As of the beginning of 2020 Canada had 642,000 international students. This brings Canada to third in overall standings for popular destinations of international students. Canada currently sits just behind the United States and the UK in overall numbers of international students. Together these three countries making up 85% of all international students globally. Even in today’s current state of pandemic, Canada the US, and UK are still expected to dominate the international student market going into 2021.
What makes Canada so attractive to international student?
One of the most obvious reason why Canada is so popular, is because we are a English speaking nation. In today’s society most international business runs in English, its the primary language of international trade companies, airports, the language of computer programing, and the list goes on. It’s almost impossible to work for a large international company without using English and even harder yet to gain a corporate position without it.
Second, Canada is home to some of the worlds top universities. Some of these include,
- University of Toronto
- University of British Columbia
- McGill University
- University of Montreal
- University of Alberta
In fact, Canada also places high in almost every educational category when it comes to overall education. A study conducted by the US News & World Report, stated that students in Canada scored high on the OECD’s (Organization for Economic Co-operation) Program for International Student Assessment in almost every category. As previously mentioned, this places Canada in third, right behind the US and UK.
It’s not just education rankings that make Canada a great place to study, we also happen to be one of the most welcoming countries. By 2031 visible minority groups are expected to make up 63% of the population of Toronto, 59% of Vancouver and 31% of Montréal. According the Statistics Canada,
“According to demographic projections, the proportion of foreign-born people in the population could increase from 20% in 2006 to between 25% and 28% by 2031. Just over half (55%) could be born in Asia.”
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-402-x/2011000/chap/imm/imm-eng.htm
If all this isn’t enough to persuade you, Canada has also become a rapidly growing tech power. Vancouver B.C. even surpassing San Francisco at 29% growth to their 27%. That’s a 21% growth rate increase in just over a year. On top of that, Us News also ranked Canada first for quality of life among 80 nations, spanning every continent. For international students, this means access to a rapidly growing and very popular industry, with access to great wages and career growth potential.
Where to study in Canada
Of the provinces in Canada, Toronto and British Columbia have the most international students. Individually, these two provinces double the number of international students in the next leading province. Together, these two make up more than half of all international students nation wide.
- Toronto, 48% of students
- British Columbia, 23% of students
- Quebec, 14% of students
- Other provinces, 15% of students
Not surprising considering British Columbia and Ontario are home to 7 of the top 10 universities in Canada. Some of the most note worthy of these schools are, the University of British Columbia, University of Toronto, McGill University, and Simon Fraser University.