Best loan option for Canadian students

[medahb]

What is a better or the best loan option for Canadian students? So far the only one I know of is canHELP, but even they are not as good as others offered to American students. Can anyone help me out with this?

Thank you.

[germany]

Also, just wanted to give a quick shoutout to let my soon-to-be fellow classmates from up north that I will be bringing it hard and fast. I'm sure you're probably gotten used to that up there with your local TO or McMasters or whatever Well, it won't be that way come January 9. So get ready to deal with it.

[playarf]

^wth are you talking about? :S

[navevan]

Hello to all my felow canadians attending/planning to attend Saba. I, like many of you I assume, am applying for CanHelp Loans because the 150K from Royal Bank will not be sufficient. The problem I am having is deciding what to do with this US money they give me while I am not actually using it. I want to try to avoid putting it in a Canadian dollar account so I don't have to lose money with conversions every transaction, but I also want to be able to access it from the ATM in Saba in US funds (directly -- no conversions). Does anyone have any suggestions? Should I just open an account on the island bank and get Gardner to mail my loan cheque to the island? Please Help. I am trying to make this venture as affordable as possible and right now every bit helps. Thanks.

Evan

[jenlee402]

hey navevan! i'm from toronto and will be starting at saba in january, u? i've applied for osap (approx 10k) and the rbc loan (150k), which will hopefully be sufficient for the first while. i've deferred applying to canhelp until later because say i want to apply for 20k this year, they'll approve it for january. when they give me the 20k, interest will start accumulating immediately, and since i won't need it immediately, it doesnt make sense for me borrow it now and pay the interest on it. for banking, i've decided to do my banking on saba using my canadian accounts. the exchange rate and service charge for using the atm won't be that bad, and if i stick to large withdrawals, hopefully i wont have to use the atm that often! hope this helps!

[Ottawa - Canada]

Navevan - You might want to open a US chequing account with your Canadian bank.

TD: "US Dollar Daily Interest Chequing Account" or "Boarderless Plan"
Royal Bank: "Centura Account"

You can have your USD CanHelp funds in these accounts, plus transfer from your Canadian personal bank loans - while minimizing transaction fees at the ATM on the island.

Cheers

[POPO]

hey guys, just for knowing....did you need a cosigner to get your RBC loan?

[Canadaguy]

Just wanted to share my experience with the RBC line of credit ($150 000). I called the 1-800 number initially (against the advice of some people on this site) and was treated very rudely and given a whole speech about how RBC had lost some money on these types of lines and that I would need a strong co-signer, despite my own good credit. Then the woman starting asking why she hadn't heard of my school or the island, etc... Apparently she considered herself an expert on Caribbean geography.

I later went into a local branch and was treated like a human being. However, I still had to get a cosigner. They said that their policy has changed for these types of lines and that they need someone who remains in Canada to cosign. I have no idea if this is the truth or not, but I just thought I would share what happened to me. Other than the cosigner problem everything went smoothly with the branch office.

I also received $9500 from OSAP for the first year. I'm hoping that my OSAP for each year, along with the line of credit, will cover everything.

[harsy]

Hi
I know this isnt the topic but do canadian citizens have a long time or do they even require visas(i heard H1).My friends who started working at microsoft get a temporary visa,TN and then wait for the H1 and in this time they can work.Im asking this since someone told me that ppl have to wait after they are done school to start their residency.

[Canadaguy]

Hey Harsy,

Check out Caribbean Medical Schools - Online Guide - Offshore Medical Schools, Foreign Medical Schools, International Medical Schools for some valuable info for Canadian IMGs.
You might miss the first match after you graduate if you want to get an H1B Visa. To get this visa you must pass all three steps (USMLE 1,2,3) and have the ECFMG certification in hand. It takes extra time to study for and finish step 3... most U.S. citizens complete step 3 while in residency. Canadian's don't have that option unless they get a J1 visa, which is not as desirable. Anyway, check out that page above and you will learn all about it. Look at a few other sources, in addition to the above page, to get a balanced view of the IMG situation for Canadians.

[lovevasi]

I was wondering if anyone out there got the student line of credit in the recent past (in 2007)? I would like to know how easy it was in the new year... also, is does it depend on the agent with whom you are dealing with?

I really want to get the student LoC .... plzzzz any input would be appreciated......