Introduction:

The field of Information and Technology is experiencing a boom. This is due to its amazing appeal, which has attracted more and more people into it. I believe that a Post Graduate Certificate Program in Virtualization and Cloud Computing is a valuable asset for me, as it will give me greater opportunities for professional advancement and increase my chances of staying one step ahead of the competition.

I am pleased to introduce myself as (your name) a permanent resident of Nepal with a Nepalese passport no My interest in an information technology career matured with the belief that “You are never given a dream without also being given the power to make it true’- Richard Bach, which seemed very relevant in my case. Following my dream of being an integral part of the technical revolution the world is going through in cloud computing and contributing back to society in a meaningful way brought me at the edge to apply for studying Virtualization and Cloud Computing at Conestoga College, Canada.

Academic Background:

Knowledge has always been one of my priorities in life and I have been trying to give my full effort and hard work for the same. I have been recognized as a bright, hardworking and cheerful student since my school days. The computer science course in secondary level school was the institutional beginning of my education in computers. Otherwise, I used to engage more on self-learning computing skills. The completion of school level education in 2014 was the opportunity for me to convert my interest in computer with a high school major degree but while going through the offered curriculum I was not encouraged to choose computer science. I found the curriculum centred on providing basic knowledge of computer with which I was already familiar during the self- learning phase so I chose the biology stream instead and completed high school in 2016. My thirst for computer education got quenched after I did the Bachelors of Science in Computer Science and Information Technology in 2020 from Asian School of Management and Technology. During my Initial semesters I attended different seminars, hackathons and in some of them I was able to bag the awards. I attended various tech talks in my city organized by Nepal Cloud Professionals where I got a chance to learn more about the future of virtualization and cloud computing in Nepal. During my final semester I chose Cloud Computing as my major subject which was a major career breakthrough as it exposed me to current hot topics in Information Technology like Cloud computing, Virtualization and systems.

Employment History

Following graduation, I started seeking career opportunities that could give me practical exposure in the field of my interest i.e cloud computing and started as a DevOps trainee at Codavatar Tech. Pvt. Ltd where I am currently working as Jr. Devops Engineer since August 2020. Here I Learned Linux servers and Virtualization. I built, experimented and tested the servers by virtualizing them. Since Devops Engineer is responsible for handling both physical servers and public cloud, I got chance to work with some basics of cloud computing since the company was not migrated fully to cloud but I always wanted to learn more and dive deep into the cloud computing field. During the employment period I realized the lack of exposure in my profile while comparing with some other co-workers who were a foreign graduate in cloud computing and enjoying the growth opportunities in the company due to their international degree. This scenario internally motivated me to apply abroad for gaining the competitive edge to find better career options in Nepal. I started the process by taking IELTS test and secured the overall band score of 7.0 (Listening - 7.5, Reading- 8, Speaking-6 and Writing-6.5), and then moved on to research the best academic destination.

Why Virtualization and Cloud Computing?

Being grown up in the early 2000s, I have experienced the evolution of the storage system from floppy disk to Cloud storage and in the course of professional engagement, the implementational value of this development became palpable to me. During my job I was aware that Cloud computing and virtualization are the two wheels of the same cart and my experience of working with virtual servers became a competitive advantage for me to study cloud. Throughout the job role I got the chance to learn cloud computing surface by working with virtualization and microservices. Due to Limited knowledge and more interest in cloud technologies I wanted to upgrade myself in the same domain. While going through the offered curriculum it is very clear that the course of Conestoga College will allow me to develop updated knowledge in infrastructure services, cloud technologies, systems architecture methodologies and also concentrate on getting hands-on experiential practices.

The proposed course is like the coherent progression of my study because my bachelor's curriculum has touched the basics of many subjects offered by Conestoga like; Server Virtualization, Desktop Virtualization, Cloud Technologies and Cloud Storage. Now I aim to get specialized education in the same domain with an advanced curriculum and practical learning opportunities as the student of Conestoga College.

Why Canada over Nepal?

Majority of Universities and Institutions in Nepal do not offer a Post Graduate Diploma/ Certificate, almost none for Computer/Technical subject. The Institute of Engineering (IOE), Pulchowk, which is an individual body of Tribhuvan University (TU) is the most prestigious and sought-after university in Nepal for engineering & technical courses. However, they just offer 1 course in Information Technology, which is Information & Communication Engineering. In addition, they have an annual intake of 20 people on each course based on yearly conducted entrance examinations. Hence, if a student is unable to rank among the top 20 candidates from all over the country, he/she does not get the opportunity to study and also a year. The teaching methodology in Nepal still consists primarily of theoretical knowledge rather than practical on hand experience. Witnessing the classes of my friends and cousins who studied in Nepal, Sadly, I have to admit that the classes in Nepali Universities are very dense/cramped, classes are irregularly conducted, there is no interaction between the teacher and students, assignments are mostly based on reading-writing rather than understanding and the course materials are very old, outdated and almost irrelevant to modern times. Since I am pursuing a technical and practical based course specifically in Virtualization and Cloud Computing, I concluded that it would be better to study overseas than Nepal. With the academic motivation to study Virtualization and Cloud Computing in mind, I started to search the best academic destination for international students.

As I was looking for the opportunity to study in an English- speaking country, it automatically filtered many Asian and European countries- leaving me the choice to select one from popular destinations like the USA, UK, Australia and Canada. I did a level of research on all of these destinations by considering its aspects like living cost, security for international students, climate, multicultural environment and many other factors as per my preference. And after pondering over many such filters I finally chose Canada as the preferred destination. With best academic prospects and world-class education facilities, the county has been known as a popular destination for international students. In case of my chosen course, while going through the national document ‘Government of Canada Cloud Adoption Strategy’ I found that the country itself was using the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud because of its security, compliance, reliability and cost savings. The determination of Canada to produce maximum Cloud workforce with ‘cloud first’ strategy indirectly suggests the policy level support for producing best Cloud computing graduates in Canada.

Why Conestoga College?

Choosing the best college for my dream of studying abroad was not an easy task given the numerous well drafted and refined courses available. I filtered the best academic institution from my preference list which included colleges like; Centennial College, Loyalist College, Lambton College and so on. However, what drew me to Conestoga College was the college's course offerings which exactly matched my field of interest. Similarly, during the phase of institutional research, I discovered that with an academic rating of 8.6, Conestoga College ranks 12th among the top research colleges in Canada and it has 87% graduate’s satisfaction rate. Later I followed Conestoga on social media, where I was impressed by the student-support services, focus on extracurricular activities and the reviews of alumni regarding the teaching-learning practice. I believe that a learning experience from Conestoga college will not only help me in achieving my future dream but will also provide me with the mindset and inspiration to continue the process of learning throughout my career. Similarly, most importantly, the course offered by Conestoga College impressed me because of its inclusive curriculum and the opportunity of practical exposure in the form of academic projects. As mentioned by former students, I also get the benefit of an excellent study program, a student-friendly environment, small size class and proper career counselling. So, I believe that as a student of this institution, I will be able to make a great future in the cloud computing sector.

Future Plan and Motivation to Return

I strongly believe that the future of virtualization and cloud computing in Nepal is very bright. With the growing size of IT companies in Nepal maintaining the physical servers and using them on their premise will be a difficult task and won’t be cost effective. Many companies are trying to shift towards Cloud computing but due to lack of skilled manpower to migrate on premise servers to cloud they are not able to switch from traditional servers to cloud computing. So, after completing my Post Graduate from Conestoga, I want to establish myself in the Virtualization and cloud computing field in Nepal.Currently, I have seen the great scope of cloud computing in my country Nepal because the country is slowly moving towards digitalization with the establishment of platforms like online banking, Online shopping (Daraz, Sasto Deal), Telecommunication (Ncell, CG) and the plan of Nepal government to implement e-governance. In such a scenario I am very confident to get the desired job based on my work experience at home country, foreign exposure, and Canadian education. Furthermore, the Government of Nepal has made flexible policies like just 1% tax to Remote IT workers, governmental subsidies for IT companies and other policy-level support to fulfil the national dream of making Digital Nepal. I have observed that information technology is one of the fastest growing industries in Nepal and I will have the scope to find a job in many positions, including; DevOps Engineer, Cloud Systems Administrator, Cloud Technician, Cloud Engineer, Cloud Consultant, Cloud Virtualization Engineer and so on. I plan to start my career as a Cloud DevOps Engineer at one of the reputed IT companies of Nepal like; F1Soft International, Deerwalk, Leapfrog Technology, Yarsha Labs, Cotiviti and many others where I can find growth opportunities. After getting employment experience for some years, I have the desire to establish my own Cloud Computing start-up, which will provide the service to design, implement, and manage cloud-based systems for businesses.

Given all these plans, it is very clear that I am a genuine temporary entrant with a lot of dreams to fulfill in Nepal. My sole purpose in pursuing higher education in Canada is to enhance my knowledge while gaining global exposure. I strongly believe that all the skills and knowledge I will be gaining through this program will be highly valued once I return to my home country after graduating. I have no intention to prolong my stay abroad because all of the things that matter to me including my family, parental inheritance and emotional attachments are in Nepal. If it was not for the quality education and exposure, I would never have applied abroad.

Financial Sponsor:

My family is completely supportive of my plan to study abroad. My parents can afford for my studies and living expenses while I pursue my professional degree in Canada. My expenses will be covered by my father's and mother's income from various sources. My parents’ total annual income from various sources is CAD $ 48,453.07, and my mother has sanctioned an education loan worth CAD $ 42,426.14 for my intended course. My parents own property (fixed assets) valued CAD $ 482,563.02 in Nepal. As a result, I will not face any financial challenges in Canada during my intended course.

Declaration:

In the final semester of my bachelor's program, I developed slight insight in the topic cloud computing. Due to this curiosity, I was later hired as a DevOps Trainee and Junior DevOps Engineer. This provided me with some closure about the cloud computing field, but I was still left wanting to explore more. As a result, I decided to continue my education in virtualization and cloud computing, which has a professionally structured curriculum and advanced skills. My family has always been the cornerstone of my life and have always encouraged me to leap forward. They are very supportive of my decision to study abroad to conquer my objectives. They have given me so much love and affection and made me the person I am today. Thus, my affection and responsibilities towards my parents, society and the nation are the most important things in my life and I will always be attached to these crucial aspects. Their biggest dream is that I accomplish my career goals and become a model citizen by contributing to the land which is dear to our heart. Therefore, I need this degree to achieve my dream to become a pillar and see the creation of a new and improved Information Technology domain in Nepal, more precisely in Virtualization and Cloud Computing area.

I strongly believe after days of research I have selected the best possible option for myself, and it will help me in achieving my ambitions. I believe that studying in Canada will help me with my academics as well as achieve bigger goals in my career. I declare that every information in this letter is true and as an honest candidate for the student visa, I abide by the rules and regulation of the Immigration department of Canada acknowledge that if any details are found incorrect then any decision from the concerned authority will be accepted. I have submitted all the authentic visa documents for your assessment and decision needs. I am bound by the law in Canada and any other violation shall be dealt accordingly.

I am very thankful to you for giving me your valuable time to process my application. I am looking forward to hearing a positive response from the respected Visa Officer.

Yours Sincerely,