The Canadian province of British Columbia has banned new colleges from enrolling international students for the next two years. This move comes after the federal government introduced a temporary two-year cap on the number of Canada study permit issuances. The ban is aimed at eliminating “exploitative practices” in the field, as per the BC post-secondary education minister Selina Robinson.
The province is also setting minimum language requirements at private institutions so that international students would be “better prepared” before entering BC. Schools would be inspected more frequently so that standards are confirmed to be met, and private colleges and universities will need to be more transparent with tuition fees and prove that the new programs meet labor market demands.
Scrutinizing “Diploma Mills”
These new policy announcements are a mode of scrutinizing the “diploma mills” that collect high fees from international students while being the source of poor education. “That’s why we’re introducing more stringent requirements for institutions and robust safeguards to protect international students against bad actors, provide them with a better path to success, and make sure B.C. continues to attract the talented students we need to fill significant gaps in the labor market and drive our economy forward,” said Robinson.
Cap on International Students
Just last week, Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced that his department was capping the number of undergraduate study permit approvals for two years at 360,000 a year – a 35 percent reduction from last year. This comes after the student program had grown to reach more than 800,000 students in 2022, putting – according to some experts – strain on housing and affordability.
BC would have the power to dictate how many international students can be enrolled at each college and university, regardless of whether they are public or private. Ottawa has been allotted several international students to BC that it is allowed to accept. Premier David Eby told CBC’s Rosemary Barton that the number – undisclosed to the public at the moment – concerns him. He and Robinson said they have been talking to Miller about excluding certain programs that train people for in-demand professions from the caps.
New Maximum Enrolment Numbers
New maximum enrolment numbers for international students will also be set for public post-secondary institutions. Natalia Tola, national deputy chair of the Canadian Federation of Students, said to Postmedia News that the cap may cause a scramble to make up for financial losses from chopped international tuition, resulting in a possible uptick in tuition for both international and domestic students.
Conclusion
The ban on new colleges enrolling international students in British Columbia is aimed at eliminating “exploitative practices” in the field. The province is also setting minimum language requirements at private institutions so that international students would be “better prepared” before entering BC.
Schools would be inspected more frequently so that standards are confirmed to be met, and private colleges and universities will need to be more transparent with tuition fees and prove that the new programs meet labor market demands. The cap on international students may cause a scramble to make up for financial losses from chopped international tuition, resulting in a possible uptick in tuition for both international and domestic students.
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