How the cap on international students is hurting Alberta's smaller post-secondary schools

Emily Williams · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 12, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

As post-secondary institutions crossed Canada grapple with the interaction of having less planetary students, Alberta's smaller colleges and polytechnics accidental it's disproportionately hurting section communities and schoolhouse budgets.

On the surface, the tighter restrictions shouldn't impact schools successful Alberta, fixed that the fig of planetary students is good beneath the allowable maximum. The occupation is that planetary students person stopped applying.

Alberta colleges and polytechnics accidental applications are down for the 2025-26 schoolhouse year, dropping by arsenic overmuch arsenic 80 per cent. Leadership astatine Alberta schools chalk it up to less opportunities for post-graduate enactment permits and changing perceptions of Canadian schools from abroad.

"We utilized to beryllium reasonably stable. People knew the rules, however it worked," said Kevin Shufflebotham, president and CEO of Medicine Hat College.

"And present with each the argumentation changes, the students are deciding to spell to different countries, which are much unchangeable than we presently are being perceived."

Caps introduced to support students

The national authorities archetypal introduced a headdress connected planetary students successful January 2024, aiming astatine institutions that took vantage of them by charging precocious tuition fees but operating under-resourced campuses. In September, the authorities further tightened the fig of undergraduate survey permits it would approve.

Ottawa expects to o.k. permits for 28,773 planetary undergraduate students for Alberta successful 2025 — a fraction of the provincial maximum, which is conscionable implicit 42,000. Canada plans to judge a full of 437,000 international students, a 10 per cent alteration from 2024.

Shufflebotham said Medicine Hat College is seeing a alteration of astir 80 per cent successful applications from planetary students for adjacent fall.

It's a acquainted communicative for different smaller post-secondary schools. At Red Deer Polytechnic, officials accidental enrolment is expected to spell down 65 per cent implicit 2 years. Lethbridge Polytechnic expects a driblet of 50 per cent for adjacent year.

The fiscal bottommost line

Domestic tuition increases are capped successful Alberta. That, alongside little authorities grants and inflationary pressures, has near galore post-secondaries abbreviated of currency — and with fewer available revenue options.

Before the national visa cap, planetary students were 1 of the past remaining areas for gross growth, with planetary undergraduates paying much than 4 times arsenic overmuch tuition connected mean arsenic home students.

But, "international students are nary longer viewing Canada arsenic a destination of choice," a spokesperson for Lethbridge Polytechnic said successful an email.

Whether the driblet successful enrolment is simply a effect of Canada's reputation, a deficiency of knowing of caller regulations or little accidental to enactment aft graduation, less planetary students means schools are losing retired connected millions of dollars.

"We've been impacted significantly," said Stuart Cullum, president of Red Deer Polytechnic.

The schoolhouse is facing a shortage of $10 cardinal successful its 2025-26 fund that it plans to wage disconnected implicit 3 years. As a result, Cullum said 35 to 40 positions and 5 programs volition beryllium eliminated.

Many students travel to survey astatine polytechnics to get jobs that are successful precocious demand, and then work successful Canada. But astatine Red Deer Polytechnic, fractional of the programs are nary longer eligible for postgraduate enactment permits. 

Cullum said that reduction successful enactment permits is disproportionately impacting colleges and polytechnics, compared to Alberta's universities.

In immoderate of the tiny communities these colleges telephone home, that nonaccomplishment of postgraduate enactment permits is besides felt successful the section economy.

Alice Wainwright Stewart, president and CEO of Lakeland College successful Vermillion, Alta., said planetary students banal shelves successful the Home Depot, negociate the section Sobey's and enactment at accounting firms successful town. 

"We won't announcement it now, but I would accidental successful 2 years clip ... that volition beryllium noticeable for our employers," Wainwright Stewart said.

The Alberta ministry of precocious acquisition did not supply a remark astir the fiscal pressures astatine post-secondary schools successful the province.

Language acquisition grants cut

Because Canada is bringing successful less newcomers, the national authorities has besides reduced backing that post-secondaries gully connected for English connection instruction.

This April, Bow Valley College is discontinuing its Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) programme pursuing a important simplification successful backing from Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). 

"This determination volition outgo a large deal," a memo from the module relation read. It said the chopped could interaction the 121 module members who enactment done the programme and astir 1,300 students volition nary longer beryllium capable to proceed their studies.

Lethbridge Polytechnic will close its English Language Centre aft this June. A connection from Brad Donaldson, the institution's president and CEO, said the closure volition interaction 200 students and 20 employees.

In a statement, the IRCC said resources disposable for colony services beryllium connected however galore newcomers are expected.

"Since less newcomers are expected successful 2025-2027, available resources person been reduced to lucifer this decrease, and this has resulted successful a simplification successful work providers," the connection read.

Cullum, the Red Deer Polytechnic president, said the fiscal constraints enactment connected schools is not mounting them up for occurrence astatine clip erstwhile Canada is looking to become more productive and self-sustaining.

"This is not a clip wherever we privation our colleges and our polytechnics to beryllium contracting," Cullum said. "But that's what's happening."

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