What are the canonical formation times? Each order seems to make their own slightly different.

One Carmelite community told me that postulancy for them was from 6 months - 1.5 years but a Poor Clare monastery told me their postulancy is a strict canonical 12 months. Is 6 months postulancy allowed?

Just curious because of the varying lengths of time for postulancy and for the novitiate. I understand that the canonical year is required for novitiate but sometimes lasts up to two years - is that right?

Usually postulancy is 6-12 months you'll see more communities doing 12 months, the novitiate is usually two years one of those years being the candidates canonical year, of course I see that alot in the Dominican Order, I would imagine it different in others.

You're right in noticing that it varies by community. Technically, under Canon Law, there isn't a requirement for a postulancy at all, though it's understandable why so many do require it, particularly for cloistered communities. Some communities may have a postulancy requirement written into their constitutions.
Under canon law, the novitiate must include 12 months spent in the community of the novitiate and is not to last longer than two years. (c. 648) There are also rules that deal with formation that includes a period of apostolic exercises spent outside the community of the novitiate as well as what happpens if for some reason the novitiate period is interrupted. Again, communities are free to create other regulations about the novitiate period.

It might be wrong to even think it, but I like the idea of a shorter postulancy, so I can become a novice sooner and then get to professed vows sooner too. I know there is no hurry, but at my age (54), I feel like I have wasted so much time already by NOT being a nun! The Carmelites in Wolverhampton have invited me to just come stright into the postulancy (6 months to a year and a half) without even a discernment visit, and this appeals to me a lot. They say that the postulancy is a time of discernment, so that if I don't want to stay, I can leave. This sounds good to me. Since postulancy is supposed to be a time of discernment, why do so many communities insist now on these long pre-discernment phases like enquiry, visit, applicant (or candidate) before ever even getting to the postulancy? One order I read about had a 6 months pre-postulant phase as well.

Any comments from religious sisters out there?

Well I'm not a religious, but the only thing I'd add is that, going straight into postulancy without a visit is a little foolish. I say that simply because, in order to fully enter, you're expected to see your belongings, and take care of business, right? It's not as though you can return back into the world after novitiate or postulancy (unless you've entered one of the active orders) to take care of this business, you know? While one is never 'sure', I'd at least wish to have a short visit, before applying, even if that visit is only a few days.

God bless you.

Well, my situation might be a little different from some in that I don't have anything to sell or store. I live in a trailer - with all built in furniture, and I work with horses to pay the rent for the trailer while I work part-time in a nursing home to earn extra money for food, gas etc. My car is older and nearly ready to retire, and I really have no attachments to anything. I don't own anything of any value except my laptop, and that is about 4 years old, so not state of the art. My cell phone is disposible with pay as you go minutes.

If I went to a convent and after a certain amount of time decided that it wasn't going to be right, then I would simply get another job on a ranch caring for horses in exchange for accommodation. Caregivers at nursing homes are always needed, so I could find another job there as well. But I would like to find the right community the first time.

The thing for me is that I am older and have already made my choice about this life. I know I want to be a nun, I just am not sure which community is the one that God wants me to enter. I won't enter for at least another 3-4 months because I know I need at least that long to discern, but I am hoping that it becomes clearer to me as I contact more places. It isn't easy to take time off work to go visiting since there aren't any convents near me. I have to drive nearly two hours to the nearest airport, and then fly to wherever the convent is -- in most cases, the cost of airfare is expensive, and then I have to take the time off work as well. If I can find a place that feels like home before I go there - well, it would just be easier for me. But I don't control what happens, and it might very well be that I have to just get in my car and drive from one place to another and spend a week at a time with them!!!

A cloister I've been looking at in France has "flexible" times... postulancy from 6-12 months and noviciate from 1-2 years... so you could be professed in 18 months! That feels... really quick.

Almost every apostolic community has a two-year noviciate: one canonical and one apostolic.

At Christ in the Desert, a contemplative community, the Postulancy runs right into the noviciate without a break. But, at St Peter's, a community with lots of outside apostolates, they usually have a break between the postulancy and noviciate.