Working whilst visa is being processed?

[divide_by_zero]

Hello everyone,
My Tier 4 visa expires in late Jan and I wanted to go back to Canada for Christmas.
From what I have read on the forums, it seems that the PSW visa takes around 5-6 weeks to go through by mail. I'd prefer not to fork over the money to get the premium service

If I were to apply for the visa in early Jan, would I still be allowed to:
A. Stay in the country if my visa is being processed and it is past my Tier 4 date
B. Work during the time that my Tier 4 visa has expired and I am waiting on my Tier 1 visa to be granted.


A random question:
If you check all the boxes for the PSW visa, what are the chances that your visa would be denied? Is there a limited number of spaces each year? Or are some degrees not considered good enough (I will be receiving MA English)

Thanks so much for the help!

[vinny]

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