The Canadian dream for international students may soon become a nightmare as new figures indicate that visa officers are rejecting nearly half of the applicants who have been accepted by Canadian schools. This has led to an alarming situation in some public colleges in Ontario, where thousands of would-be students are being turned away.
The international student system has long been a major revenue source for post-secondary schools, but now it seems to have “lost its integrity,” according to critics including the federal immigration minister. The situation is becoming increasingly tense as the future of these students hangs in the balance.
In the period of Jan. 2022 to Apr. 2023, the Immigration Department approved 54.3% or 470,427 study permit applicants from designated learning institutions. Critics claim that schools’ push for more international students is resulting in subpar applicants flooding the system.
Ontario is a popular destination for international students in Canada. Approval rates vary widely among schools. U of T had the highest approval rate at 90%, while Laurentian had a low 20.7% approval rate. Lambton had the highest approval rate among public colleges at 70%. However, experts say approval rates do not reflect the quality of education.
Student program under scrutiny
The fast-growing international student program has been in the spotlight amid aggressive recruiting campaigns by the post-secondary education sector, and by unregulated foreign agents. Migrants increasingly look at studying in Canada as a backdoor to work and earn permanent residence here.
The number of international students in Canada has tripled over the last decade, contributing $22 billion to the economy and supporting around 200,000 jobs. However, many international students struggle to find employment and housing due to the affordable-housing crisis and rising cost of living. Post-secondary education institutions rely on international students as a revenue source, and employers depend on them to fill low-wage jobs. Many study permit applications are refused due to a “mass volume” recruitment approach by learning institutions, which causes processing delays.
Canada has introduced a “recognized” institution regime for faster study permit processing to crack down on “puppy mills” which offer low-quality education. Provinces are responsible for regulating education and designating institutions for international students. Critics believe that this move will reduce the number of international students in Canada.
The Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association has recommended regulating overseas education agents and making designated learning institutions accountable for their agents’ activities and conduct. They also suggest mandating institutions to employ overseas agents directly and release their names, citizenship, and location of work. The association hopes this will weed out bad actors and prevent circumvention of new rules set to take effect in January.
“Canada’s reputation as an education powerhouse is at risk due to the reliance on the ease of obtaining permanent residence to attract international students,” said Dangzalan, a vice-president of the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association.
Looking forward to getting more information on the migration program Call or WhatsApp us 00974 33318171
Connect with us to get updates on our regular Immigration and hiring updates 🤝🏻
💬Official Whatsapp Channel | 💬 Whatsapp Community | 👍 Facebook | 📸 Instagram | 💼 LinkedIn