Latest news with #UniversitiesCanada
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
The future of work for new grads
Today's college and university graduates are leaving school into an uncertain future when it comes to the job market. The President and CEO of Universities Canada discusses the way technological innovations are changing the way we work.
CBC
06-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Faculty association concerned about UPEI's new budget, which includes 5 job cuts
Social Sharing Members of the UPEI Faculty Association are sharing concerns about the newly released budget, which included cuts to five teaching positions. Margot Rejskind, the association's executive director, said faculty members are concerned about the lack of transparency in the budget. She said her department was told there would be freezes and cuts due the drop in international student enrolment. "We have concerns about where the spending priorities seem to be, we're not sure where the money is going and we're interested in having a discussion about the spending priorities overall," she said, adding that other faculty concerns stem from lack of staffing and how that will affect student learning. "We are today facing quite a number of units across the university that are struggling to deliver their programs, that are not sure right now how they're going to staff their teaching for the fall of 2025." UPEI, along with many other Canadian universities, has been facing a "money crunch," according to Universities Canada CEO Gabriel Miller, who said that's partly due to decreased government funding over the past decade. That's led universities to recruit more international students, who pay higher tuition fees. Recently, though, the federal government implemented restrictions on how many international student permits are given out across the country. There are all kinds of new positions in the president's office.... Those are important positions, I'm sure, but they don't contribute to teaching and research. — Margot Rejskind, UPEI Faculty Association UPEI's budget cuts five positions from the English academic preparation program, or EAP, which is largely used by international students looking to get their English up to an academic level. UPEI said in a statement that demand for the EAP has declined significantly in recent years, and that it has partnered with Holland College to take on the program. It said three of the five instructors moved into different roles with the university. "As a result of the change, five instructor positions and a manager were no longer needed. Three instructors were redeployed to other roles at UPEI in 2024," the statement reads. Cuts amid budget growth The move is raising questions from the Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents the five instructors. Its president said in a statement that the union would like to have an open discussion with UPEI to discuss its spending priorities, considering the university's budget grew by around 10 per cent over the previous year. "On one hand, we're being told that the budgets are tight and our members can expect cuts," Julie Puiras said in the statement. "But on the other hand we're seeing tremendous growth in the overall budget, and there has been much senior administrator hiring over the last few years." Rejskind agreed, saying UPEI is hiring more administrative and executive staff than instructors. "There are all kinds of new positions in the president's office and throughout administrations," she said. "Those are important positions, I'm sure, but they don't contribute to teaching and research."
CTV News
24-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Fewer international students adding to university budget challenges
The Roddick Gates are monumental gates that serve as the main entrance to the McGill University campus are seen on November 14, 2017 in Montreal. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz OTTAWA — Canadian universities are being forced to tighten their financial belts as they struggle with plummeting enrolment from international students who pay higher tuitions. Universities Canada says 'inadequate' provincial operating grants are also a factor in ongoing budget challenges for post-secondary institutions. President Gabriel Miller says tuition and fees from international student enrolment had provided a funding stopgap, but that is now being challenged due changing rules for international students, including a reduction in permits. 'We've been dealt a bad hand on international students, but the real problem is that governments have been gambling with the future of higher (education) for more than a decade,' Miller said. 'What we're now seeing is an opportunity gap that will start to grow where future students who want to go to study in universities are not going to have access to as many spaces. They're going to be forced to be in bigger classes, because the deal between government and families that build our universities isn't being held up.' Miller said it's 'striking' how uniform budgetary issues are across the country. McGill University is projecting a $45 million deficit for the next fiscal year, due in part to declining international student enrolment. The University of Waterloo is looking to cut spending by $42 million this year as it faces a $75 million deficit. The University of Regina is raising tuition by four per cent with 'flat' domestic enrolment and a 'significant' drop in international student enrolment contributing to budget challenges. 'We are seeing a severe loss of talent, which is greater than anything most people anticipated. And so that obviously means loss of revenue and loss of opportunity for Canadian students because those international students have been helping to pay the bills in our universities,' Miller said. Mary Feltham, chair of the Canadian Federation of Students, said that they're receiving reports of program cuts and reduced on-campus services. She said the reduction of international student enrolment is creating a domino effect that extends off campus. 'Now we're seeing a decline in services offered for everyone, a decline in jobs, a decline in different types of programs, which is impacting the ability for people to get an education and then contribute back to their province and country,' Feltham said. The government's target for study permits this year is 437,000 nationwide, a 10 per cent reduction over 2024. Ottawa first introduced it's cap on study permits in 2024, which it says contributed to a roughly 40 per cent reduction in international students and 'eased' the rental housing market in areas with high student populations. Tuition for these students varies by school, but international fees are typically four to five times what domestic students pay. An emailed statement from a spokeswoman for Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab said that Canada values the 'significant' benefits international students bring to the country but the program faced sustainability challenges. The statement adds that the new minister looks forward to meeting with stakeholders to address concerns and ensure Canada continues to attract top talent. Miller said Universities Canada has requested a meeting with the minister. He said the cap itself isn't as big an issue as requesting stability in the rules for international students so Canada can be seen as attractive. Feltham said that the CFS is working on lobby efforts to all levels of government to improve post-secondary funding and they'd been warning about these coming issues 'for years.' 'It's just really frustrating to see because international students have often been used as a scapegoat for these problems or been used as cash cows,' Feltham said. 'So universities and colleges have really relied on them to be a source of income, which is also not appropriate, and this is why we've been asking for governments to properly fund these institutions.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 24, 2025 David Baxter, The Canadian Press
Winnipeg Free Press
24-05-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Fewer international students adding to university budget challenges
OTTAWA – Canadian universities are being forced to tighten their financial belts as they struggle with plummeting enrolment from international students who pay higher tuitions. Universities Canada says 'inadequate' provincial operating grants are also a factor in ongoing budget challenges for post-secondary institutions. President Gabriel Miller says tuition and fees from international student enrolment had provided a funding stopgap, but that is now being challenged due changing rules for international students, including a reduction in permits. 'We've been dealt a bad hand on international students, but the real problem is that governments have been gambling with the future of higher (education) for more than a decade,' Miller said. 'What we're now seeing is an opportunity gap that will start to grow where future students who want to go to study in universities are not going to have access to as many spaces. They're going to be forced to be in bigger classes, because the deal between government and families that build our universities isn't being held up.' Miller said it's 'striking' how uniform budgetary issues are across the country. McGill University is projecting a $45 million deficit for the next fiscal year, due in part to declining international student enrolment. The University of Waterloo is looking to cut spending by $42 million this year as it faces a $75 million deficit. The University of Regina is raising tuition by four per cent with 'flat' domestic enrolment and a 'significant' drop in international student enrolment contributing to budget challenges. 'We are seeing a severe loss of talent, which is greater than anything most people anticipated. And so that obviously means loss of revenue and loss of opportunity for Canadian students because those international students have been helping to pay the bills in our universities,' Miller said. Mary Feltham, chair of the Canadian Federation of Students, said that they're receiving reports of program cuts and reduced on-campus services. She said the reduction of international student enrolment is creating a domino effect that extends off campus. 'Now we're seeing a decline in services offered for everyone, a decline in jobs, a decline in different types of programs, which is impacting the ability for people to get an education and then contribute back to their province and country,' Feltham said. The government's target for study permits this year is 437,000 nationwide, a 10 per cent reduction over 2024. Ottawa first introduced it's cap on study permits in 2024, which it says contributed to a roughly 40 per cent reduction in international students and 'eased' the rental housing market in areas with high student populations. Tuition for these students varies by school, but international fees are typically four to five times what domestic students pay. An emailed statement from a spokeswoman for Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab said that Canada values the 'significant' benefits international students bring to the country but the program faced sustainability challenges. The statement adds that the new minister looks forward to meeting with stakeholders to address concerns and ensure Canada continues to attract top talent. Miller said Universities Canada has requested a meeting with the minister. He said the cap itself isn't as big an issue as requesting stability in the rules for international students so Canada can be seen as attractive. Feltham said that the CFS is working on lobby efforts to all levels of government to improve post-secondary funding and they'd been warning about these coming issues 'for years.' 'It's just really frustrating to see because international students have often been used as a scapegoat for these problems or been used as cash cows,' Feltham said. 'So universities and colleges have really relied on them to be a source of income, which is also not appropriate, and this is why we've been asking for governments to properly fund these institutions.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 24, 2025
CBC
30-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
A U.S. brain drain could be Canada's brain gain
Over the last few months, academics and scientists in the U.S. have been scrambling to keep their footing on swiftly eroding ground, amid massive Donald Trump-ordered funding cuts and new restrictions. But although a weakening of the American scientific community has far-reaching impacts on the global academic landscape, experts say one side effect could be top talent from the U.S. coming to Canada. Already, some researchers, academics and scientists are making the journey — and some provinces and organizations in Canada are looking to reap the benefits. "The more questions and concerns emerge in the United States, the more opportunity there is for Canada to try and reassert its leadership in the world as a global research powerhouse," said Gabriel Miller, president and CEO of Universities Canada. A dominating force in academia The U.S. has long been a dominating force in the academic world, home to many of the most highly regarded universities in the world. But Trump has begun an aggressive campaign in his second term, increasingly targeting academia and scientific organizations in a bid to cut government spending and move against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies. Over the last few months, the administration has slashed federal funding and restricted leading institutions from communicating with international counterparts. Trump has also issued executive orders that led to many organizations, like the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, deleting scientific data sets and censoring language. Most at risk are researchers whose work goes against the stated goals of the new administration. The Environmental Protection Agency terminated grant agreements worth $20 billion US for clean energy and climate-friendly projects earlier this month, and Canadian researchers applying to receive U.S. grant funding are now being asked to confirm that their projects contain no "DEI" elements, among other politically charged inquiries. "It's kind of an attack to what we're used to in university, academic freedom and the opportunity to inquire about any kind of topic," Rémi Quirion, Quebec's chief scientist, told CBC News. Against this backdrop, some academics in the U.S. have already decided to take their skills up north. Jason Stanley, a philosophy professor, recently left a position at Yale University to join the University of Toronto, citing a "far-right regime" under Trump. Two other Yale historians also made the same move earlier this year. Timothy Snyder and Marci Shore, who are married, are on leave from Yale and slated to begin teaching courses at U of T's Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy in the fall. Snyder is the best-selling author of The Road to Unfreedom and On Tyranny, 20 Lessons From the 21st Century, the latter of which is about the need to stand up to authoritarianism when it threatens democracy. They're not the only American experts eyeing a switch to Canada. Though there isn't specific data at the moment, several in the Canadian research community, including university leaders and professors, are reporting increased interest from scientists working or training in the U.S., said Mona Nemer, Canada's chief science adviser. A U.S. crisis could be a Canadian opportunity Earlier this month, Quebec Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge announced that the province was actively looking to recruit scientific talent from the U.S. who are wary of what he called "the climate-skeptic directions that the White House is taking." "Every crisis brings opportunities," he said at an event held by the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations. For researchers in this field and others targeted with cuts, Canada could be an appealing alternative, said Quirion. In Quebec in particular, academic freedom is legally guaranteed, he said. (However, this came with its own controversy, as the law's creation was prompted by a debate over whether a professor should be suspended for saying a racial slur in a lesson.) Other provinces are also looking to attract U.S. workers. Both Manitoba and B.C. have launched campaigns within the last two months to attract more U.S. health-care professionals. Jennie Massey, a partner with executive search firm KBRS in New Brunswick, told CBC News earlier this month that she'd received 14 applications the morning after Trump's inauguration. Most were from academics looking to join Canada's universities and colleges, she said. Court challenges and backlash may have caused the U.S. administration to reverse some recent funding freezes, but the impacts on the field are lasting. "If your grant is stopped for a few months, it's really hard to basically keep coming back and keep the momentum on the research topic," Quirion said. "Very quickly you lose competitiveness or you lose interest also because you don't get enough support for that research project." Complications in pulling U.S. talent An ironic twist is that as some regions seek to woo more U.S. talent, Canada has been trying to cut down on international students and new permanent residents. In October, the federal government announced a reduction in immigration levels in a bid to relieve pressure on the housing market. Under this plan, more than 40 per cent of new permanent residents in 2025 will be temporary residents already living in Canada. A cap on international students, announced last year, has also triggered job cuts, lower enrollment and program cancellations at some post-secondary institutions due to the loss of revenue from international students' tuition fees, potentially impacting their ability to acquire new teaching talent. At this moment, Canada needs to invest more in pathways for U.S. talent to come to this country, Quirion said. Existing pathways could be expanded on, he suggested, citing the Canada Excellence Research Chair, which supports Canadian universities with investments of $10 million over seven years to attract researchers. And the question of handling academic freedom is still contentious in some regions of Canada. Earlier this month, Alberta exempted post-secondary institutions from a bill that would have required them to get provincial approval before entering into agreements with the federal government, after pressure from academic organizations. And a debate is currently unfolding in Nova Scotia over a proposed bill which critics say would give the government too much control over university funding. Still, Canada has a unique opportunity right now, Miller said. "The benefit of this moment is the reminder to Canada that we should treasure our outstanding research being done in universities and that we can take advantage of this moment to reassert that we're gonna be leaders and that we're gonna win in the global competition for talent.
