'We have very different needs': Thunder Bay, Ont., wants a say in granting of international study permits
CBC
Post-secondary schools and councillors in Thunder Bay, Ont., want more consultation with the federal government over the new two-year cap on study permits for international students, while students say those already studying in Canada need more support to set them up for success.
"Our service industry between the hotels, the restaurants, retail — they rely heavily on foreign students, and same with health care," said Coun. Kristen Oliver, who's on the city's intergovernmental affairs committee. "For us to be excluded from the conversations and for the sectors to be excluded from the conversation, that needs to change."
The new cap, part of Ottawa's strategy to ease the housing crisis, was announced last month by Immigration Minister Marc Miller after Canada recorded a record number of international students last year. It's expected to result in a 35 per cent reduction in international study permits, although how they'll be allocated has yet to be announced.
On Monday night, Oliver and other councillors voted to appeal to upper levels of government to better support post-secondary schools and call for northwestern Ontario's interests and needs to be taken into account in the granting of study permits.
The meeting was held after the province announced more than $1.2 billion in aid for post-secondary schools as they adapt to the new student caps. Tuition fees for Ontario students will remain frozen for the next three years.
The City of Thunder Bay says Lakehead University and Confederation College are "two of our largest partners," and like other institutions across Canada, they rely heavily on revenue from students from abroad.
There are also calls for current international students to get more aid in areas including housing, food insecurity and mental health.
"We can take more and more students, but at what expense? It's about finding that balance of how many [international students] can our college and our community properly support, so that we are setting them up for success," said Kendall Williams, executive director of the Student Union of Confederation College (SUCCI).
This week, CBC News released an analysis of data regarding the number of study permits granted annually since 2018 for foreign students to attend post-secondary institutions. The analysis of the data, obtained through access to information requests to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), revealed the international student numbers are disproportionately linked to a handful of schools — the bulk of them public institutions — mostly in Ontario.
Of those, just over 1,000 study permits were granted to Lakehead and over 1,300 to Confederation College.
According to officials at both schools:
Confederation College president Kathleen Lynch said international students have made up for the decline in domestic enrolment.
"We just don't have that high school graduating population to draw on," Lynch said. "With an aging population, I think the international students have really helped both our institutions and our community fill gaps that we have."
Post-secondary schools are waiting for more information about the international student caps, including how many study permits will be allocated to them.
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