Date: 20th December, 2021

To,

The visa Officer,

Canadian High Commission,

New Delhi, India

Statement of Purpose

I, Abhishek Shahi, son of Mr. Karjun Shahi and Mrs. Soma Chhetri Shahi come from a family
from the capital of Nepal, Kathmandu. I was born on 2nd April, 1999 in Pulchowk, a neighborhood
in the heart of the city. I have an elder brother who is 6 years older than me. Having a keen interest
in computers right from childhood has molded me into the person I’m now. Its recent developments
and vast potentials in the upcoming future mesmerizes me, piquing my curiosity and interest
towards it even more. I'm also interested in various volunteer activities. I had undergone disaster
preparedness training and have also been chosen to participate in a trip to deliver training in remote
areas of Nepal. I adore photography as well.

I completed my schooling from Kistland Secondary School, which was an international school
administered by people from Shillong, India. I was introduced to computers through my school
and had the opportunity to learn and operate them on a daily basis, which piqued my interest in
computers. In 2015, I completed my School Leaving Certificate receiving 70%. With my
developing interest in computers, I joined my high school in Caspian Valley College choosing
Computer Science as my major. I learned a lot more about computers and their many uses during
the course of two years. I finished my Higher Secondary Education Board examination with 55%
in 2017.

After my high school, I decided to take the BSc in Computer Science for my undergraduate study
as the initial step so that I can learn and mold myself into an expert in computer and make a
difference in our society eventually making it a better place to live in. I successfully obtained
admission into one of the best colleges that offers an International Degree in Computer Science. I
completed my undergraduate study from Herald College Kathmandu - directly affiliated with the
University of Wolverhampton of UK by scoring First Class Honors with 67.8% in 2020. While in
college, I got the opportunity to participate in a variety of seminars and events that allowed me to
further explore and learn about my area of interest. I was also shortlisted to go to Thailand and
attend a seminar at The University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, which was organized by
Alibaba. During my final-year project, using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning I
worked on a system which published results of the students through Chatbot maintaining the
academic privacy. This project infused me the yearning to delve deeper into Security and privacy
terms of Computer Science.

My attitude and aptitude was very instrumental to the business development internship program
and was offered for it from my own college, Herald College Kathmandu. I was part of the team
that successfully carried out all the admission and documentation process of the college. In the
internship program, I had the opportunity to work with senior Business Development (BD) and IT
personnel in the disciplines of business and IT, and I gained experience in both. I had also achieved
the best intern of the month after only three months on the internship. The six-month internship
provided me with valuable practical experience and prepared me to work in an office setting.

Following my graduation, I wished to gain more knowledge and wanted to practice the skills that
I had been honing while I was still a student. To bridge the gap and also to be more productive and
competitive in the lockdown against the Pandemic, I started to look for a challenging job which
would train and help me in my further quest in Cyber Security. After immense research and
through a series of interviews I was finally selected as IT Support Associate in a company named,
Sirjanshil – The Creative Agency Kathmandu. I was given the responsibility for configuring
different software, troubleshooting and resolving system errors, maintenance and reporting. I
worked with different colleagues and met deadlines which helped me become disciplined with
time and resource management. I also led my coworkers through the process of resolving their
technical issues. While working for this organization, I recognized that what I had learned up to
that point was insufficient for what I wanted to achieve in my career and further influenced my
career plan in security terms of computer science, and I was driven to learn more.

Nepal, as a growing country in the IT industry, has introduced a variety of organizations and
businesses where massive quantities of data that influence public policy, academic studies,
intellectual property and financial data are shared on the internet daily. Managing, tracking, and
protecting digital data is disconcerting challenge for these businesses, since these organizations'
data security management is not up to par. As a result, there have been several cases of data
breaches in Nepal dating back from its first data breach case in 2013. (Source:
https://techinhimalaya.com/history-of-data-breach-in-nepal/). These recent breaches in Nepal do
indeed teach the importance and urgency to strengthen security. The increasing dependence of our
life in technology is one of the most serious national security challenges of the 21st century. So, in
need to solve this, I was more interested than ever to pursue my career in this subject and work
with different organizations, and private corporations to ensure the protection of digital data that
is haphazardly uploaded to the internet.

To gain more experience and expertise in Cybersecurity and in Information Security Management
terms of IT field, I started to search for courses that matched my interest. As Nepal, being a
developing nation in IT, it has limited range of courses related to it. As a result, I was unable to
locate the appropriate course for my needs. Since the subject that I was strongly interested required
practical knowledge, all our universities in Nepal was either focused on the theoretical side of it
or completely did not offer a course related to Cyber Security. After some additional research, I
came to the conclusion that Nepal being new in this field only an international level exposure in
this subject is required to make an impact in the future and help my country, and that an
international level degree can only help me achieve my career ambitions. It also appealed to me
since it would provide me with the opportunity to study alongside foreign students from all
backgrounds and countries in a completely new educational setting. Consequently, I began looking
for courses in other countries. During my research, I discovered several websites for students
looking for courses abroad, one of which, "hotcoursesabroad," was extremely trustworthy. Cyber
Security courses in USA are very expensive compared to the course structure they offered. (Source:
https://www.hotcoursesabroad.com/study/course/us-usa/graduate-
certificatecybersecurity/57614744/program.html). Likewise the cost was similar to other countries,
like, Australia, UK and New Zealand. I also discovered that the Masters programs offered in these
nations are just one year long, but because I intended to study for two years, I decided that Canada
was the best option for me. After doing some more research, I discovered that Canada's education
ranked 4th in best educational systems in the world. (Source:
https://worldpopulationreview.com/countryrankings/education-rankings-by-country), and its
postgraduate programs and credentials are also just as reputable and competitive as those offered
by many of the world's most prestigious universities. Furthermore, Canada's low cost structure and
internationally recognized educational curriculum and international student satisfaction enticed me
to pursue my higher education there, and it became my aim as well. So, my journey to a Canadian
education began. I started to look for Cybersecurity courses in Canada. Many major colleges and
universities, including Sault College, Concordia University of Edmonton, University of New
Brunswick, Loyalist College, York University, and others, offered the subject. There were many
options available to me, but after considering the various characteristics of the college and the
degree of study, I decided on Loyalist College. Loyalist is one of Canada's top institutions, with
“Colleges Ontario” recognizing it for graduate satisfaction, employer satisfaction, student
satisfaction, and graduation rate. The college provides various opportunities to get much exposure
through different events and seminars which are mentored by elite professionals. It also includes
subjects like "Cryptography" and "Cyber forensics", which I'm quite interested in learning as it
would help me learn more about the fundamentals of Cyber Security. It offers a wide range of
leisure and recreational opportunities. The location of the campus is also a plus point as it is in
close proximity to commercial areas, restaurants, residences, and a variety of entertainment
options. The College is also well equipped with classrooms, lab, workshops, digital media center,
fitness center, library and the campus bookstore, with these Loyalist College encourages students
to participate in extracurricular activities in addition to their textbook studies.

After completing my postgraduate studies, I will be eligible for a Post Graduate Work Permit, and
my goal is to make the most of this time by working in my field of study and learning as much as
possible from Canadian experts, as well as experience their unique working culture and expertise.
My long-term objective is to return to Nepal with all of the knowledge, experience, network, and
abilities that I gained in Canada and launch an excellent Data Security Management company in
my country with the intention of sharing all my knowledge and resolving all the data security
issues that plague our country and community. To achieve my aforementioned goal I plan to join
a good cybersecurity company upon my return and start preparing for my long term goal. The
average salary bar for a Cyber Security graduate here in Nepal is around Nrs. 40,000.00 - 50,000.00
(Source: http://www.salaryexplorer.com/salary-survey.php?loc=151&loctype=1&job=829&jobtype=3)
but with proper international level education, degree and experience, the salary bar can easily grow
up to Nrs. 100,000.00 – 130,000.00. With this noticeable and huge increment, I surely believe that
I can achieve my aforementioned long-term objective. So, in order to achieve this, I will strive to
utilize the correct education, skills and experience that I gain while studying abroad in my home
country. I’m convinced that in the near future, Nepal will see a substantial change in IT and
cybersecurity development, and that my skills with experience will be put to good use. The number
of students enrolling in this subject is also growing, indicating that Nepalese students and youth
are enthusiastic about it. This rapid expansion in the field promises well for Nepal's IT sector's
long-term growth.

My family has always been quite supportive of my career plans and education, as well as my other
interests and hobbies. All the expenses during my course of study will be paid by my family. My
annual family income is NRs. 21,88,200.00 which is equal to CAD 22,815 and is sufficient fund
for a yearlong expense. To further break down, my father’s business annual income is NRs.
9,96,000.00 (CAD 10,384.73) where my elder brother’s and mother’s annual salary is NRs.
9,60,000.00 (CAD 10,009) and NRs. 2,32,200.00 (CAD 2,421) respectively. So, with these annual
incomes I’m confident that I can afford all the expenses that will cost to pursue my studies in
Canada.
I’m confident that, after days of research and preparation, I have chosen the finest possible
alternative for myself, which will greatly assist me in attaining my goals. It would be a great honor
and privilege to study in one of the world's most advanced countries and learn from one of its
premier colleges. If this, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is presented, I'll be sincerely grateful
towards high commission, as it will be a breakthrough moment in my life as I will be able to pursue
a career in my field of interest.

I certify that the above information is correct and complete, and I am willing to provide any further
supporting documentation upon request. Along with my application, I also assure that throughout
my studies, I will obey to the Loyalist College's and the Canadian government's standards and
rules.

I'm hoping for a favorable response to my application for a study permit in Canada. Thank you for
taking the time to consider and read my humble request.
Sincerely Yours,

Abhishek Shahi

Student Visa Applicant

Passport Number: 09544734