1. Daycare centres

It is very easy to place a child of any age into a day care centre. Children starting from newborns to the age of 4-5 are accepted, afterwards school begins.

The cost is more or less the same in all of them, the maximum difference being $20. The monthly cost for a child up to the age of two is $840. For children of 2 to 5 years of age the monthly cost is $650. If a child misses several days or is sick and stays home, the money is not refunded.

There is an alternative — a private home day care. As a rule, there are less children and the cost is $200 less. To get information about home day care you should call Home Childcare Association, the number in Toronto is 416-694-0414.

From the age of 4-5 years school studies begin. Children attend kindergarten from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Kindergartens are free. For a monthly payment of $325 the child can stay till the evening.

2. Schools

Secondary education is mandatory in Canada and is financed through provincial budgets at the expense of taxes. Schools financed by the budget money are called Public Schools. By law, every child till the age of 15-16 (depending on the province regulations) must attend school. 95% of Canadian children attend Public Schools.

Definitely, private schools provide with better education the cost of which is approximately $6,000 — $15,000 per year. There are several public schools specializing in mathematics, arts, music, etc. for gifted children and the level of education they provide is comparable with that of private schools. These specialized schools admit children on competition basis and the education there is free or for a symbolic cost of $200 — $300 per year.

School levels

Primary education starts in kindergartens and completes in Grade 6 or 8. It is followed by high school. High school is sometimes divided into junior high school (grades 7-9) and senior high school (grades 10-12). In order to be admitted to university students must have a completed high school education (12-13 grades).

Admittance to schools

Parents must register their children in local school board offices. Their phone numbers can be found in phone directories in section Provincial Government.

To register your child you must bring with you the following documents;

• immigration visa
• child’s birth certificate
• child’s immunization record
• the most recent school transcript.

Children’s knowledge of the English language and mathematics is tested and the grade is determined by the results of the test. If you disagree with the grade assigned to your child you should discuss it with the school’s principal. There will be a teacher who teaches English or French to the immigrant students.

You can obtain a complete list of private schools on the website www.edu.gov.on.ca or by calling the Ministry of Education at 416-325-2929 (Toronto) or 1-800-387-5514 (toll-free number for the rest of Ontario ).

3. Special trade education

Such professions as hairdressers, electricians, air conditioning technicians, etc., are called trades. Technical colleges or professional-technical schools in Canada are called the following:

Colleges of applied arts (Seneca College, George Brown College, Atkinson College)
Institutes of applied arts and sciences
Community colleges
Technical/vocational and university-oriented colleges
Institutes of technology or technical institutes
Colleges d’enseignement general et professionnel, CEGEP (Quebec)

In most cases a transfer from community colleges to university is possible.

The average period of study in community colleges is 1-2 years, upon the completion of which a graduate is issued a professional diploma. Programs are 2-3 years in duration. After you obtain education and skills, take a year of an apprenticeship training and some tests, you become a registered trade person.

In order o apply to a college or university you must have a high school diploma. Popular colleges or universities start receiving admittance applications a year ahead. Some colleges and universities agree to admit students of 25-30 years of age, so called “mature students”, on the basis of their experience and skills but not the marks in their transcripts.

4. University education

There are two degrees of university education in Canada: Bachelor degree — BA, BSc, etc. (undergraduate studies) and Master Degree (graduate studies). A Bachelor degree is granted after completion of 3-4 years of full-time studies. It takes twice longer if we are talking of part-time studies. However, the program of studies in Canada is flexible.

Master degree (MBA) implies good marks in the Bachelor degree, work experience in the profession, and recommendations of professors and superiors. Duration of full-time studies is 2-3 years, part-time — 4-6 years.

Tuition fee does not include the cost of books and accommodation. The total amount spent per year on education at a college is $2,500 — $4,000, and $5,000 — $9,000 at a university, therefore it makes sense to combine studies and work.

5. Upgrading

In Canada it is called Continuing Education. Majority of Canadians are always in the process of working and studying. It is a prerequisite of surviving at our time. The most popular courses are language courses, computer literacy, programming, and even etiquette. But sometimes it is quite enough to take a book and use a computer to study a new computer program.