Starting this fall, students from outside of Canada attending post-secondary institutions will be able to work anywhere they choose, no longer restricted to on-campus employment only.
The federal government has signed agreements with all of the provinces to enable the approximately 100,000 international students in the country to earn money and work experience while they completing their degrees. In order to qualify, one must have a legal study permit and have been a full time student for at least six months. The government is currently taking applications for the new off-campus work permits, which are expected to be awarded to students by the summer.
Employment is restricted to 20 hours per week during the school year, but students may work full time during breaks and the summer holidays.
“We have a labour shortage in the country … so it’s going to be helpful,” Ontario’s minister of citizenship and immigration Monte Solberg said in his announcement of the new agreements, on April 27. “It’s also hugely important as a way to ensure that we hold on to students ultimately as permanent residents.”
These work agreements come after years of complaints and lobbying by international students, who feel that due to the substantially higher tuition fees that they pay, they should be given adequate work opportunities to support the cost of their education. On average, foreign students paid over $17,000 in tuition this year, almost one third more than in the 2004-2005 school year.
Unfortunately for many foreign students, the summer begins well before its official date of June 21. Most students begin considering summer employment in February or March. The last update from the government and the media placed the implementation of the work permits sometime around September of this year. Many students have therefore made their summer plans based on the assumption that work opportunities would still be restricted to on-campus employers.
Alex Schneider is a third year international student studying linguistics and anthropology. He remained in Toronto last summer and had difficulty finding employment because of the heavy restrictions. Early this spring he decided to save himself the trouble of another endless job search by subletting his room, and returning home for the summer.
“Most students looking for part time jobs during the year seem to be able to find them,” said Schneider. “It’s the kids who are here all summer and competing with people for the full-time positions who really struggle to find jobs on campus. It is a little ridiculous that [the government] would stretch this process out for so long. But on the other hand, better late than never.”
The new regulations may help keep students in the country after they graduate, but they are also important in attracting new students. Frank Wang, the president of Can-Zhong International Education in China, believes that a boost in the number of undergraduates is on its way. His company is a Vancouver based education consulting firm which primarily provides assistance to Chinese students looking to study in North America and Europe. “The new work permit policy is believed to be an impetus for Chinese students to study in Canada,” he said.
