Survey: Retention of International Students

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Survey Background

Students seated at convocation

Project lead: Ather H. Akbari
Saint Mary’s University

The Atlantic Research Group on Economics of Immigration, Aging and Diversity (ARGEIAD) is conducting this survey research to understand the satisfaction and well-being of international students who come to study in Atlantic Canada. An understanding of their satisfaction and well-being is imperative to their retention in the region after finishing their studies.

Declining birth rates and net out-migration for most of the past two decades from Atlantic Canada have resulted in a continuous decline of population growth. Towards the end of last decade, death rates in Nova Scotia (NS), New Brunswick (NB) and Newfoundland & Labrador (NL) exceeded birth rates and these provinces were able to grow their population only through net migration, mostly through international migration. Only Prince Edward Island (PEI) had a slightly positive natural growth in population, but immigration also contributed an important component of its population growth.

Declining natural growth in population has also resulted in an aging of population in all provinces. One in five Atlantic Canadian is aged 65 and over.

Population growth decline and aging have two important economic consequences for the region, labour shortages and shrinking markets for goods and services. Both of these consequences can have negative implications for regional economic growth. Hence, regional economic policy-makers are responding by adopting initiatives to reverse these potential negative economic impacts of demographic change in the region. The Atlantic Growth Strategy (AGS) is one such initiative launched in July 2016 by the Government of Canada and the governments of NS, NB, NL and PEI. The aim of AGS is to grow the region’s economy, strengthen local communities, and grow innovative, world-class companies in the region. Growth of skilled workforce is an important goal of the AGS. In order to achieve this goal, the strategy emphasizes attracting international migrants and also to increase economic participation of under-represented groups such as older workers, indigenous peoples and persons with disabilities.

The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project (AIPP), another federal-provincial pilot program that is helping to attract and retain skilled workers and international graduates in Atlantic Canada, is linked to AGS. By providing some evidence on satisfaction and well-being of international students who come to Atlantic Canada, this research will highlight any issues that need to be addressed in attracting international students to the region.

International Students in Atlantic Canada

Declining birth rates and population aging have increased Canadian demand for immigrants in the labour force. Canadian immigration policy seeks to attract skilled immigrants that will help grow the economy. However, past studies have shown that skilled immigrants face barriers to their integration in labour markets, the main barrier being a recognition of the human capital they bring from their home countries.  Several initiatives are being undertaken at federal and provincial government levels to address this issue. One such initiative is attraction of international students. International students are viewed as potential new immigrants who are “young, with advanced English [ and French] language skills, with fully recognized qualifications, locally relevant professional training and a high degree of acculturation” (Hawthorne, L. 2005. “Picking Winners: The Recent Transformation of Australia’s Skill Migration Policy.” International Migration Review, 39(2)). These characteristics are believed to facilitate integration into both the labour market and the social sphere.  Post-secondary educational institutions in Canada are also playing active roles in promoting such initiatives.

According to the Canadian Bureau of International Education (CBIE, 2018) during 2017-2018 period about 68 percent of prospective international students planned to apply for permanent resident status in Canada. [1]

Attracting international students and retaining them after graduation has also become the focal point of immigration strategies adopted by provincial governments in Canada, including those in Atlantic Canada where the impact of population aging and population growth decline is felt the most in the country. For example, several pathways to permanent residency status are available for international students in Nova Scotia including the Skilled Worker stream, Nova Scotia Experience stream and International Graduate Entrepreneur stream all under Nova Scotia Nominee Program, and AIPP. The provincial immigration strategy in Newfoundland and Labrador supports the efforts of post-secondary institutions and K-12 schools in attracting an increased number of international students. Memorial University is a key partner in that strategy. New Brunswick has also signed an agreement with the federal government that makes it easier for foreign graduates to gain an additional year of work experience in their field of study. This change is aimed at helping graduates who wish to apply for permanent residence status as skilled workers by providing them with additional points on the selection grid in the area of experience. 

The annual inflows of international students in Atlantic Canada more than doubled over the 2010-2019 period. Each province saw an increase over the period. Nova Scotia received more than half of the international students coming to the region.  These rising trends are the results of deliberate attempts by post-secondary institutions in the region to attract more international students and also the various initiatives undertaken by provincial governments in the region to facilitate their retention.

While many initiatives are in place for attraction and retention of international students in Atlantic Canada, little is known about their retention, although some studies suggest that retention is low. One as yet unpublished study by Professor Michael Haan of Western University showed only 11 percent of the students who graduated from Atlantic Canada universities and colleges were still in the province of their study the year after they became permanent residents (referred in The importance of international students to Atlantic Canada - Study International). In another recently completed survey-based study for Nova Scotia conducted by the present author found that international students were about a quarter of those immigrants who had lived in Nova Scotia over the period 2011-2018 but are now living in other provinces.[2]

As discussed above, one goal of initiatives to attract and retain international students is to mitigate the skill shortages in the region. However, if this goal is to be met, reasons for their low retention must be understood and addressed. For this purpose, a detailed survey-based study on their living experiences is warranted. An in-depth analysis of their level of satisfaction with the support system on campus, employment opportunities to complement studies, interaction with domestic students and faculty, satisfaction with the quality of education, the relative academic performance and employer attitudes to hiring international students will be instructive for immigration and labour policy aimed at maintaining the supply of skilled labour force in Atlantic Canada. It will also generate valuable insights for university and college administrations in improving their service delivery for international students. 

This online survey was designed with inputs obtained from various stakeholders and business operators. Services of a survey company were contracted for survey design and implementation. The survey will be mostly quantitative but will also allow for some qualitative responses. Some focus groups with international students and faculty will also be held. The survey population will include all international students who arrived in Atlantic Canada during 2017-2023 with intention to pursue their education from a post-secondary institution in Atlantic Canada, are currently studying at a post-secondary institution in Atlantic Canada, have finished their studies and are currently living in the region or have left to live in a non-Atlantic Canadian province. Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship (IRCC) will provide valuable support by distributing the survey to the in-scope population. Responses will be analyzed using descriptive tools of analysis employing SPSSX / STATA software. The survey research will be complemented by an analysis of international student inflow data to be obtained from IRCC and IMDB data to be obtained from Statistics Canada. Two reports, one interim and one final, will be delivered on dates agreed upon with the funding agency. There will be two public outreach events held in relation to this project, one during the project and one at the end of the project.

 

This project has received ethics approval from the Saint Mary’s University Ethics Board Research Ethics Board Policies & Guidelines | Research.

Once all the data have been collected, they will be analyzed using statistical tools of analysis without attribution to any individual respondent. The resulting research reports and papers will be published on the web site of Atlantic Research Group on Economics of Immigration, Aging and Diversity and also in academic journals.  Summary results of the completed study will be posted on Summaries of Completed Research.

Any questions relating to this project may be directed to the Principal Investigator, Ather H. Akbari (Professor of Economics at Saint Mary’s University), at the following address: Ather.Akbari@SMU.Ca

 

[1] Canadian Bureau of International Education. Retaining International Students in Canada – Post Graduation: Understanding the Motivations and Drivers of the Decision to Stay Intl-students-post-graduation-RiB-8-EN-1.pdf (cbie.ca)

[2] Akbari, A.H. 2018. Who comes, who stays, who leaves Nova Scotia and why? A report prepared for Nova Scotia Office of Immigration. 1StayersandLeaversBackgroundReportFinal.pdf (smu.ca)

Satisfaction and Well-being of International Students in Atlantic Canada

Project steering committee includes the following members:

  • Ather H. Akbari – Chair and contact person (Saint Mary’s University)
  • Stephen Coyle (Group ATN)
  • Lisa O’Connell (Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission)
  • Jennifer Porter (Memorial University of Newfoundland)
  • Peter Halpin (Association of Atlantic Universities)
  • Lauren Cullen (Saint Mary’s University)
  • Byron James (Atlantic Colleges Atlantique)
  • Sarah McRae (Government of New Brunswick)
  • Jerry Wang (University of Prince Edward Island)

Any questions relating to this project can be directed to Professor Akbari on the following email address: Ather.Akbari@smu.ca