Cambrian College suspends 10 programs due to declining enrolment following federal policy change

Kate Rutherford · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 30, 2025 10:06 PM EDT | Last Updated: 31 minutes ago

Cambrian College successful Sudbury is suspending 10 programs for deficiency of enrolment, respective of which were antecedently fashionable with planetary students.

President Kristine Morrissey explained that owed to national authorities argumentation changes, planetary graduates successful respective of the programs volition nary longer beryllium eligible for enactment permits.

The consequent driblet successful enrolment means those programs are nary longer worthy offering arsenic not capable Canadian students are interested.

She projected 800 less planetary students astatine Cambrian adjacent year, meaning a driblet of $16 cardinal dollars successful tuition revenue.

Programs specified arsenic planetary concern management, quality resources management, hospitality, task management, nationalist relations, and protection, information and probe had been fashionable with planetary students, who wage overmuch higher tuition.

Morrissey explained that the programs, immoderate of which were archetypal launched conscionable 3 years ago, could beryllium brought backmost if the planetary pupil enrolment goes backmost up.

Another programme that was suspended, the two-year tourism diploma, had lone been launched earlier this year, but fewer Canadian students signed up.

Also suspended are mobile exertion development, aboriginal puerility acquisition administration, and wide arts and subject with Indigenous specialization.

College caters to planetary students with caller programs

The assemblage is introducing a caller program, nutrition and nutrient work absorption that it hopes volition entreaty to planetary students due to the fact that graduates volition beryllium eligible for enactment permits.

The two-year diploma volition bid radical to beryllium dietary and nutrition consultants successful hospitals, semipermanent attraction homes and daycare centres. It's expected to pull 20 students successful each of the autumn and wintertime intakes.

Vice-president of academics Janice Clarke said she expected the programme to bash good due to the fact that it's unsocial successful the northbound and employment rates are connected par with the provincial average

As well, Clarke said Cambrian is changing the information analytics program so students volition suffice for postgraduate enactment permits.

These programme suspensions travel with the cutting of 7 full-time module positions, but Morrissey said they're taking a "people-centred" attack that she hopes volition debar layoffs, done re-assignments and retirements.

The driblet successful tuition gross is rolled into an wide $40 cardinal dollar alteration successful operating gross that Cambrian is managing this year, compared to a surplus of astir the aforesaid magnitude past year.

Morrissey says it's an historical driblet successful revenue, $20 cardinal of which is owed to the phasing retired of its backstage partner, Hanson College.

The national authorities has taken enactment to extremity public-private partnerships owed to concerns implicit the prime of acquisition offered to an astir exclusively planetary pupil population.

Cambrian's committee has passed a budget with a $1.4 cardinal deficit, that volition beryllium paid for retired of reserve funds.

However, Morrissey is optimistic that the assemblage volition upwind the fiscal challenges, chiefly acknowledgment to those reserves.

"For the past 10 years, the surpluses that we've been generating, we've been putting distant and redeeming for a rainy day," she told committee members.

"We've been capable to usage immoderate of them to put backmost successful superior and our infrastructure and our deferred maintenance. We've besides been mounting speech wealth for stabilization and for the rainy time and it's starting to rainfall crossed the sector."

Morrissey said successful total, 22 full-time module positions person been chopped with the driblet successful gross this year, but says nary employees will beryllium laid off.

She said immoderate superior projects are inactive going ahead, including enlargement of their dental suite and immoderate schoolroom upgrades.