An applicant who'd already obtained a study permit (aiming for PR eventually) started reconsidering, worried about rising CRS cut-offs, shifting policy signals on international students, and whether it was worth the money and time versus dropping the study plan and trying direct Express Entry instead (they were 30, French-speaking, with 5 years of professional experience).
What the thread suggested:- Take a multi-year view of your CRS trajectory rather than judging based on current draw scores alone. One member pointed out that even category-based draws that were once competitive (they cited the French-fluency category, which had reportedly dropped to around 436) shift over time — project where your score might realistically land a few years out, factoring in age, potential further education, or work experience gained.
- A stamped, unused study permit doesn't appear to inherently block a later direct Express Entry application, based on the discussion — the main concern raised was about the financial/time trade-off, not a compliance risk from having applied for one route and pursuing another.
- Multiple members leaned toward continuing with the study permit route and pursuing a PGWP afterward, viewing the Canadian study/work-experience combination as generally strengthening a CRS profile over time compared to trying for a direct ITA from abroad.
Practical takeaway: before abandoning a study permit route, model out your CRS a few years ahead rather than reacting to today's draw scores, and weigh that the study + PGWP path tends to build CRS strength (Canadian education and work experience) that a purely from-abroad Express Entry application won't have. If your core hesitation is financial risk rather than compliance risk, that's the trade-off worth focusing on.