P.E.I.'s graduate mentorship program will provide 50 additional work opportunities for 2015-2016, says the province.

Under the program, Skills PEI contributes up to 50 per cent of wage costs for the first year of employment for post-secondary school graduates.  Workforce and Advanced Learning Minister Richard Brown says, the program gives new graduates opportunities to obtain skills and work experience while making a living in the province.  It also provides employers more access to a skilled labour pool, he says.

Since the program was introduced in 2012, it has provided mentorships for 280 graduates in a number of sectors including information technology, business, marketing and construction. The provincial government will expand the mentorship program for recent graduates to consider applications from international students. Richard Brown, minister of Workforce and Advanced Learning said those students will fall under a transition to employment pilot project.  Under the program, Skills PEI contributes up to 50 per cent of wage costs for the first year of employment for post-secondary school graduates.

Post-secondary graduate mentorship program expanding

"Hopefully they join the companies, help the company grow, and they will stay here on Prince Edward Island. The company grows, the economy grows, it's good for Prince Edward Island," said Brown. The program will also see an expansion on the business side.

Employers from the public sector including municipalities, First Nations, educational institutions and others are now eligible, provided they can financially support the graduate. Brown said 325 graduates have been involved in the mentorship program since it was launched in 2012. He declined comment on possible funding changes for the program, saying that information would be included in the upcoming provincial budget.

International students have become an increasingly integral part of Canada’s immigration strategy as a result of ongoing changes to federal regulations aimed at recruiting more highly skilled newcomers to the country.

The federal government has made incremental revisions to immigration rules in recent years designed to tap into this desirable pool of potential immigrants, said Harald Bauder, academic director of Ryerson University’s Centre for Immigration and Settlement. It’s been “a creeping transition” away from a system that assesses would-be economic migrants on a points system towards a two-step process that admits international students and foreign skilled workers on a temporary basis before allowing them to transition to permanent residency status.

“It’s not a reform that’s been passed by Parliament,” Dr. Bauder said. “It’s an incremental approach.  And if you put all the different puzzle pieces together, then you end up with a different [immigration] system.”

The Canadian Experience Class stream, introduced in 2008, is a central piece of that puzzle.  Although it accounts for a small proportion of economic immigrants admitted to Canada, it is the fastest growing class. The CEC allows skilled foreign workers who have been working in Canada on a temporary basis and foreign graduates of Canadian postsecondary institutions with work experience to apply for permanent residency without leaving the country. In the past, foreign students wishing to immigrate to Canada were required to return to their home country to apply. Since the program’s inception five years ago, more than 20,000 permanent residents have entered Canada through the CEC.

The Conservative government eased CEC requirements at the start of 2013. As of January, foreign students may stay in the country for up to three years following graduation, instead of two, giving them more time to gain the Canadian work experience needed to qualify for permanent residency. The government also reduced the work requirement period to 12 months from 24. After three years, permanent residents may apply for Canadian citizenship.

Dr. Bauder said the changes help get around one of the major problems facing those admitted under the points system. Although highly skilled, these immigrants often have difficulty finding work in their fields because employers don’t recognize foreign credentials and work experience, or because they lack adequate language skills. Foreign students who graduate with a Canadian degree or diploma aren’t likely to face the same challenges, he said.

“In a way [foreign students] are the ideal immigrants if you assume the perspective that you want immigrants who produce economic benefits for Canada,” said Dr. Bauder. “They are ready to enter the labour market and start paying taxes.” However, one question no one is addressing is whether Canada is justified in encouraging the exodus of highly trained workers from their home countries, he added.

Canada has set a target of accepting 10,000 permanent residents through the CEC program this year. In 2011, the most recent year for which figures are available, Canada admitted almost 4,000 principal applicants through the CEC plus 2,000 spouses and dependents.  About half were former international students.

Almost 240,000 international students were studying in Canada in 2011, according to Citizenship and Immigration Canada data cited in a 2012 report by the Canadian Bureau for International Education; about half of these were enrolled in universities. The number of foreign students studying in Canada at all levels of education has been growing more quickly in recent years. The year-over-year increase averaged 11.5 percent from 2008 to 2011, up from an average of 4.3 percent from 2001 to 2008, according to CIC.

CBIE, a non-profit agency, attributed the growth partly to favourable policy changes that have made Canada a more attractive destination for foreign students. “For many years international students and international graduates of our institutions were somewhat ignored,” said Jennifer Humphries, CBIE vice-president of membership, public policy and communications. “I think there just wasn’t a strong understanding that they were golden, in a sense, because they had Canadian credentials, they had already integrated to some extent and they had shown adaptability … I think there’s been a major shift.”

Postsecondary institutions include information about immigration policies in their promotional materials, although they take care to emphasize that the primary reason students should come to Canada is for their studies, she added. “But it is a very important thing for many students to know that there are potential opportunities that might lead to permanent residence status or longer-term work experience after graduation,” Ms. Humphries said.

The immigration changes help to make Canada more attractive to foreign students and “make a positive contribution to our ability to attract international students,” said Doug Weir, executive director of student programs and services at University of Alberta International. “At the same time, Canadian institutions like the University of Alberta have really upped their game in attracting international students,” he said.

In addition to changes to the CEC, the federal government has revised rules governing temporary work permits for international students. The Post-Graduation Work Permit program allows students to work for up to three years after completing their studies with no restriction on the type of employment. The number of work permits issued under this program has doubled since the government revised it in 2008. Off-campus work permits allow students to work up to 20 hours a week during regular academic sessions. The government has proposed allowing full-time international students with valid study permits to automatically be eligible to work off campus starting in 2014, eliminating the need to apply for a separate work permit. If approved, this will put Canada ahead of what other major host countries offer, Ms. Humphries observed.

International students may also transition to permanent residency through the PhD stream of the Federal Skilled Worker Program and the student stream of the Provincial Nominee Program. Several provinces, including New Brunswick and Newfoundland, have made international student recruitment a priority as a means of offsetting local population declines.

Still, there are challenges. The number of permanent residents admitted under the CEC class has consistently fallen short of targets since the program was introduced. One reason for this may be that the weak job market has made it difficult for new graduates to find employment and gain the work experience needed to quality, said Sophia Lowe, manager of community engagement at World Education Services, a non-profit agency that provides credential evaluation services and conducts research on international education. But, she added, the program seems to be picking up steam.

The federal government’s expert advisory panel on international education led by Western University President Amit Chakma recommended further expanding the CEC program and promoting it more.

The immigration changes have had implications for postsecondary institutions as well, requiring them to revamp the settlement services they offer. Sonja Knutson, acting director of Memorial University’s International Centre and manager of the international student advising office, said settlement services have changed dramatically over the past decade. Memorial now offers a professional skills development program to help foreign students with job searches and interview skills. Another program is designed to teach them about launching their own businesses. Memorial also provides language training and other support services to spouses and children of foreign students.

“We want to make it clear that we will do everything we can to support them if they choose to stay,” Ms. Knutson said. Ten years ago, she noted, settlement services usually involved airport pick-up and help with finding housing and completing forms.

Adapted from: University Affairs.

Study and work permit holders from visa-exempt-countries who received their permit on or before July 31, 2015 are expected to have an eTA as of March 15, 2016 to fly or transit to Canada. However, from March 15, 2016 until fall 2016, study and work permit holders who do not have an eTA can board their flight, as long as they have appropriate travel documents, such as a valid passport.

Applicants who are issued an initial study or work permit on or after August 1, 2015 will automatically be issued an eTA along with their permit. For work permit or study permit renewal applications, the eTA will not be automatically renewed. If you wish to exit and re-enter Canada by air, you will need to ensure that your eTA is still valid by consulting the Check Status Tool. If your eTA has expired, you will need to apply for a new one as soon as you can and before the end of the eTA transition period in fall 2016.

Adapted from: Government of Canada - Immigration and Citizenship