How the cap on student permits might impact northern Ont. economy, schools

The two-year cap on international student recruitmentmay be alarming tocolleges and universities throughout Canada, but particularly for those in northern Ontario that have come to depend on high internationalstudent tuitionsto 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 saidthe 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 millionin 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 useits 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.

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 saidit'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 saidSault 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 addedthat, 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."

"It's all part of a period of de-emphasizing post-secondary educationat 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 saidin 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.