There is a good reason why lots of students want to study in Canada, in fact, Canada is now the third Country that has the highest number of international students, behind Australia and the United States. Some people that have grown older and have graduated from their different colleges or universities might be saying, “if I knew what I know now, I would have studied in Canada.”
Why wouldn’t someone want to study in this Country, is it because of their quality education, which 5 of their colleges are ranking among the top 100 in the world. Or because of their very low unemployment rate at 4.9% in July 2022, or even because of their high minimum wage which is $15.55 per hour, which will continue to increase.
Even U.S News and World Report said that they are the best country for quality of lifestyle in 2021, so you won’t just enjoy good academics, you’ll still also live a lovely life with your neighbors. Needless to say, out of 5 people in Canada, 2 are international citizens, so you have a very high chance of meeting your fellow country people.
However, whatever is great doesn’t come cheap, so it is in Canada, the tuition fee in the country is really not that cheap, but they have the highest low tuition fee colleges among English-speaking countries. And to have the chance of studying for free in one of their quality education means you have already put in the work, or you’re ready to work very hard and be diligent in your studies.
In this article, we will be helping you understand if it’s possible to study in this country without paying a dime, and how to study in Canada for free.
Can I Study in Canada for Free
The simple answer is there is no college in Canada that you don’t need to pay for tuition. Germany is one of the countries that offer tuition-free, in fact, 16 states in Germany had to abolish the payment of tuition for undergraduate students in their public universities.
So if you’re looking for a complete, tuition-free college, then Germany should be on your top list, but also be aware they have a language barrier, which you might need to learn anyway.
As for Canada, the best way to study in the country for free is to put in hard work in your studies and take advantage of fully-funded scholarship opportunities. There are also easy scholarships to take advantage of, some of them are not fully funded, but you can apply for many as you can and you might be shocked to get something close to a full tuition-free.
Now that we have established the fact that there is no free college in Canada, let’s see how to study in Canada without paying a dime or paying very little.
How to Study in Canada for Free
We believe there are three MAJOR categories of people reading this article, so the strategy we shared here applies to undergraduates, graduates, and postgraduates.
A lot of things come to play if anyone must study in any college for free, whether as an international student or a citizen of the country. Here are the guaranteed steps you have to take, and I promise you, when diligently followed, you’re promised to be in the right part of studying for free in Canada.
1. Hard work and Diligence
Yes, that’s right, you need to study very well before you would be considered for admission and for any fully-funded scholarship. Because your result will speak volumes of who you are and why any college in Canada will admit and be willing to fund your tuition.
See it this way, no matter what you do in this world, as long as you produce reputable results, men will want to invest in you, so is it in schools, as long as you have a brilliant GPA, your test scores are great, colleges will want to consider you first. It’s also advisable to be involved in extracurricular activities like volunteering, arts, sports, cheerleading, or chess because this will add to your advantage of studying in Canada for free.
2: Apply Early
Applying as early as possible increases your chances of studying for free in Canada, because early application means the university board will start processing your admission with ease, you have less competition, and they will release your decision letter as soon as possible. You should know that you’re not the only one applying for admission, in fact, a lot and lots of students are now requesting admission in Canada, whether citizens or international students. So, the competition is getting higher and tougher.
Also, NACAC (National Association for College Admission Counseling) reported in 2019 that “early applicant acceptance rates increased by nine percent in 2018 compared with those who took the regular decision route.”
You see, the early application gives you a significant edge towards being admitted and studying in Canada for free.
3: Apply for Canadian Scholarships
Scholarships are one of the best ways to study in any country for free, literally all universities in Canada have scholarships they offer which a lot of people don’t know about and they allow these scholarships to pass away without being claimed. If you applied for admission early, it enables the school to send your admission letter on time (if you were admitted) and this also helps you to apply for scholarships ASAP.
Most importantly, if you had good results and have participated in some extracurricular activities in your country, there are high chances you don’t need to apply for scholarships because most schools in Canada will enroll you in any scholarships you’re eligible for. Whichever scholarship they award you, will come together with your admission letter or weeks after you accepted your admission.
4: Apply for Scholarships from your Home Country
The good thing about looking for scholarships from your country is that you don’t need to wait till you’re admitted. A lot of companies from your country should have award programs they issue to their country’s students that meet some criteria.
Your federal government might even have programs to support their students to study in Canada for free, and they might even take care of all your tuition. So you can start searching as soon as, “NOW!”
5. Apply for Canadian Government Aid
The government of Canada offers some financial aid to both their Canadian citizens and international students, it could be in form of scholarships, grants, or even student loan programs.
6. Applying for External Scholarships
External scholarships are financial aids that come from an organization outside of McGill. So, some businesses, foundations, and organizations are interested in helping you graduate without paying anything or paying little in your studies.
Just like most other scholarships, these organizations have criteria you must meet before they can award you these scholarships, one of the criteria might even be for you to come and work for them when you’re done with your studies, which is absolutely amazing.
Also, make sure to fill out the application and submit it on time, together with all requirements. If you’re going for these external scholarships, you should know that they are annual, which means, you need to apply again the next year, and again, the other years.
These companies or organizations want to make sure you’re maintaining or improving your standards.
Moreover, even though this is one of the ways to study in Canada for free, be careful which organization you apply because scammers always take advantage of these opportunities to dupe students of their money. Instead, focus on external scholarships provided by McGill.
7. Apply for Student Loans
This is not one of the best ways to study in Canada for free, but it could be a good option when other options have failed. Also, you can now apply for a student loan in Canada without a co-signer (a co-signer is someone that will take full responsibility to pay back the loan if the borrower failed to do so).
To get an international loan in Canada, you have to meet a private lender, but you should know you have to meet their requirements too.
8. Work while Studying
According to Moving2Canada.com international students in Canada with a study permit who are enrolled full-time in a Designated Learning Institution (DLI), can work off campus without a work permit. That means, you can work in any company in Canada even as a student, and you’ll be able to use your money to fund your tuition, your other school fees, and probably your accommodation too. This is not a very easy way to study for free in Canada, but it’s best for those that are ready to put in the work and also study for their degree.
In addition, you can even choose to work on-campus, there are some part-time jobs that different colleges offer.
9. Apply for Affordable Colleges in Canada
If you’re not able to study for free in Canada, you can try one of their very affordable colleges, you might be shocked to notice you can pay for them. Normal universities in Canada pay tuition from CAD 20,000 and above but these cheap colleges can cost between CAD 3,000 to CAD 15,000, depending on the degree.
Conclusion
As you can see, how to study in Canada for free mostly depends on your academic performance and your extracurricular activities. But if you don’t have these, you can still apply for other scholarships and financial aid, or if possible loans.
There must be a way to study in Canada if you’re willing to put in the effort, and never forget there are lots of scholarships that go unclaimed yearly in Canada.
Moreover, if you have a better option to study for free in this country, or you have a question, you can leave it in the comment section.
How to Study in Canada for Free – FAQs
[sc_fs_multi_faq headline-0=”h3″ question-0=”Who is eligible for free education in Canada?” answer-0=”Both Canadian citizens and international students are eligible to study in Canada for free. But this mostly comes through scholarships or financial aid.” image-0=”” headline-1=”h3″ question-1=”Can international students study free in Canada?” answer-1=”Yes, an international student can study for free in Canada, but it mostly has to be through a fully-funded scholarship.” image-1=”” count=”2″ html=”true” css_class=””]
I received a call today from Canada on this line +18134301362 here in Zambia I had written sometime back that I want a study bursary.my NRC is 132878/10 and my line is 0979750030 Zambia