Demand for programmes proposed by Canadian colleges and institutes was high, especially last year, as 57% of all applications processed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in 2021 were for colleges (a 5% boost over 2020), analogized with 35% for universities (down 6% from 2020). The 280,600 college-related applications prepared by IRCC in 2021 depict a 114% growth over the past five years.

Out of 286,400 study permits that IRCC approved in 2021 for all programmes, 52% were for applicants to college programmes, demonstrating the increasingly essential role that colleges are playing in the development of Canada’s international education sector.

A new analysis from Statistics Canada indicates that this trend commenced around 2017, and there are two underlying elements. First, overflowing enrolments from Indian students are causing a considerable proportion of that overall growth. Second, Indian students are specifically heavily illustrated in postgraduate programmes offered by Canadian colleges and institutes.

The number of Indian students in Canada has enormously increased over the past decade, advancing nearly tenfold from just over 27,000 in 2011 to 220,000 by the end of last year.

For the present, reports by Statistics Canada (StatsCan), College postgraduate credential programmes —typically demanding a prior postsecondary credential as a provision for entry and aimed at offering career-specific skills — have increased in popularity, accounting for 13% of all college graduations in 2019, more than dual the share (6%) registered five years before in 2014.

Graduations with college postgraduate credentials more than doubled between 2014 & 2019, reaching more than 33,000 credentials awarded by the end of that period. Also, by 2019, over half of those graduates (53%) were from India.

StatsCan added that this is a unique sensation among all postsecondary programmes, as a minority of graduates from other programmes were Indian international students. For example, Indian students made up 12% of graduates with non-postgraduate college diplomas and certificates, the credential with the next-highest share of Indian graduates.

The StatsCan data also clearly demonstrates that many students achieving a postgraduate qualification went on to secure permanent residency in Canada. Through 2019, eight in ten foreign graduates of postgraduate college programmes acquired permanent residence within five years of graduation.

StatsCan stated that this compares to 71% for those who completed a non-postgraduate college certificate or diploma, 69% with a master’s degree, and 50% with a bachelor’s degree.

Permanent residency rates of Indian international students were beyond 80% for all four credential types- with the rate sky-scraping among Indian students with a college postgraduate credential (85%). Among international students from countries other than India, permanent residency rates were inferior to those of Indian international students. They also varied between credentials. They were highest among those with a college postgraduate credential (74%) and most inadequate among those with a bachelor’s degree (49%).