I was 18 years old when I decided to move to Canada, I wanted to give my future the opportunity of a better life. It was not easy; it took me almost 2 years to find the right pathway to move to Canada. I went to the Canadian government website and I learned that I came to Canada to study for over one year and a half I will have the opportunity to apply for a three-year work permit after finishing college. Then I started my search for the right college with the right price and course. Then I sent too many emails and I called to many colleges in Canada. I did not want to go through an agency, because most of the times the agencies only sell you programs that they have agreements with, and most of the times these are agreements with private English schools, which usually the government does not consider valid to get the work permit.

I LITERALLY Google: “Colleges in BC” (I knew I wanted to live in British Columbia) given the fact that is full of mountains and it is not as cold as east cities. Anyways, I went to college by college searching for their educational programs and their fees for international students. I made a final list of the colleges I was interested in and then I contacted them asking for more information.

I believe the only requirements they asked me for was my bachelor’s degree and the IELTS (International Language Test) after I was approved by the college, I applied to the study permit, and after a few months, I was flying to Vancouver to live my dream.

I sold my car and got rid of my personal belongings and I paid for the first courses while I found a job and saved for the other courses to come. And of course, my family gave me some support.

I must mention none of these decisions were easy, but for sure the best decisions I have ever done. I love living in Canada, I love their clean air, I love hiking, I learned to snowboard, I met incredible people and I got a good job, I believe I can be the role to follow for many and I wish nothing but to inspire young ladies like me to follow their dreams, to believe in themselves.

Also, when I was applying for permanent residence, the process was of course not easy, I applied to Express Entry three times, then I decided to apply for the long process, so I applied to PNP by the province of BC, and after one year I was resident. I can for sure provide insight and answer questions regarding the process. I would like to mention, I had no help from a lawyer no relative, I did everything by myself. So, for reference, you don’t need to pay a lawyer thousands to get your permanent residence nor an agency if you want to come to Canada forever.