International Students Worldwide
- It is estimated that in 2014 the number of internationally mobile students surpassed the 5 million mark, and that by 2022 the number of internationally mobile students will reach 7 million
International Students in Canada
- Canada ranks as the world’s 4th most popular destination for international students (Source: Project Atlas)
- There were 494,525 international students in Canada in 2017, representing a 119% increase since 2010, and an increase of 20% over the previous year (Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada).
- International students made up 11% of the postsecondary student population in Canada in the 2015-2016 academic year (Source: Statistics Canada).
Economic Impact of International Students in Canada
- Canada derives nearly $8B annually from international student expenditures including tuition and living expenses.
- The presence of international students created over 81,000 jobs and generated over than $445M in government revenue (2010)
Top Sending Countries
- Students from China make up 28% of Canada’s international student population, followed by students from India (25%), South Korea (5%), France (4%) and United States (3%) (Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada)
- Countries with the fastest growing number of international students in Canada (2016- 2017): Vietnam (+89%), India (+63%), Iran (+45%), Bangladesh (+41%), Brazil (+28%), and Mexico (+16%) (Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada)
International Students By Level of Study
- Three-quarters all international students in Canada are studying at the postsecondary level.
- Students studying at the primary, secondary or cégep (QC) level make up about 14% of the international student population in Canada.
International Students in Canada by Province and Territory
- Of the 494,525 international students in Canada, 48% are in Ontario, 24% are in British Columbia and 12% are in Quebec.
International Students Worldwide
- According to CBIE’s International Student Survey (2015), Engineering, business and the natural and social sciences are the top fields of study of international students in Canada.
- The top alternate study destinations considered by international students in Canada are the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.
Pathways to Canadian Education
- According to CBIE’s International Student Survey (2015) 15% of post-secondary international students have previous experience pursuing studies in Canada. Of those, 8% begin their Canadian education experience at the secondary or primary level.
- Canada’s coordination in pathways programs for international students is not well developed compared with other global destination hubs. For example, in Australia, 80% of international students arrive at post-secondary education through well-defined pathways programs, compared with 30% of international students in Canada (Illuminate Consulting Group, 2015
International Students Worldwide
- 97% of Canadian universities offer education abroad programs[6] and 82% of Canadian colleges and institutes offer education abroad[7].
- Despite the documented personal and national benefits of education abroad, only 3.1% of full-time Canadian undergraduate university students[8] and 1.1% of full-time college students[9] have a credit or not-for-credit education abroad experience annually.
- Approximately 30% of German students[10], 10% of US students[11], 13% of Australians[12] go abroad at some point during their degree.
- The top barrier to participation for Canadian students remains financial.
- In 2014, CBIE made a call for Canada to provide 50,000 education abroad awards by 2022 in order to overcome Canada’s critical international skills deficit.