Will my chances of obtaining a student visa in Canada be reduced if I mention I applied for permanent residency?
The real question here is whether you are required to mention your permanent residency on your student visa application. If it is not required, I would refrain from mentioning this issue both in the application and during the interview as temporary residentship (e.g student visa) expects you to plan on returning after the agreed upon period. However, If you are required to provide such information in the form or are asked about in the interview, I would STRONGLY encourage you to provide the honest answer. Being dishonest in your application or interview can easily lead to your Visa being rejected. Bear in mind that your residency application is an officially submitted document and can easily be recovered if the Visa administration office seeks to look for it.