CIC has announced the creation of a new Federal Skilled Worker category for international students studying towards a PhD in Canada. To qualify, applicants must have completed at least 2 years of study towards a PhD, or graduated from a Canadian PhD program within the past 12 months. A maximum of 1,000 applications from this category will be considered for processing each year by CIC. The first cap year for the PhD stream begins on November 5, 2011.