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Canadian MA Economics Programs - Request for advice on deciding, please.


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Hello!

 

I sincerely request for advice from Canadians and others who are familiar with Canadian Econ programs, please. I will be truly very grateful for any & all insights into the issue below. Thank you so much in advance!

 

I am international student who will be pursuing the MA on a study permit. I have a 4-year undergraduate honours in Economics from India, & a final year UG thesis.

 

I got into UBC, UofT, SFU, Ottawa, McMaster, Waterloo MA Co-op, Dalhousie, UAlberta, etc. After a lot of consideration, I have decided that I'll go either to SFU or to Waterloo. This is due to the international student tuition differential at most places, which makes affording grad studies very difficult for me at UBC & UofT.

 

My goal is to work after the MA, and I am quite sure about not going the PhD route.

 

The MA at SFU has an optional co-op, while the Waterloo program itself is the MA co-op track. But from what I have seen, international students' co-op placements are not exactly guaranteed at Waterloo, even if one is enrolled in the co-op program.

I mean, I'm ready to work for searching jobs in the co-op, but there seem to be certain things out of my control in the case of Waterloo (like the Ontario government's cutback / restrictions on hiring students who are not Canadian citizens / PR). I guess in Waterloo, it can happen that I don't get into co-op due to these other factors. And if so, the program will end in 8 months, and I don't want to do such a short program.

 

This is just my understanding, please correct me if I'm mistaken regarding this. Is a co-op position a definite part of the degree for those enrolled in the co-op option (assuming we perform well in the coursework) ? How about co-op positions for internationals ? Is job success difficult for internationals (even if they perform well in the program)? Essentially, how will my visa status affect me in getting a job in Ontario?

 

And neither is co-op job success a sure feature at SFU. In fact, I have read that the job market in the west coast is brutal, and it's better to remain in the east. Is finding a job in the west really that difficult ?

 

But again, Waterloo has the international tuition, which would make it really very tight for me there (though they have given me a TA-ship). So is taking up the financial burden worth going to Waterloo? Or should I go to SFU instead (lesser financial strain) and will the SFU degree help in finding work?

 

I am not complaining, and in fact, am greatly thankful for the opportunity. It's just that given that I have couple of options, I would want to make an informed decision about how my life would change from now on.

 

Given all this, please advise me regarding work placements after the SFU degree, and the possibility of taking up a co-op position at SFU (they have co-op for MA econ). Do students get placed in co-op every year? What about general work placements after the SFU MA? I would be really very thankful for advice, please.

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Hello!

 

I sincerely request for advice from Canadians and others who are familiar with Canadian Econ programs, please. I will be truly very grateful for any & all insights into the issue below. Thank you so much in advance!

 

I am international student who will be pursuing the MA on a study permit. I have a 4-year undergraduate honours in Economics from India, & a final year UG thesis.

 

I got into UBC, UofT, SFU, Ottawa, McMaster, Waterloo MA Co-op, Dalhousie, UAlberta, etc. After a lot of consideration, I have decided that I'll go either to SFU or to Waterloo. This is due to the international student tuition differential at most places, which makes affording grad studies very difficult for me at UBC & UofT.

 

My goal is to work after the MA, and I am quite sure about not going the PhD route.

 

The MA at SFU has an optional co-op, while the Waterloo program itself is the MA co-op track. But from what I have seen, international students' co-op placements are not exactly guaranteed at Waterloo, even if one is enrolled in the co-op program.

I mean, I'm ready to work for searching jobs in the co-op, but there seem to be certain things out of my control in the case of Waterloo (like the Ontario government's cutback / restrictions on hiring students who are not Canadian citizens / PR). I guess in Waterloo, it can happen that I don't get into co-op due to these other factors. And if so, the program will end in 8 months, and I don't want to do such a short program.

 

This is just my understanding, please correct me if I'm mistaken regarding this. Is a co-op position a definite part of the degree for those enrolled in the co-op option (assuming we perform well in the coursework) ? How about co-op positions for internationals ? Is job success difficult for internationals (even if they perform well in the program)? Essentially, how will my visa status affect me in getting a job in Ontario?

 

And neither is co-op job success a sure feature at SFU. In fact, I have read that the job market in the west coast is brutal, and it's better to remain in the east. Is finding a job in the west really that difficult ?

 

But again, Waterloo has the international tuition, which would make it really very tight for me there (though they have given me a TA-ship). So is taking up the financial burden worth going to Waterloo? Or should I go to SFU instead (lesser financial strain) and will the SFU degree help in finding work?

 

I am not complaining, and in fact, am greatly thankful for the opportunity. It's just that given that I have couple of options, I would want to make an informed decision about how my life would change from now on.

 

Given all this, please advise me regarding work placements after the SFU degree, and the possibility of taking up a co-op position at SFU (they have co-op for MA econ). Do students get placed in co-op every year? What about general work placements after the SFU MA? I would be really very thankful for advice, please.

 

 

Someone kindly advise me, pretty please! Your inputs are highly valued and greatly needed... thank you very much. And I'm very sorry for a longer than usual post, but please help me!

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Thanks for your reply! But I'm not from North America, and there's no way I can contact people studying in these places (for lack of a network of seniors / friends who're connected in some way to the program / know some information due to being in & around that area!). I don't even have hearsay information and can only go by what is put up on websites.

 

And for someone who has to shift base half way across the globe and start totally anew if I go to any of the above programs, I feel really lost due to not having any 1st hand information / "inside" insights which people normally gather before taking up something that's fraught with so much risk.

 

But looks like I'm just plain unlucky / unfortunate in not deserving any advice, as I've very well seen quite extensive discussions here (over many years) on Econ Master's programs in general, and Canadian MA programs in particular. Plus a lot of discussion on program x Vs y, and on the particulars of deciding between programs.

 

It's just that I'm trying to request people for help, regarding the job market prospects after MA from SFU Vs Waterloo (crux of my loooong post). Feeling very despondent that I'm having no concrete information to guide me in this crucial dilemma.

 

Anyway, thank you again though for your reply.

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I got into UBC, UofT, SFU, Ottawa, McMaster, Waterloo MA Co-op, Dalhousie, UAlberta, etc. After a lot of consideration, I have decided that I'll go either to SFU or to Waterloo. This is due to the international student tuition differential at most places, which makes affording grad studies very difficult for me at UBC & UofT.

 

 

I responded to your other post comparing SFU and UWaterloo, so have a look at that if you're really set on those two.

 

But honestly speaking, I am very surprised that you are thinking of those two schools over UBC/UofT.

 

For Canadian econ programs its pretty much agreed upon that UBC and UofT are the top 2 programs in the country (by a large margin)... followed by Queens and Western. These schools round up what we refer to as the "Big 4". Outside the big 4 the programs are not as reputable (especially internationally).

 

Co-op is great, but I personally believe that the reputation of UofT/UBC would still put you in a better position foJr industry jobs after your masters. IMO, you're better off doing the MA and then finding your own internship afterwards.

 

 

But again, Waterloo has the international tuition, which would make it really very tight for me there (though they have given me a TA-ship). So is taking up the financial burden worth going to Waterloo? Or should I go to SFU instead (lesser financial strain) and will the SFU degree help in finding work?

 

 

Again this is my opinion, but if you're forking out a ton of money to study in Canada, IMO it is not worth giving up the UofT/UBC opportunity for SFU or Waterloo

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Dear whitenoise,

 

Thank you very much for your reply and inputs! Trust me, I am really in need of counsel and I am truly grateful for your insights on this issue.

The thing is due to financial constraints I need to start working earlier. So in all probability I won't go for a PhD. It was a very difficult decision turning down UBC & Toronto, but honestly the international tuition was really a lot for me to afford to take out loans (even with a TA-ship). I'm just hoping that the SFU MA helps me in some way in the job market assuming I do well in the program. And thank you again for your input on comparing between programs especially if one is spending a lot of money. I truly appreciate it!

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If I may request you for some more help, could you please tell me a bit about the final work placement trends of SFU MA grads? Is it only a PhD oriented school? How good are the work placements of the MA grads? Kindly help me with this, please please please...
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