You guys out there would’ve probably already guessed how the interview went down... Yes, I was denied my study permit to Canada. I admit, I was on the verge of crying inside that interview/interrogation-like room; but I held my tears in for I thought it’d make me look desperate in front of the Visa Officer. I managed to keep ALL my emotions bottled up, until only when afternoon came and I talked to my other cousin/roommate for the week about it; I couldn’t control my tears having kept it all bottled up from noon to 6 in the evening. WhenI went out of the interview room, I told my aunt (who was there waiting outside to support me) that I was denied my permit, and she gave me a shocked, wide-eyed look... She couldn’t believe it either. I woke up extra early to reach the High Comm. on time from my scheduled appointment at 9am. So I was there an hour earlier, and guess what time they called me in for my interview? 10:45am... All that waiting for a 25-minute interview with disappointing results, FML.
I’m seriously not in the mood to describe everything word from word, but what I wrote below is an email that I had sent to my Dad explaining to him how the situation went; so read it as if you were my Dad:
Dad, the link below is what I went through before my interview just to get an idea of the sort of questions that they will ask me to prepare myself:
The very first question they asked me is when did you and mommy come to Brunei, so I said 1984/1985. Then after that they immediately pointed out that you have been in Brunei for 20+ years and not residing in Philippines during that time.
They also asked me when and if you (as in mommy, Angela and Alyssa as well) intend to go back to Philippines.
After that she asked me why I want to study in Canada and why University of Alberta. Then she asked me what is the ranking for their Arts program, and I said 101. She replied by saying that it's not even in the top 50 so why do I want to study there. I told her that back in January 2010, there was a Canadian fair in where a representative from University of Alberta gave a talk and I was inspired to apply into the University.
After that, she asked me why didn't I apply to a University in my home country, or even in the US (because I think she saw my passport I had a US visa as a prospective student and asked if I had relatives there).
I can't remember the order of the questions, but basically, the only questions she asked about my studies is why Canada and why Alberta. After that I found that the questions she asked me were totally irrelevant to me wanting to go to Canada for studies.
She looked at your bank statements that we submitted together with my application and asked why there is a lot of money in your bank account (or something like that; I don't remember the exact question). She then asked what your monthly income was, but following these questions, she never asked about how we are going to fund my University or whether I am applicable for any scholarships offered by the University itself.
After that, everything turned around to my "ties" with Brunei and Philippines. She asked me if you and mommy were permanent residents in Brunei and I said no. She asked if I was a permanent resident in Brunei, and of course I said no as well. Then she continued on saying that our "ties" to Brunei are very weak, stating that you have been there for over 20 years but still are not permanent residents in Brunei. I wanted to tell her that not everyone can apply for PR, but even she was the one who said it, saying that she knows that Brunei may have regulations about applying for permanent resident. So to me, if she is already aware of it, why did she have to say it?
So okay, because we don't have strong "ties" in Brunei, she asked me to demonstrate my ties with Philippines. I told her that we have a property there and even a house where my grandmother is currently residing, but she said that having a property there is not a tie. She even said to me "it's like saying I have properties in Hong Kong" implying that by having a property in that place doesn't mean anything. So I asked her what she meant by "ties" because she always used that word. She told me "ties" meaning you and mommy residing in Philippines. The reason was, because you and mommy haven't been residing in Philippines for over 20 years, she is not convinced that we have "strong ties" with our home country.
After resolving the matters about all these "ties" that she was talking about, she told me that based on this, they cannot grant my permit. She even said to me that she does not recommend that I apply again unless there are significant changes to my application. So I asked her what kind of changes, and she said, "like for example, if the government of Brunei or the Philippines sponsor you to study in Canada under scholarship." I didn't mention this to her because at that time I was already upset that they won't be granting me my permit, but when you look at it, how can I request for a scholarship from the government of the Philippines when I did not study there, and of course Brunei only give out scholarships to Bruneian Citizens.
At the end before I left, she also mentioned your application to immigrate to Canada. I had nothing more to say to the Visa Officer so I just said, "I just want to let you know that my parents applying for immigration did not affect my decision to want to study in Canada. My parents did not force me to study in Canada; it was my own personal decision." She mentioned something about me being dependant on you (as chopped on my passport) but I can't remember what made her say that.
After 25 minutes, I went out of the interview room and waited for them to give me my passport back and she said "as of now, your permit is a no go."
Up to you what you want to do with this information, as of now, I am going to look into other Universities (other than Canada) to apply to.
Allison.
So far, all my friends and relatives in Canada that I’ve told this too all think that it is plain BULLSHIT. I’ll copy down some reactions and leave their names as anonymous:
13 August at 22:43
hahah if it's not meant to be then so be it :) HAHAH already thinking abt prince charming XP yeah I'm sure if Canada aint green lights then Singapore or Australia would have something :P you go look & tell me.. I've heard that they've got some potential candidates in Australia but nyehhh Uni is first priority, prince charmin is further down the list or probably second or third XD ♥
14 August at 03:57
my god! i hate it when visa officers get all snotty and stuff! it's really unfair that they didn't give you a visa, and the reasons they're giving you are kind of crappy! but I do know that lots of people are having trouble getting their student permits... it sucks, it really does - I died a bit when you told me you didn't get yours, so I hope that your dad's friend can make a difference, I really, REALLY do hope so!
best of luck with everything and I hope to meet you soon!
I'll be sending you all of my good vibes ~~~~ (:
14 August at 10:23
that's total bullshit apply again. regardless of whether or not you are a PR in brunei you are a citizen of the Philippines your family holds property which you do live in during your annual visits to the Philippines where you spend time with your relatives. The only reason you're not studying in the Philippines is because you want to go to an international school ... what the hell dude that's bullshit honestly go again.... can't you get sponsored by a relative that lives there?
14 August at 11:53
You're gonna be fine, i know it in my heart =).....but if you ever suddenly have urges to hurt some Canadian representatives like the guy/lady in SG, gimme a call and i'll bring over my dads' nail gun and small sized chainsaw for you! (we can color it pink before you use it)
15 August at 19:07
Hey Ally! Sorry to hear abt your study permit :( but hey, you bought lots of Summer clothes from SG, and I guess they can be pretty useful now :) I hope things r better now! See you!
16 August at 04:10
I'm very sorry to hear about the news...THE BIBLE SAYS IN PROVERBS 20:24 "A MAN'S STEPS ARE DIRECTED BY THE LORD, HOW THEN CAN ANYONE UNDERSTAND HIS OWN WAY?" When 1 door closes, another opens says God. Be blessed, Jesus is with you.
Lesson learned?
Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be. You never know if one day Canada gets into loads of political trouble with Immigrants and so forth that something bad (as in casualty/deathly bad) happens and I’ll be in Singapore watching the news and saying to myself, “Thank God I’m there.” *Knocks on wood*
Anyway, to counteract my depression, my aunt brought me around to see the La Salle College of the Arts campus after we had our lunch. I must say, that I actually did plan on applying to La Salle, but by the time I decided to apply, I was already late for the application. Apparently when I went to met with the lady, she said that the semester had started two weeks ago... So even if I did apply for the August 2010 intake, I wouldn’t have made it. Unfortunately they only have 1 intake per year so which means that I’m probably gonna have to go on a year gap if I plan to go to La Salle.
Something to keep in mind?
When one door closes, another door opens...
Just gotta have a little faith.
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