Thinking about moving to Canada to complete my Masters?

Question

I'm thinking about moving to Canada, toronto area specificially, to
get my masters degree in IT, I'm currently looking at Ryerson U, and I
have a few questions:

1) Does a canadian degree go over well with american employers?

2) Does a student visa let you work in canada? If not what should I do?

3) If you have studied in Canada, how were your experiences?

4) now Ryerson's IT masters degree says that I would only have to take 12 classes and could be done in a year if I went full time, I thoughtmasters degrees had to be 60 credits and 2 years worth of study. Can anyone clarify this for me?

thank you

Answer 1

1. Think of it as regional. Having a Canadian degree in the U.S. would be similar to having a degree from a regional school in the West if you live in the Northeast, or something like that. If you go to one of the best Canadian universities, with an international reputation, there will be no trouble, and of course some employers just want to see that you have a degree and don't care where it comes from, but others do care. The problem with going to a place like Ryerson is that it is big, not not really one of the stronger schools in Canada.

2) Usually a student visa does not allow you to work, other than on campus. You may need to find out if there are opportunities for students to work at Ryerson. Just as with international schools in the U.S., students usually can't cross borders unless they either have money or have been given financial aid to come there, and financial aid at the master's level is rare.

3) I didn't study in Canada, but I did teach there for several years. One thing I can warn you about is that I found that the much-vaunted universal healthcare in Canada wasn't available to me on my visitor's visa; I don't know about students, but you might look into it. Otherwise, I enjoyed the experience.

4) It may be that you are waiving some of the basic courses required for the 60 credit hour masters degree. I teach business, and while the course takes two years for those who come in with no prior business courses, many students waive a lot of courses if they come in with a bachelor's degree in the field. Also, Canadian rules are not always the same as they are in the U.S. They aren't always even very consistent across Canadian universities. I taught at two universities in Canada, and for the same degree, one took a full year longer than the other, the grading scales were completely different, etc.

Answer 2

Get on the web and get some info from the University of Edmonton. See you soon.

Answer 3

Try these links:
http://www.sgs.utoronto.ca/
http://www.mmf.utoronto.ca/
http://www.rotman.utoronto.ca/MMPA/