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I've been conflicted about my decision to stay in America or move to Canada. I am an American and I am completely FED UP with this corrupted police state.
I cannot stand the whole lobbyists buying politicians, the the rampant religious ignorance that is flourished throughout the country. Namely, the southern states and states on the bible belt.
I reside in the northeast where it's not too bad, but not my sort of lifestyle. My lifestyle is more laidback, not up-and-at-'em. I am planning to attend school in Colorado, California or Washington. Mostly looking at Colorado, however.
But I am also looking at schools in Canada. Namely, Ontario and British Columbia. I have no interest in Manitoba or Alberta. However, I would like a mix of suburbs and nature.
My field of studies will reside in science. I am still battling between Environmental and or Biology, but I do plan to get a Ph.D.
Now my question is quite the few. Will it be easier for me to become a Canadian citizen if I studied there first? Should I not come back to the States of course.
What province would fit my criteria: Laidback (mussssttt), LGBT-friendly, things to do, barely any religious influence and a good balance of nature and suburbs. I'm not too into rural areas, and I'm sorry if I sound picky
And.. is it a good idea? I'm not too problematic by being away from my family and I want a better life for my girl and I and this country is too religious-based, homophobic and corrupted and where are our liberties? The propaganda is astonishing and not everyone is rude, it depends on the city/state really. But where I currently live, it's all on you and people are rude. I've been to Canada twice, Niagra falls and Toronto and I was taken aback by the local hospitality.
Those are all of the questions I could think of now. I hate this country, and I can't stand being an American. I idealize that Canada has a multiparty political system, general hospitality and "We help others" mentality. So, it is technically Western United States (Colorado) or Canada...
Thanks in advance! And so sorry for the barrage of questions.
I am wanting to study and possibly move to BC or Ontario as well. I think it would be somewhat easier to stay if you married a Canadian girl, but then again don't use their love so you can get citizenship. Also, choose a field of study/work that Canada is in need of.
Last time I checked, California and Colorado were still part of the United States and still subject to U.S. Federal Law, so if you hate U.S. policies you should probably just move away. You'll be much happier. Keep in mind that Canada is a much less religious country, and less of a police state, but it still has religious people and still has power-tripping cops. The difference is that in Canada, religious people don't usually try to force their views on morality on everyone else, and you are somewhat better protected from police actions by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and a plethora of very pro-defendant Supreme Court of Canada decisions made during the Lamer court such as Nelles v. Ontario.
My field of studies will reside in science. I am still battling between Environmental and or Biology, but I do plan to get a Ph.D.
Now my question is quite the few. Will it be easier for me to become a Canadian citizen if I studied there first? Should I not come back to the States of course.
What province would fit my criteria: Laidback (mussssttt), LGBT-friendly, things to do, barely any religious influence and a good balance of nature and suburbs. I'm not too into rural areas, and I'm sorry if I sound picky
Under the new immigration rule, you can apply for permenant residency after finishing two years of your phd education. If everything goes well, you will be a Canadian citizen upon receiving your phd degree. This is quite unlike the US where most phd graduates still need to struggle years for their green card.
I have lived in both countries and Canada is a lot more laidback. Even cities like Toronto is much slower paced than America's west coast.
From your description, both Vancouver and Toronto area fit your criteria nicely if bigger cities are what you like. There are small cities you might like too.
But be careful about your decision. There will be things that frustrate you in Canada as well which might be absent in the US.
I think its always a good idea to spend some time outside the US, regardless of your motivation. I caution you that no country is perfect and the grass may not always be greener (for everyone). Canadian immigration has a programme that helps people who graduated from Canadian universities (not just PhD) stay in Canada.. you can google for more information.
Given that you are limiting yourself to Ont and BC:
ONT
-McMaster Uni in Hamilton has a good env science programme and med programme
- Also check out Queens University
-Not sure how urban you are looking for but Toronto has 2 good options: UofT or York
BC
- UBC will fit the ticket.. beautiful campus. Simon Fraser may not fit the bill (it leans towards professional degress.. MBA, etc). If you watched Battlestar galactica, the rose garden and musuem were filmed at UBC, and some of the modern scenes with a large modern building were filmed at SFU. But I digres..
- UVic might be too small of a city for you
If you are open to other provinces, please advise. If you decide on Que: McGill in Montreal.. you absolutely can't go wrong. Concordia in Montreal is like SFU, geered towards professions.
Anyone else can chime in. I helped a friend's daughter in New Hampshire pick a college in Canada: Mount Allison in New Brunswick and she is very happy. That would be too small town for you. But it's undergraduate programme is highly ranked. In Halifax, I've been impressed by Kings College and Dalhousie.
You can do a google for "Macleans top canadian universities" to help in your quest.
I've been conflicted about my decision to stay in America or move to Canada. I am an American and I am completely FED UP with this corrupted police state.
I cannot stand the whole lobbyists buying politicians, the the rampant religious ignorance that is flourished throughout the country. Namely, the southern states and states on the bible belt.
I reside in the northeast where it's not too bad, but not my sort of lifestyle. My lifestyle is more laidback, not up-and-at-'em. I am planning to attend school in Colorado, California or Washington. Mostly looking at Colorado, however.
But I am also looking at schools in Canada. Namely, Ontario and British Columbia. I have no interest in Manitoba or Alberta. However, I would like a mix of suburbs and nature.
My field of studies will reside in science. I am still battling between Environmental and or Biology, but I do plan to get a Ph.D.
Now my question is quite the few. Will it be easier for me to become a Canadian citizen if I studied there first? Should I not come back to the States of course.
What province would fit my criteria: Laidback (mussssttt), LGBT-friendly, things to do, barely any religious influence and a good balance of nature and suburbs. I'm not too into rural areas, and I'm sorry if I sound picky
And.. is it a good idea? I'm not too problematic by being away from my family and I want a better life for my girl and I and this country is too religious-based, homophobic and corrupted and where are our liberties? The propaganda is astonishing and not everyone is rude, it depends on the city/state really. But where I currently live, it's all on you and people are rude. I've been to Canada twice, Niagra falls and Toronto and I was taken aback by the local hospitality.
Those are all of the questions I could think of now. I hate this country, and I can't stand being an American. I idealize that Canada has a multiparty political system, general hospitality and "We help others" mentality. So, it is technically Western United States (Colorado) or Canada...
Thanks in advance! And so sorry for the barrage of questions.
Last edited by minibrings; 06-29-2012 at 09:22 AM..
Why not consider Dalhousie in Halifax Nova Scotia? In the East, Memorial University in St. John's Newfoundland could also fit the bill. McGill, however, has a really good Environmental studies school, I know that because many of my friends went through it. It's a top notch school and the cost of living in Montreal is alot less than Toronto and Vancouver.
I know no country is perfect, but I see Canada as an improvement from America in terms of less religious, more LGBT-friendly, laidback and so on. So we reign the Entertainment business and Canada has it's own flaws but it surely must be less frustrating than the corruption here in the States.
@Zortation, thank you for that. I've always seen getting a uni education there as a stepping stone in my favor to become a citizen.
@GTO - I thought the USA no longer accepted dual-citizenship. I won't lie, I am bit reluctant to leave this country but
@Bimbam - From what I understand through the immigration website of Canada, there are specific requirements for Quebec rather than the other provinces. I know McGill has English courses and I don't mind the French influence, but I'd prefer other provinces.
@Minibrings - One of my Canadian friends swear by Manitoba. He lives in Selkirk and thank you so much for that link! I'll be searching through that and whatever happens, happens.
My decision really now is to either stay in America or move to Canada. My first post pretty much sums up what I'm looking for, and I don't mind paying high taxes if they really do go to stuff like health care and public funds. I know no one can make the decision for me, but a guide of advice would be stellar. I can always find a school here or up north, that's not so much a problem for me and I again thank everyone who posted here and recommended some Unis.
I just hope Canada will be what I expect it to be, an improvement from the States and ultimately being happier. All I want in life is laidback, job and a decent place with stuff to do (That's why rural is out of the question. One of my friends live in Montana and others in CT and it takes them two hours to get to just stores.)
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