I am a poly grad, (from SP no less !
) ... and I just graduated from a Canadian University this summer
things to note:
1. Yes, you will NOT get as many credit excemptions as you'd get in say the UK and Australia, infact, excemptions granting may not be automatic, you'd have to talk to the head of faculties and the profs themselves to get the excemptions, though of course, a good transcript helps
2. You'll definitely take longer to graduate than say the UK or Australia, even with credit excemptions, simply because of the different systems, you'd have to do a lot more electives, like languages, most universities have a second language requirement for example, some insist on French, others allow you to choose, and assorted requirements from philosophy to natural science to political science etc before you can graduate, so if you don't like the idea of writing papers on plato or shakespeare while working towards, say, an economics or computer science degree, best think of somewhere else ... Most of the poly people I know take on the average 3 years to grad ... (degree programs are 4 years long)
3. Cost of living outside the GTO or GTV area (toronto or vancouer) is a lot lower, so you may want to look at the universities there
4. Canada is not known as the great white north for nothing ... weather IS a factor, some years the snow cover can stay for up to 6 months, from october to april ! ... Now you think may find it fun and romantic, trust me, within the week you'd be wishing for spring ... driving is hell, walking to school is hell, even taking out the garbage is hell ... think very very hard about this ... I've known a Singaporean who quit school here and reapplied to australia after the first term in winter ! ....
