Fanshawe College cuts loom due to drop in international students: President

Article content

Fanshawe College is bracing for a steep drop in international students when its second term starts in January, its president says in an email sent to staff.

The college is predicting a 47 per cent reduction in first year international student enrolment in January. Fanshawe is projecting a 39 per cent reduction for its May semester, president Peter Devlin said in an email to staff obtained by The London Free Press.

Article content

“While domestic enrolment remains strong, this anticipated decline in international students will significantly impact our budget in the coming years,” he said. “In the short term, the reduction in international enrolment will result in fewer program sections being offered in the upcoming semesters.”

Fanshawe College, with campuses in London, Woodstock, St. Thomas, Simcoe and Huron and Bruce counties, has about 43,000 students.

In May, a college spokesperson said Fanshawe expected to be allocated 11,000 study permits for international students for September.

Fanshawe College declined to comment Wednesday on the projected decline in international students.

“We are still assessing the impact of further cuts on the college,” corporate communications officer Kyle Rooks said. “We will not be making any official statements until we have a clearer understanding of the impact.”

The email from Devlin also updated employees about new guidelines from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada that “determine career training pathway eligibility for post-graduate work permits.

Article content

Article content

“These updates aim to align students with careers that are in high demand, but they also bring new challenges for both students and institutions to navigate,” he said.

Fanshawe is conducting “a thorough review” of its programs to “identify which programs qualify for post-graduate work permits under these new guidelines,” Devlin said.

“Once the list is finalized and approved by government officials, we will be well-positioned to proceed with our multi-year program viability and budget analysis.”

StrategyCorp, an independent consulting firm, is conducting the review, Devlin said.

“I understand that these are uncertain times, and it’s natural to feel concerned,” he said.

Devlin said he is “confident in our ability to navigate these changes together.

“Our priority remains clear: to deliver an outstanding education for all our students and to ensure the long-term success of Fanshawe College,” he said.

International students, who pay three to five times more in tuition fees than Canadians, are a lucrative source of revenue for colleges and universities.

Article content

Statistics Canada says the average university tuition for international students is about $36,100 a year for undergraduates and $21,100 for graduate students. Canada is generally considered more affordable than studying in other countries.

In 2023, Canadian post-secondary institutions had about 900,000 international students, up from about 240,000 international students in 2011.

The rapid increase added pressure to the Canadian housing market. In August 2023, Sean Fraser, minister of housing, infrastructure and communities, said the federal government was considering putting a cap on the number of international students at Canadian universities and colleges.

In January, Marc Miller, minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship, announced a 35 per cent reduction in new visas for international students. Visas were capped at 364,000 this fall, almost 200,000 fewer than the 560,000 issued in 2023.

Though Fanshawe said the cap didn’t impact its international student enrolment this fall, a second announcement in September saw a further reduction in international student study permits as part of a reformation of the federal International Student Program.

Article content

“The reality is that not everyone who wants to come to Canada will be able to – just like not everyone who wants to stay in Canada will be able to,” Miller said.

At the time of the cap announcement, Devlin was highly critical of the move, accusing Miller of using “a sledgehammer instead of a scalpel to deal with the problem of bad actors and housing.”

Following Miller’s announcement, Fanshawe ended its alliance with a privately run Toronto campus.

Mark Feltham, president of OPSEU Local 110 that represents about 950 faculty members at Fanshawe, said though the union is concerned about “various decisions by the federal government to limit international enrolment at colleges and universities,” Fanshawe is in good shape financially.

“Fanshawe remains in a very strong financial position following years of substantial operating surpluses,” he said.

hrivers@postmedia.com

@HeatheratLFP

HOW WE GOT HERE

2022: A report released by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. predicts Canada needs 3.5 million new homes by 2030 to make housing more affordable. International university and college students became a flashpoint in Canada’s national housing crisis.

Article content

August 2023:  Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Minister Sean Fraser says the federal government is considering a cap on international students  to ease pressure on the housing market.

September 2023: International students who can’t find housing in North Bay stage a sit-in protesting their predicament.

January 2024: Federal Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller announces a 35 per cent reduction in the number of study permits this fall, though with the total cap divided between provinces.

October 2024:  Miller announces a further reduction in international student study permits for 2025 to 437,000 from 485,000. He also updates the post-graduation work permit program to better align with what the labour market needs and immigration goals.

Article content