A 32-year-old with a master's wanted a 2-year diploma, but agents claimed only 1-year programs get approved for such profiles. Members with direct experience called this wrong:
- Program length isn't the approval lever — justification is. The lead answer labelled the agent's claim "ill advice": whatever course you choose, the SOP has to justify it. There is no rule that 2-year programs are refused for master's holders.
- Direct counter-example. The same member's spouse had a master's and was approved for a 2-year course; another acquaintance was approved for the exact field the poster wanted (AI and machine learning).
- Choose for relevance and progression. The consensus criterion: pick a course that is relevant to your background and reads as academic/career progression. A 2-year AI/ML diploma after a technical master's can be argued as progression; the SOP must connect the dots — why this program, why now, how it advances your career.
- Age 32 wasn't treated as a blocker — no member suggested the age itself was a problem, only that mature profiles need the same coherent story.
The pattern to note: agents often push shorter programs because they are easier files, not because your preferred program is unviable. Get a second opinion when an agent's claim conveniently reduces their work.