How long does it take to get a Permanent Resident Visa under the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program?

Living in France, studying in Canada.

• Living in one foreign country while doing a distance learning program based out of another. Possible? Advisable? A friend who wants to become an interpreter is looking at language programs abroad. She quite likes the one offered by the University of Glendon, especially the fact that the first year will be done entirely online. She'd like to take advantage of this and spend that year in a French-speaking country that isn't as cold as Canada. Ideally, she would spend her first year in a small town in France, learning remotely, and then move to Canada for the on-campus second year. Pertinent information/questions: a) Is this even possible, in terms of visas and what not? My friend is an Indian citizen who's been granted a French work visa before, but that was as an assistant. What kind of visa would she have to apply for here? Student? Resident? b) My friend has considerable savings, enough for a year in France. Would this be enough to get her a visa, or would she need to have a job/sponsor/some sort of invite letter? c) She (and I) would like some more information on how much university in Canada would cost, both in terms of fees and cost of living in Toronto. I did some poking around the Glendon site, but I couldn't find much of anything. Any information would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

• Answer:

  The international student office at Glendon may be able to advise her better. In theory, it should be doable. She will likely need a Canadian study permit which requires university acceptance and proof of funds to cover living expenses (mine at least has no restrictions on that would appear to require me to be physically in Canada while in school and it was granted without a Canadian address). I am not really sure what visa type she needs for France, maybe a http://www.consulfrance-washington.org/spip.php?article401. It looks like the major requirements for that are savings, medical insurance, and a rented place in France. Assuming you mean Glendon College at York University, http://www.glendon.yorku.ca/english/futurestudents/moneymatters/fees.html seems to be the one you want on fees. http://international.yorku.ca/exchange/incoming/info.htm#4 has more on cost of living. University fees seem to be reasonably similar within a province, though cost of living can vary a good bit.