The two-year cap on international student recruitment may be alarming to colleges and universities throughout Canada, but particularly for those in northern Ontario that have come to depend on high international student tuitions to enhance their budgets.
“[I’m] shocked, quite frankly, that the federal government would make such a reckless decision,” said Sault College president David Orazietti during an interview with CBC’s Up North.
“It will create some significant financial hardship for our school and it will result in deficit budgets.”
Up North10:15Sault College president reacts to international student cap
The federal government is looking to limit the number of international students coming to Canada. Sault College President David Orazietti tells us what that might mean for his school.
On Monday, the federal government announced it would reduce the number of study permits it issues by about 35 per cent in 2024, in part due to growing concerns about the impact international students are having on the housing market.
Minister of Immigration Marc Miller said the cap is a way to take action against unsustainable international student growth, particularly in small private colleges that are licensed to offer public curriculums.
Many colleges in northern Ontario have links with these private colleges.
‘Difference between being in the black and being in deficit’
Sault College, for example, has made about $10 million in profits since it started delivering its programs through triOS college campuses in Brampton and Toronto in 2020.
“That revenue generated by our partner college comes back to our home campus to help us build vital infrastructure,” said Orazietti, adding that Sault College was planning to use its private college money to build a student residence.
The over-reliance on international students to fund operations is a trend that can be seen across northern Ontario.
Canadore’s private college partner, Stanford, welcomes thousands of Indian students at its Scarborough campus every year. (Aya Dufour/CBC)
For example, according to the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, seven out of 10 students enrolled in North Bay’s Canadore College are international students.
For Northern College in Timmins, 80 per cent of the total student body comes from abroad.
In a 2021 report, the office of the province’s auditor general concluded that, were it not for the international students’ fees they collect from private college partners, Canadore, Cambrian and Northern College could have incurred annual losses in recent years.
Orazietti said it’s a similar situation for Sault College.
“It’s the difference between our college being in the black or being in deficit,” he said.
Impacts on employment
Orazietti said Sault Ste. Marie on the whole has a lot to lose with fewer international students.
“Those students are making investments in the community. They’re providing employment,” he said.
Public policy expert Ken Coates added that, for institutions, the cap might mean staff losing their jobs.
“There will be layoffs that will come. There will be programs that will be cut.”
Ken Coates is professor emeritus with the University of Saskatchewan. (Jason Warick/CBC)
“It’s all part of a period of de-emphasizing post-secondary education at a time when the workforce is telling us we want people with more skills,” said Coates, who is also professor emeritus with the University of Saskatchewan.
The Ministry of Colleges and Universities’ Jill Dunlop said in a statement to CBC that the province is working with the federal government to crack down on predatory recruitment.
It also wants to ensure students coming to Ontario receive an education that is responsive to the province’s labour needs, especially in the skilled trades.
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
