It was confusing deciding whether or not to take a summer break this year. I know many people would usually just prefer to finish off their programs as soon as possible. However, for international students, this decision needs to be taken with a lot of caution and thought, especially for those students who are expecting a postgraduate work permit (PGWP).
According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), anyone graduating from a Canadian college or university that is a designated learning institution may be eligible for a postgraduate work permit (Camosun College is on the government’s designated learning institution list as it offers PGWP-eligible programs). This is very important for students who want to stay in Canada and work.
If the program is less than eight months, students are not eligible for a PGWP. If it is more than eight months but less than two years, then they provide a PGWP that is valid up to the length of the study program.
If your program is two years or longer, we may get a three-year PGWP. But the final decision is really in the hands of the IRCC.
Now, there’s a very important term that all international students need to know: “accelerated programs.” If we complete our study in less time than the actual length of our course, we will still be provided the PGWP on the basis of the actual length of our program. In the end, it really depends on our course—there have been many instances when students who had a two-year course opted to finish their program faster, and ended up getting a work permit of less than three years. But IRCC makes decisions differently and decisions are made on a case-to-case basis.
So, why is all this so important? Well, because we need to make a choice while taking this into consideration. Whether we take a break or accelerate our program, it’s all about planning wisely. Therefore, we need to plan our courses with respect to the length of our program, so we may receive the PGWP we want.
Apart from this, the other reason students in India might want to take a summer break is that the COVID situation has worsened in India: every day it’s making us more afraid and distraught. For many Indian students, studying online was already difficult, so taking a summer break is appropriate.
It’s better we stay at home and utilize this time to get certifications, or volunteering or working as an intern, which is really useful for future job opportunities. I took a break because I was able to.
Some international students who are already in Canada take a break in summer so they can work full time and save some money for tuition fees. I wanted to do that as well, but I realized students couldn’t travel if they didn’t take any courses for the summer semester.
Maybe this summer break can help us relax so when we return in the fall we are pumped up, positive, and ready to study and learn.