Canada Asia Commentary No. 40 2 Table 1: Foreign Student Flows by Country of Origin 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 S

Commentary ducational services are a key and recruit overseas students. There is, in sharp growing sector of the international contrast to the other nations, no “Canadian Eeconomy. The training and brand” identity in the Chinese market. While education of international students in the Government of Canada is constrained by Canada alone has an estimated $4 billion its lack of constitutional authority in the impact. Most international students in delivery of educational services at home, it Canada and elsewhere come from Asia, has been generally absent from the promotion and especially China, resulting in keen of Canadian education overseas. Yet at the competition for elementary, high school, institutional level Canadian school districts, college and university students from the colleges, universities and private institutions region by Australia, New Zealand, France, have taken independent and creative steps to Germany, Japan, the United States and the enhance their presence in the Chinese market. United Kingdom. Canada has been a These range from aggressive recruiting comparatively minor player in this growing campaigns to the establishment of campuses sector, despite strong historical ties between in China. However, a sharp rise in the number China and Canada and the presence of a of Chinese university spaces in recent years, large Chinese-Canadian community. a large and growing number of foreign-owned Canada has not been able to match the institutions in the country, and strong Canada Asia strong appeal of American education, international competition, is already Number 40 particularly at the university level. In dampening the flow of new Chinese students January 2006 comparison to its main competitors, notably to Canada. Without rapid and concerted Australia, New Zealand and the United efforts in China and elsewhere, Canada will Kingdom, Canadian institutions lack a forfeit its place in this successful and lucrative coordinated national marketing effort, and service industry. It will also jeopardize have not made a sustained commitment to Canada’s future ties with Asia. Canada Missing Opportunity in the Booming China Education Market By Carin Holroyd * Canadian educators have, with varying degrees of understanding and commitment, realized that education presents an important economic opportunity. Students come from all over the world to study in communities across Canada. Many come for short-term English as a Second Language (ESL) and French as a Second Language (FSL) programs. Some come as elementary school students while others complete university undergraduate and graduate programs. As the number of Canadian students at the elementary, secondary and university levels is expected to decline sharply in several provinces over the next few years, universities and school boards are Canada Asia Commentary realizing the economic importance of recruiting more international students. As is available by email and on the APF Canada website: www.asiapacific.ca * Carin Holroyd is a Senior Research Analyst at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She holds a PhD in Political Economy from the University of Waikato in New Zealand and has extensive ISSN 1481-0433 experience in international post-secondary education. they venture, with varying degrees of success and enthusiasm, into the global educational marketplace, Canadian institutions are encountering a fast-changing and potentially very remunerative field of opportunity. They are also discovering that other nations, particularly Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the United States, are serious competitors for the same students, with a more extensive international presence and with forceful backing from their national governments. Foreign student market Twenty years ago, students who studied outside their home countries were generally part of only 20 years old organized government or service group exchanges, such as those promoted for many years by Rotary International. International education was supported largely as an avenue of development assistance, for its cross-cultural benefits and as a means of introducing domestic students to life in other countries. The situation then changed dramatically. School boards, colleges and universities, strapped for cash and often experiencing strong enrollment pressures, realized that many international students were willing to pay the full cost of their education. Institutions recognized that, even after subtracting the cost of recruitment activities and on-campus support programs, the tuition fees from a comparatively small number of international students could provide budgetary security and even additional funds for extra educational activities. Inflow brings gains There are also significant benefits for the broader economy. Educational institutions and to whole economy the federal government estimate that the average full-time international student in Canada spends at least $25,000 a year beyond tuition fees (which, for high school and university students are in the range of $10,000 to $15,000 a year for non-professional programs). They pay for accommodation, buy food, clothing, recreation, travel and many other goods and services. Recognizing the economic benefits associated with overseas students, a growing number of countries have made international recruitment a priority. Canadian institutions With the burgeoning global demand for education, and with many developing countries open for business… unable to provide high level opportunities for more than a fraction of their student populations, institutions in many countries, including Canada, found themselves facing a wave of applicants. After sorting out many thorny details, like differential student fees for international students and questions of student visas, schools, colleges and universities declared themselves open for business. Canadian institutions were not disappointed, as they experienced an almost immediate surge in international enrollments. The early international student population typically came from the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and a handful of other nations. The new wave of applicants come increasingly from Asia. In 2004, South Korea was the single most important source of students for Canada (in terms of student flows), followed by China and Japan. The United States and France rounded out the top five.1 The three Asian nations – the two wealthiest in East Asia and a country with a rapidly growing economy – send substantially more students on an annual basis than the US and France, a pattern consistent with the pattern in the leading competitor nations of Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. 1 It is difficult to obtain complete statistics as students from many countries attending courses shorter than six months do not need student visas, although for some countries, including China, formal permits are needed. Chinese students are unlikely to be granted permission to study in Canada for less than six months so study permit statistics capture all or almost all Chinese students. Many students from countries such as South Korea and Japan come to Canada for short periods and require only visitor visas. According to the best estimates by the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo, the total number of students coming from Japan to Canada, for example, is probably about double the number indicated by study permit statistics. APF Canada - Canada Asia Commentary No. 40 2 Table 1: Foreign Student Flows by Country of Origin 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 S. Korea 3,671 6,407 10,682 13,311 13,755 12,995 12,304 China 1,772 3,614 5,635 9,948 10,577 9,535 6,988 Japan 5,513 5,760 5,598 6,452 5,873 5,263 4,868 US 4,156 4,507 4,947 4,787 4,087 3,808 3,809 France* 3,108 3,715 4,057 4,066 3,378 3,323 3,480 Total 40,846 50,501 61,036 70,871 66,410 60,201 56,536 Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Facts and Figures 2004: Immigration Overview: Temporary Residents: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pub/facts2004/temporary/9.html *Almost all of the students from France go to Quebec where they pay domestic student fees. (Students in Quebec pay lower tuition fees than students in other Canadian provinces.) Student “flows” refers to the number of new international students coming to a country in a given year. Student “stock” refers to the total number of international students in a country at a particular time. Student stock numbers show that China is the largest source country for Canada followed by South Korea, the US, Japan and France. (See Table 2). This means that more of the Chinese students study in Canada for longer periods than do South Korean students. Table 2: Foreign Student Stock by Country of Origin 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 China 3,017 5,450 9,341 17,673 26,312 33,188 36,747 S. 8,346 10,073 14,384 19,096 22,231 23,844 25,204 Korea US 9,084 9,928 10,987 11,857 11,647 11,368 11,630 Japan 9,583 9,469 9,452 10,164 9,382 8,794 8,775 France 4,265 5,109 5,607 6,096 5,621 5,814 6,058 Total 77,273 87,259 102,300 123,200 134,517 144,245 153,638 Source: CIC Canada, Facts and Figures 2004: Immigration Overview: Temporary Residents: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pub/facts2004/temporary/10.html … but other countries By 2000, institutions across Canada were looking to a major expansion of recruiting sell harder than Canada initiatives in Asia, and specifically in China. There was a growing sense that an influx of international students could address funding shortfalls at Canadian schools, colleges and universities. However, the increasing number of visa students masked the reality that Canada was not doing as well as its main competitors. In Australia and New Zealand, educational institutions and the national governments declared international education to be a high priority. Similarly, the United Kingdom under Prime Minister Tony Blair launched major initiatives to attract students to the country, particularly at the post- secondary level.

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