(Historical note: the poster planned to apply via the SDS stream, which has since been discontinued; the family-strategy advice below is not SDS-specific.)A 32-year-old single parent with a 3-year-old asked for success stories before applying for a study permit. The thread offered two competing strategies:
- Apply together: child's visitor visa alongside your study permit. One member recommended filing the child's visitor visa with the study permit application and using the SOP to show the strong mother-child bond and care plan — asserting both applications are decided together, letting parent and child travel at the same time.
- The poster's plan — go alone, bring the child later — drew a warning. They intended to land solo for financial reasons and apply for the child's visitor visa after settling (targeting ~3 months). A member cautioned from experience that bringing a young child over afterward (alone or with a relative) becomes its own headache, and that caring for a toddler while attending classes is a real challenge — though they noted good universities have childcare arrangements worth exploring.
- Money is the constraint that decides it. The together-strategy requires showing funds for both people; the poster simply didn't have that yet. If funds allow, the thread leaned toward applying together; if not, going first is workable but budget time and effort for the later reunification.
Either way: research campus childcare/family housing before choosing a school, and address the child's situation explicitly in the SOP rather than leaving the officer to wonder.