B.C. launches review in post-secondary education system

The provincial government is taking action after post-secondary schools are feeling the financial strain of fewer international students.

In response, B.C.’s Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills is launching an independent review of the public post-secondary education system.

In a press release on Tuesday, the ministry says that institutions across the sector are in critical positions, and the review aims to keep the system accessible, affordable, and sustainable.

Among others, the review’s goal is to identify additional opportunities to address both short-term and long-term financial challenges by delivering programs more effectively within existing budgets.

A federal-imposed cap on international students is the predominant reason why schools are struggling.

Jessie Sunner, the Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills, says she talked with the federal immigration minister in October to discuss the matter and the implications on B.C.’s post-secondary education system.

“Those decisions that the federal government made were unilateral, and we were left out of those conversations,” Sunner told 1130 NewsRadio.

“Whether it’s student visas or immigration [in] general, we need to ensure that it’s stable and predictable and that B.C. is at the table when we’re making decisions about B.C.”

According to Sunner’s ministry, tuition from international students is one of the schools’ main revenue sources, and with the number of international study permits dropping, the institutions have fewer financial resources available.

“Institutions are also running out of funds and going into their cash, which is going to lead to a significant impact on our sector that is going to be hard to come back from,” Sunner added.

For schools, such as SFU, KPU, Langara College, and Vancouver Community College (VCC), the consequences have been layoffs and other cost-cutting measures.

“This just shows that this is not an issue with one institution or two. It’s why we need to look at the sector as a whole,” Sunner argued.

IRCC wants to keep cutting student visas

International students entering the country have decreased from over one million in January 2024 to about 725,000 in September this year.

And Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced on Tuesday that this number will further decrease as the federal government’s goal is to keep the share of temporary residents below 5 per cent of the total population by the end of 2027.

“Next year, IRCC expects to issue up to 408,000 study permits,” the department said in a press release.

“This number is 7 per cent lower than the 2025 issuance target of 437,000 and 16 per cent lower than the 2024 issuance target of 485,000.”

Many public schools have already called on different levels of government in the past to step in and provide additional funding for the institutions.

VCC’s president, Frank Cosco, said that if nothing is done, he can’t imagine how the institutions will survive.

Earlier in November, the province announced that it wants to invest $241 million in trades training over the next three years.

The review will be conducted by former B.C. deputy minister Don Avison. He is also a former board chair at Emily Carr University. A report on the results is not expected until March 2026.

With files from David Nadalini.