We're welcoming record numbers of international students. Here's how they got caught up in the housing crisis

Canada, widely considered one of the top countries to study in and immigrate to, is currently welcoming more international students than at any point in its history. But that's quickly becoming divisive as the country faces challenges related to housing and overall affordability.

Experts say that although international students are particularly vulnerable to these problems, they're increasingly being blamed for worsening them and could face a cap on their entry into Canada as a result. 

But how exactly did we get here? Here's a look at how international students became a key policy point for Canada.

Dale M. McCartney, is an assistant professor specializing in international student policy at the University of the Fraser Valley in B.C. He says Canada gradually opened its doors to international students, starting not long after the Second World War.

Back then, international students were part of Canada's broader foreign affairs agenda, and McCartney says the government believed that when they returned to their home countries, they could positively impact trade and global relations.

While that notion still exists, McCartney says things changed in the 1980s when provinces began to deregulate international student tuition, leaving it up to post-secondary institutions to control their own rates. At the same time, the federal government was cutting corporate tax rates to convince businesses to come to the country.

All of this meant that over time, public funding for post-secondary education decreased.

"They created a situation where institutions were interested in attracting international students for primarily economic reasons," said McCartney.

In the early 2000s, a series of changes in immigration policy signalled the federal government's interest in getting international students to stay and work here after graduation, said McCartney. This included the introduction of off-campus work permits and the creation of a new permanent residence stream that factored in Canadian education and work experience. 

Canada hosted more than 800,000 international students last year, according to the government's figures. To sustain their studies here, McCartney says many international students pick up low-paying jobs that are difficult to fill with Canadian workers.

This shift has left the students vulnerable to policies that overshadow the innovation, culture and talent they bring to Canada, according to Melody Viczko, the past president of professional advocacy body the Comparative and International Education Society of Canada.

"When we only value international students for their contribution economically, we're failing to see all the other ways … they contribute to the learning that happens in post-secondary education," said Viczko.

In 2014, the federal government released the International Education Strategy plan, its first major venture into education policy, which is a responsibility usually overseen by provinces and territories.

There were 239,131 international students in 2011. In its 2014 plan, the government said it aimed to more than double that number by the end of the decade, as well as increase the number of students who would become permanent residents after graduation.