Despite the impacts of the pandemic on the international education sector, Canada continuously emerges as one of the top overseas destinations for international students to complete their college and university studies, as revealed in a poll conducted by IDP Connect.
The survey of the education consulting firm includes more than 6,000 students at 527 colleges and universities in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States or those interested in studying in these destinations.
Key Takeaways:
- Australian representative groups proposed practical plans to revive the international education industry.
- The international student strategy prioritizes international student return, especially for countries with low infection rates.
- Australia has developed two visa reform proposals for consideration by immigration minister Alex Hawke.
Canada emerged as a top study destination among the participants, and the biggest population of those surveyed expressed their desire to study in the country. Most of these students come from Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam.
In addition to study perks, students also had a positive view of the country’s pandemic response as one of the top considerations for picking their destination country. In fact, the recent results of the survey also align with the findings of Navitas’ September 2020 study of how international students viewed Canada’s handling of the pandemic.
In the interest of health and safety, Canada permitted international students to take all of their courses through distance education in their home countries. It can also be noted that international students did not lose their study permits and benefits despite distance learning.
Findings from the Navitas survey noted how the government’s handling of the pandemic strengthened Canada’s education reputation. The findings of the initial survey of Navitas were later on made stronger with new survey findings showing the same and consistent results—Canada’s good pandemic response has enhanced its reputation as a favorable place where international students can travel to and study.
Despite the good reputation of Canada’s educational system, international students have expressed their difficulties in securing their study permits, the IDP Connect survey noted. While other countries have only recorded 13 percent of international students considering the difficulty of getting a study permit, Canada has recorded 20 percent among the international students.
Canada’s Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) program is the redeeming factor of such an obstacle for international students. Since the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) built in extra flexibility for its PGWP program, international students develop a keen interest in completing their Canadian programs online and still qualify to work in Canada after graduation.
Read more:
Abcodo is an MSM company that serves as the in-house recruitment partner of MSM Unify, a student recruitment and marketing platform that connects partner schools to top-tier agents and their students worldwide. Sign up now to get the latest updates and information on international student recruitment.
