needs for blood and water. But if I were to go back home, there would be much less reason for me to fly to Toronto twice, even once a year. And as painful as it’d be, I’d be virtually giving up the friends that I have now, who I’ve become so close with. One thing’s for sure, I won’t have mom and pop for pay for it anymore!

Homeland security

If I were to go home, I would have a roof over my head, a car to drive, and food in the mouth. Sounds like a sweet deal, right? Especially when considering that if I stayed in Toronto, I’d be pretty much on my own, having to work for my dollar and keep myself afloat. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m incredibly excited to be financially independent for the first time in my life, but this is also an undoubtedly daunting prospect to face. Especially now that I’m a part of what seems to be the most unhireable generation in a job market that’s not even hiring.

Foreign experience

On the other hand, staying here would likely yield more for me in the long run. I would gain experience in a much faster paced, more demanding work environment than I would if I went home right away. That is, assuming that I am able to land a job. And a good one, too. There’s little sense in staying here for three years more, gaining experience as a bus boy or sales clerk when I could go home and get started pursuing a career.

The deciding factor?

Happiness. Where would I be happiest? On the beach in the sunny Caribbean, swimming and drinking with the little fish? Or in the heart of the big city, chasing dreams and pavements amongst skyscrapers? I’m sure many of you that are tired of battling old man winter will think that this is a no-brainer. But not everything is as simple as beaches and booze. I recently read a passage in a book by a countryman of mine that sums up a sentiment that many of us buccaneers feel about the monotony of the simple lives of our homelands, which only adds to the complexity of the question.

“The traveller [...] was enchanted at his first glimpse of this paradise, in which the ordered beauty of agriculture and prodigality of Nature competed equally for his surprise and admiration. But it was monotonous. Year in year out, day after day, it was the same, a little greener in the wet season, a little browner in the dry. The wilder scenery as constantly magnificent, but for [those] who had seen the same domestic landscape from his earliest hour, it awakened little response. To the emigrant who was at first charmed and exhilarated, monotony bred indifference, which could develop into active dislike, and longing for the seasons returning with the year.” CLR James

So you see, there really is no easy answer. Although, one thing I’ve recently realized, is that I’m grateful to even have the choice, I know that many would love to have such a luxury. It is a blessing as much as it is a curse.

Be sure to come back next week, where I’ll have a look at what I, as an international student, will need to do if I do decide that I want to stick around ol’ Toronto!

Chad

Enter the Dragon…my first Chinese New Year’s Party

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On a rainy September night, I drove to Pearson and waited in the terminal for five hours. This wasn’t an exercise in patience, I was waiting for the international student my family is hosting to disembark from her flight from China. It was with trepidation that I stood there wondering if this stranger would know who I was, or if I would know her. I knew very little about her and when she finally came through the sliding glass doors I found out that she didn’t speak English.

The first few weeks were challenging for her and for me as we negotiated the language barrier as I attempted to help her settle into her new life in Canada. You would never know it now, only three months later, that this young lady only arrived in our country a short time ago. The speed at which she is learning English is remarkable. It is reminiscent of when my sons first learned to talk.

As much as we are trying to get her acclimatized to our culture and weather, we have experienced something unexpected. We are also being introduced to her culture. I am learning things about Chinese culture that they just don’t tell you in guidebooks. Little secrets passed down from mother to daughter, tips and tricks in the kitchen that would never had occurred to me if she hadn’t mentioned them.

As January approached I sensed that our student was missing her home. She enjoyed our Christmas holiday, yet I knew she was missing the festivities that would soon be coming to her hometown. She told me about Chinese New Year. I thought I knew all that there was to know about the celebration. I’ve been to some festivals in Toronto, I go to the Mandarin in January and gorge on dumplings. I soon found out what I was missing when I suggested that we have a Chinese New Year celebration in our home, with a menu of her choice and whatever friend she wished to invite.

According to her the entire day of celebration revolves around the making and eating of dumplings. As I said I’ve eaten my fair share of dumplings, but I had never attempted to make them. The funny thing is that she had also never made them by herself. This was something that the older women of the family do, while the children mainly stuff the dumplings or close them up.

 


With the help of Google – and her mother, via Facetime, propped up against a bowl of ground pork on my counter – we managed to perfect the dough and filling. We made close to one hundred dumplings, in an array of festive colours, using different vegetable juices as a dye. The entire process of dumpling making started at 9am and was finished at 4pm. By the time we finished both of our sore hands were stained with vegetable juice and scented with ginger and sesame. The eating of the dumplings was so fast compared to the prep time, but it was well worth it!  One word mmmmmmmmmmmm!!  Check out the dumpling spread below!

I learned a lot that day about how even though our cultures are very different; they are also very much the same. Just as I toil over a turkey with my mom every Christmas, so too does she toil over dumplings every Chinese New Year. The experience of hosting an international student is eye-opening. I’m learning through her how hard a transition coming to a new land can be. I feel as though I am now more aware of those around me on campus that struggle in the same ways our student does. It is so important that these students who are alone and far away from their families have friends to rely on. I encourage you to engage with an international student if you haven’t and try to make a difference in their lives as they settle into life in Canada. You’ll learn as much as them!

Happy Chinese New Year / Spring Festival!
-Lori

Thank You Canada!

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So lately, every U of T student and their cat has been posting to Facebook and Twitter complaining that they didn’t get a grant that was, as they see it, owed to them by the Ontario government.

For those of you who weren’t aware, Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty recently pledged to offer Ontario students a 30 per cent rebate on their annual tuition fees. But of course, like many politicians before him, he failed to read the fine print: that part time students, mature students, graduate students, and even students who took a year off before coming to university would not be eligible for the grant.

Now while I in no way wish to seem like an apologist for McGuinty, or the Ontario Liberals, and am myself peeved when politicians so flippantly break or bend promises, I have to say that I don’t really have a great deal of sympathy for Canadian students on this one.

For a group that is given so much, we also seem to complain quite a lot. With this tuition break, we’ve seen the Ontario Government try to reach out and lend a hand, only to be slapped in the face by those of us who feel that they have been neglected. But it is a step in the right direction, a break for students in a difficult time, and one that other members of the Liberal party have claimed that they can’t even afford. What I’m trying to say is, and I sincerely hope I don’t sound too trite: be grateful for what you have.

Why I’m grateful and why you should be too!

As an international student, I pay almost four times as much in tuition as a Canadian resident or citizen. What some people fail to realize is that this massive gap is not due to the fact that tuition for international students is hiked, but that resident tuition is highly subsidized by the federal government. But I’ve been contributing to the economy, holding at least two jobs for my last four years here, and I pay taxes too — probably just as many as you do — and still I pay quadruple what resident students do. So why should you be grateful? Well, here’s why I’m grateful, maybe you can connect the dots and figure out why you should be too!

First of all, with the $25,000 a year that I pay for tuition, I could maybe afford to go to a half-decent state school in the United States. And aside from the standard of education that I’d not be privy to, surely I’d also miss out on the opportunities, success and the prestige that will undoubtedly follow my education here.

Secondly, for a similar level of education to what I’m getting now — at say, Columbia or Cornell (both ranked BELOW U of T in last year’s Times Higher Education world university ranking) — I’d have to shell out between $41,000 and $45,000 a year. No thanks, I’ll stick with my Ol’ Toronto mother ever dear, and save a measly 15,000 bucks! And lastly, on top of the tuition benefits, I could not leave out one of the greatest things on this planet earth: Canadian Health Care. Knock the wait times all you want, but when I needed a life-changing operation two years ago — one that I would not have been able to afford anywhere else in the world — the Mountie and Maple leaf were ready and willing to do it for me, at no cost at all.

So, after all this, I’m going to say what I feel no other Canadian (wait, I’m not Canadian) seems to be willing to say. THANK YOU CANADA! Thank you for giving me a world-class education at a fraction of the cost; for trying to make it easier for students to have access to an education; and for striving to make it even better than it is now.

And if you’re still not satisfied, at least voice your concerns in a forum that can respond to your needs like the UTSU and CFS’ Day of Action; no need to whine all over Facebook ;)

Chad

Happy to be a stereotype!

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There’s no doubt that by now you’ve seen at least one of the innumerable videos going ’round the internet, entitled: “Things — insert cultural background/gender/sexual orientation — people say.”

Now, while I think that most of these are hilarious, they’re also a scary representation of the way these groups are perceived, and how uneducated we still are about the world at large. I’m sure a lot of you — our international student readers — will agree, every time you’re asked if you have a particular talent or trait, it just happens to be associated with your ethnicity or birthplace. I’m sure Torontonians are also fed up with international students suggesting that they MUST love hockey and maple syrup and the snow, just because they’re from Canada.

While these videos bouncing around have viewers rolling on the floor laughing; just as many are upset at the stereotypes they are generating. The irony though — and to me this has been infinitely refreshing — is that in almost every case, the people responsible for making these videos belong to the groups that they seem to be promoting stereotypes about. They have been able to turn around clichés about themselves, embrace them and even have fun with them.

So what does this mean? Aren’t stereotypes offensive, oversimplified representations of our culture and heritage, and more importantly, aren’t they wrong? Well, not quite!

I’m from the Caribbean, and in my opinion, there’s no reason I should be offended when someone asks me if my parents work on a plantation with no electricity or internet; suggest that I must live on the beach, drink rum in a hammock all day, and play steel drums. These are things that I’m often happy to talk about, and equally as happy to dispel any myths that may come up. In fact! Let’s have a laugh about them!

The truth is, my mother is an accountant and my dad is a lawyer. We’re all of European descent but we are decidedly Trinidadian. My house is actually built on what used to be a plantation, but we do have internet and electricity — although I’ll admit it does get cut from time to time.

I live only about 10 minutes from some of the most beautiful beaches in the world, although I spend more of my time at home going to restaurants, bars and cinemas. We Trinidadians do tend to spend a lot of time in hammocks and we do drink copious amounts of rum — although I personally prefer gin — and I don’t play the steel drums, but my six year old sister does.

So yes, thanks for asking! I’m proud of my culture and the stereotypes that come with it, and while they’re not always true — and not all there is to me by any means — I’ve embraced these things about myself and where I’m from. I’m glad that we can have a laugh about it together. Hopefully we can both learn something from it.

What do you think? Are stereotypes completely presumptuous and destructive? Or are they just an indicator of the social fabric from which we are each cut: individual and unique, but all from the same cloth?

Just some food for thought,

Chad

It’s your turn to learn

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If you’re an international student, whether you’re a thousand miles away from home or ten, Toronto is probably a big change of scenery for you. And now that you’ve been here for a few months (or years depending on which year of study you’re in), you’ve likely explained where you’re from, what life “back home” is like, and how different this big city is for you more times that you want to count. In my experience, Torontonians are always eager and interested to hear more about any place in the world that you may be from.

But what I’ve learned in my time here is that international students are not always quick to reciprocate that interest. A lot of my friends from home — and other international students that I’ve crossed paths with since coming to Toronto — have come to school here in a bubble.

They come to Toronto all excited at the prospect of being in a new place, and of course, leaving home for the first time. But then they keep the same friends, or make new ones that they share their nationality with. They eat the same food, listen to the same music and do just about everything they would have done at home. They retreat to their home country for every moment of the holiday break and heaven forbid they should stick around for even a wink of the summer. For me, this is tragic!

In my opinion, Toronto is one of the most diverse and stimulating cities in the world; there’s so much here to explore. And yet, a great deal of international students choose to ignore that. I’ve seen countless of them come to Toronto, stay in their bubble, and go back home four years later, claiming to have lived in Toronto. But have they really? Have you, really lived in Toronto? If the answer is no, I’d like to pose a challenge to you. I challenge you — at least once in the last four weeks that remain in the fall semester — to befriend someone from a country that’s not your own, and also not in your current circle of friends — and take them to experience a piece of local culture in Toronto.

And I have the perfect thing!

Tomorrow — Saturday, November 19th — the Centre for International Experience is headed to the Canadian Aboriginal Festival Pow Wow. Don’t know what a pow wow is? Go find out!

Make the effort, learn about someone else’s culture for a change instead of just spouting about your own. I promise you won’t regret it!

~ Chad

Culture Shocked!

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U of T plays host to students from all around the world including the Far East, the Caribbean, Central America and Africa. Now while I’ve not been to all of these regions, I can say with some certainty that Toronto is quite the change for students from these places. To make the move away from home even more difficult, many of these students (myself included) had never left their home country for longer than a few days before they ventured off,  halfway around the world to this strange, new land. It’s no surprise then that a lot of international students experience varying degrees of culture shock. Here, I’ll take you through the stages of culture shock, U of T-style!

The Frosh Phase

Formerly known as the honeymoon phase, this is the period that probably occupies you for your first few weeks at U of T: you move into your awesome new residence, you meet your roommates and you experience what it’s like to be away from your parents’ constant surveillance for the first time. If this isn’t already infinitely exciting and overwhelming all at the same time, your first week is also spent meeting hundreds of new students during orientation week and hundreds more during your first few weeks of classes. All the while you’re strolling through this vast metropolitan city, starry-eyed and for the most part, numbed by all the intoxicating (cough-cough) new experiences that you’re sharing with a cacophony of strangers-turned-best friends. This is the easy part…

The Midterm Phase

What your local psych would refer to as the negotiation phase, this is when you realize that for the first time, you can’t call mommy and daddy for help and all your best friends are strangers. To make matters worse, it’s getting colder, midterms are on the horizon and the romantic blur that once surrounded everything at U of T is beginning to fade. At this stage, you’re likely to be missing home a lot, you miss your friends and your family and you miss the food and the customs of your hometown.

For me, I missed the beach the most; and while there’s not much substitute for a Caribbean seascape in Toronto, I found doing things that I associated with going to the beach to be equally satisfying. And so, to this day, whenever I’m feeling homesick, I cook up a homestyle recipe, put on some local tunes, turn up the heat, pull on my board shorts,and it’s just like I’m home. It may seem ridiculous and even a bit crazy, but it’s saved me from calling it quits and hopping on the next plane home more than a few times!

Now you could see where I had some problems

Find things that you can do here to make yourself feel more at home. Look for local restaurants that make your favourite culinary dishes, or learn to cook them yourself online. Find groups on campus that will give you the opportunity to interact with people from similar backgrounds. You’d be surprised how at ease it can make you feel to just talk to someone in your native language or dialect.

The “did I pass” phase?

The next phase is where things get really interesting: you start to see if all the things you’ve been trying are working or not. This will take place roughly around the end of your first semester. This is called the adjustment phase, and probably the period where people’s experiences vary the most.

For some, coping with the differences of life away from home seems impossible and they see returning home as the only way out. Others are able to fully integrate into the culture and accept it as their own. But there is an in-between, where I feel – based on my experience, and on those of the many international students that I’ve met over the years – most people end up. This group is able to accept the new culture, but also maintain their individual identity and create a unique blend of the two.

Beyond the phases

For a lot of people though, this is not the end. Many students continue to have a hard time adjusting to life away from home and some go through waves of emotions – at one point you’re as happy as a clam, but at another, you feel alone, homesick and hopeless. Lucky for us though – as with most things at our fine institution – we don’t have to face these changes and challenges alone. There are a plethora of resources here to help you along the way. If you’re experiencing a great deal of difficulty acclimatizing to life at U of T and Toronto, The Centre for International Experience offers cross-cultural counselling, and if you need someone to talk to, Counselling and Psychological Services is a great on-campus resource.

Now all you’ll have to worry about is reverse culture shock! ;)

-Chad

“I From Foreign!”

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In the dialect of my home country, this phrase — in more ways than one — says that I’m not from around here. These would have been the words spoken from my mouth four years ago as I arrived in downtown T.O. for the first time.

I had no clue where I was, what I was doing here, or where I was going to fit in this great big city that I now called my home. If you’re an international student like me, then you’re likely to have had a similar experience, carrying an identity that, for the first time, didn’t match anyone else’s.

But as time progressed, I realized that being “from foreign” was not such a bad thing, and even more comforting was the realization that I was not alone! There are over 8,000 international students at U of T from over 150 countries around the globe, and innumerable resources on campus to help you feel at home here.

But this plethora of information can sometimes be just as daunting as the changes that you’re facing. I’m here to sift through the fluff and shed light on the best that U of T has to offer its out of towners.

Find People Like You

One of the easiest ways to transition through a change in your life is to have someone that’s been there and done that. I-Connect is just that: a volunteer mentorship program open to all U of T students with a mission to help you in your cultural transition to university, to Toronto and to Canada. There are few things better than learning from someone else’s mistakes!

Ask Questions

If you’re anything like me, your first two months away from home have been crazy: you’ve experienced your first university party, your first Canadian Thanksgiving, and you’re about to experience your first winter (it’s not so bad — follow these guidelines and you’ll be fine!).

There a lot of firsts, and you’ll be experiencing them even well into your third and fourth years at university. Places like the Centre for International Experience at the lovely Cumberland House (33 St. George Street) are overflowing with people who want to help you transition into your new life and answer any questions that you may have, so don’t be afraid to ask. They’ll help you with immigration issues like student and work visas, they’ll host you for holiday dinners, they’ll even help you do your taxes!

Get Involved

This is purely based on personal experience, but I’ve found that getting involved outside of class has spurred my quick acclimatization to life at U of T, so much so that — to my parents’ detriment — it’s given me a life here that I don’t want to leave. Student life at U of T has all the answers and there’s a great page on their website with links to literally every way you can get involved on campus!

Be Yourself!

This is by far the most important thing that I’ve learned in my four years at university. I’ve found that what set me apart from everyone else was that I was different, that I had a different childhood, that I came from a different culture, that I spoke a different language (well, kinda).

The more I embraced my otherness, the more fun I had, the better my experiences became, and the more friends I made. This is the one time in your life that you’re allowed to be anything you want to be, and all the things that made you the oddball in high school are the things that will set you apart in university, and make you awesome. So don’t be afraid to get out there, experience all that U of T and Toronto has to offer, and feel free to steal my mantra: “When in doubt, get up, dress up, and show up!”

~ Chad