Interview Prep



Before you can go to the interview, you have to do two things: The first one is to register your appointment online and select where you want your passport mailed afterwards. You can have it shipped to your home in Canada for a fee (I think around $25), or you can have it shipped to a post-office near you for free. I selected the post office in Saskatoon because it’s closest to my house.


The second piece of interview prep is a medical exam at a specific panel physician. There are five in Canada—one in Vancouver, three in the Toronto area, and one in Montreal. I received my interview date on December 16, and it was on January 6, and I was visiting Chicago at the time (with plans to go to Calgary with my husband for Christmas). So, we jumped into action and managed to book a medical exam in Toronto on December 20. I got there no problem, but unfortunately, they didn’t believe they’d be able to get my medical exam results to me before my interview date. That’s a hurdle I’ll cover later.


If you’re stressing about the exam, you can stop right now. Here’s how it went:


- I arrived at the appointment and gave the receptionist my papers and paid for the exam. It was about $250 CAD.


- The doctor called me in, and I answered a bunch of questions about my own medical history. He asked about things like diabetes, heart disease, addictions, mental illness, all of which I said no to. It’s important to note that they weren’t looking for a FAMILY medical history, just my own.


- He checked my vaccination records. Before I went, I looked on their website and saw that I was only one short—tetanus. I had arranged to get my tetanus shot the day before (I have connections because my mom is a nurse practitioner in southern Ontario, but I acknowledge that not everyone can necessarily get this so quickly). It was a good thing I made the arrangement, because he wasn’t willing to give me the shot there (something about public health Canada not wanting to use government funds to help people leave the country…). I was only required to have the Tetanus/Diptheria shot, Measles/Mumps/Rubella, Chicken Pox (I’m too old for the chickenpox vaccine so a verbal confirmation I’ve had it is acceptable), and the flu shot if it’s between October and March when you’re applying. It was for me, so I made sure to get the flu shot in October so that I’d have it if I ever got my interview.


- He also checked my height, weight, and blood pressure. I have terrible white coat syndrome, so I was nervous about my BP (it’s ALWAYS astronomically, “why haven’t you had a stroke yet” high at the doctors). But it was actually not too terrible at 135/85, which is slightly elevated but generally no reason to panic.


- Then he gave me documents for getting a chest x-ray and blood work, both of which I was able to do in the same medical center.


- I went to get a chest x-ray with no issues (except--how do you put both your chest and your shoulders on a flat board in front of you, when you’re a person with breasts?). They were looking for tuberculosis, which I was confident I did not have.


- The blood and urine tests were a little busier, so I did wait a bit, and it took her a long time to find a vein. They were testing for syphilis and gonorrhea.


- I had to pay for both the x-ray and blood/urine tests. I think the entire appointment cost about $350.


Then I left, and went back to the USA to have Christmas with my husband’s family and then head to Calgary to spend time with my own family. We left Calgary and went to Montreal for the interview on January 3 (figured we’d get some sightseeing and enjoyment if we were going to Montreal!).





It’s important to note that we actually WOULD have had our medical results in time if we lived closer to Toronto. They were available for pickup on December 31, but I got the notification too late to arrange for anyone to get them. My step-sister picked them up on January 2, but we were flying out on January 3 from Calgary… We did consider that we could get her to bring them to the airport and we could get them during our tight layover in Toronto, but we didn’t feel good about risking missing our flight.

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