The University of Calgary (U of C) is facing a financial setback following a significant drop in international student enrolment.
This decline is expected to cost the university an estimated $11 million in lost tuition revenue this year.
According to CBC News, the institution revealed that international student enrolment fell by nearly 9% this year, from 6,998 students last fall to 6,394 this year.
Reports inform that international students generally pay higher tuition fees, often two to three times more than domestic students, and the reduction in numbers is expected to lead to a significant loss in revenue. The drop will continue to affect the university’s finances in the coming years, as these students were expected to attend for multiple years.
“It’s going to impact not only the quality of our scholarship, but the future of Alberta and the future that students have in this province,” said Ermia Rezaei-Afsah, president of the University of Calgary Students’ Union.
The federal cap and its consequences
The drop in international student numbers follows the federal government’s announcement in September that it will limit the number of study permits issued in 2025 and 2026. The federal target was reduced from 485,000 permits this year to 437,000 for the next two years.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller stated that the reduction could lead to 300,000 fewer study permits over the next three years, which universities across Canada, including U of C, believe will have a lasting impact on enrolment and funding.
“The federal approach does create challenges,” said a U of C in a statement. “The current impact on enrollment is connected to the swift, sweeping and ongoing changes to federal measures and the impacts of geopolitics.”
The impact on research and innovation
Rezaei-Afsah noted that less money in the system results in reduced research and innovation at Canadian universities.
“There’s just less money in the system resulting in less innovation, less research coming out of our institutions across Canada,” he explained.
Universities Canada president, Gabriel Miller, also expressed concern, highlighting that Canada’s ability to attract talented international students, particularly in fields like artificial intelligence and healthcare, could suffer. “What I hear when I hear that we’re losing researchers is we’re losing our economic competitiveness,” Miller said.
Alberta government’s response and future outlook
CBC informs that the Alberta government is aware of the challenges posed by the federal cap on international student permits. A spokesperson from the Ministry of Advanced Education mentioned that the province is actively engaging with post-secondary institutions to assess the impact and is advocating for increased funding from the federal government.
Earlier this year, the U of C Students’ Union raised concerns about the growing reliance on tuition revenue, which now exceeds funding from the provincial Campus Alberta grant. This shift has led to discussions about increasing tuition for both domestic and international students.
The university is considering a 2% tuition increase for domestic students and a six percent hike for international students next year, CBC reports.
Universities look to address financial strain
While Mount Royal University has seen a smaller percentage of international students, it too has adjusted its budget in response to potential enrolment changes.
Reports state that the university has projected that its international student numbers will remain close to last year’s levels.
Despite these efforts, the situation at the U of C remains concerning. Rezaei-Afsah called on the Alberta government to invest more in post-secondary education, especially following the provincial budget cuts in 2019.
He argued that the pressure to rely on international students as a funding source is unsustainable.
“We really want to see investment from the Government of Alberta into post-secondary education because now we really don’t have many options or levers left,” he said.
