Canada international student schemes need more revision

Given that universities in all world countries are aggressively trawling for international students, Canada’s scheme to attract and retain students from overseas needs more thought.

Attracting hordes of talented international students and encouraging them to stay on after graduation is one way to boost the country’s economy in addition to presenting a welcoming face. Integrating graduates into Canadian society is also expected to deal with the upcoming skills shortage caused by an ageing population.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada has been successful in speeding up visa applications and making them more suitable to student needs, with special attention being paid to graduate students. Work permits allowing 20 hours’ labour a week whilst studying, post-graduate work permits and three-year work permits all encourage permanent residency and citizenship applications.

However, strong competition in the field in order to gain the brightest and best students from overseas is hard to beat, with countries such as the UK and USA offering famous universities and post-graduate opportunities on the world stage. Although the USA’s student admission policies are now more stringent, the country remains in top position as the destination of choice for ambitious graduates.

The UK has also tightened up its student visa requirements due to abuse of the system by fake education facilities. Tough English language requirements are now the norm, and financial support must be proven, but the prestigious universities and their wide range of degree courses are respected the world over.