On February 12, 2021, we received the good news that the Government of Canada announced further temporary measures based on the pandemic that allow international students to be able to complete their studies in their home country and be eligible for the post-degree work permit:

“These measures will assist international students by ensuring that studies completed outside Canada will count towards a future PGWP, and by allowing international students to complete their entire program online from abroad and still be eligible for a PGWP. The measures apply to all international students who are enrolled in a PGWP-eligible program, and meet all other PGWP criteria.” https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/news/2021/02/government-of-canada-announces-further-measures-to-support-international-students.html

We were expecting this announcement because of how long this pandemic has been extended, and IRCC knows that many of us have application deadlines looming. Universities Canada has been advocating for all of its members in this regard, and our thanks goes to them for this effective work.

This announcement is very important for many international students who started their programs in Canadian universities and colleges in good faith and with a plan to travel to Canada to complete their programs and gain work experience after they graduate, using the Post Graduate Work Permit program offered by IRCC. If these students are unable to get a study permit because they were forced to stay home, or if they are unable to count the semesters they completed while studying at home towards their eligibility for the PGWP, then their plans would be undercut.

This fall, I experienced how important this is for one of my students. This student dropped out prior to this announcement because they were unable to travel to Canada to study, and had no assurance that they would be eligible for the PGWP if they completed more than 50% of their program while studying from home. The two major factors for why they wanted to study in Canada were to study in Canada and to gain work and life experience in the Canadian cultural context. But as time went on with no announcement from IRCC, the risk became too great and the student chose to change directions. Of course, I contacted the student as soon as I saw the announcement, but I doubt it will make a difference now. What makes me sad is that this student had all the signs of being a top student in my MBA class, and the skills and background they had were exceptional. But now their skills (and wonderful attitude in general) will probably never see the light of day in Canada. This person will not enrich our country and will not be shaped by Canadian education and cultural values. This wasn’t a brain drain – it was a brain wall that blocked what could have been a wonderful asset to Canada.

IRCC knows this is happening. What I don’t understand is why they took so long to make this decision. We all knew by the early fall that this pandemic was here for the long-haul. Students like the one I described above have options – many options. In the business world, we know that the people who jump ship early to change companies are usually the people with the most options. In our MBA program, we train employers to look for those people in our organizations and find options for them in order to retain the best talent. I know IRCC tries to take that approach with immigration decisions too. I just wish this decision had been made months ago. That critique aside, this announcement definitely eases the challenge of recruiting and retain talented students to study and work in Canada.

What’s next for Canadian universities? We all know that most students prefer to study in-person. Many countries like India, China, and the US seem about to open up their colleges and universities for in-class study. This will introduce another level of competition to recruit international students to Canada. Canadian universities have chosen a very careful approach to abiding by health and safety measures to minimize the risks associated with COVID-19, and our resolve and plans in this area will be tested. Unless the vaccine roll-out improves, and as long as our colleges and universities take a risk-averse approach, Canada will again be behind the eight ball in recruiting talented international students. As my student’s example above demonstrates, the opportunity to study and gain work experience in Canada is very attractive. Studying from home with the opportunity to work in Canada afterwards is potentially attractive, but it may not be as attractive as studying in person elsewhere. I’d hate to lose these great students and skilled workers to other countries.

The next big job for Canadian universities and colleges is to manage the risk, plan the return to in-person study, and get that message out to international students.