• Canadian stakeholders prioritize retaining international student after their studies, however the government lacks a strategy to coordinate between granting permits and selecting international students for immigration
• 88% of international students who have gained permanent residency went through multiple temporary permit streams and held multiple permits, which increases vulnerability
• Multiple programs have been initiated to increase the amount of international students coming to the country, however the postgraduate work permit and lack of an immigration pathway for these students create a bottleneck
• A recent government statement said the current international education strategy does not focus on wellbeing but instead on immigration metrics
• The bottleneck of those wanting permanent residency and not getting it could be “a disaster”, with up to a million graduates having no prospect of success
• The most common method to gain permanent residency for international students is the Provincial Nominee Program, however rising numbers of international students searching for jobs makes it difficult
• Longer periods spent with temporary status in Canada increase international students’ vulnerability to exploitative employment and stress about immigration
• Legal methods of trying to retain international students in Canada are being pushed, however they are not enough to cover the increasing numbers of international students
• The CBC recommends IRCC and provincial governments need to take a greater role in steering policies that relate to international students and develop an international student immigration and settlement strategy
Summary from thepienews.com
