Further to my message following the January 22, 2024 announcement by the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship (IRCC), I am writing to outline what the IRCC policy changes mean for NC and the steps we’re taking to adapt to this changing landscape.
While the provincial government’s system for allocating study permits across Ontario’s colleges and universities has yet to be determined, we anticipate a reduction in international student enrolment. Furthermore, the measures announced by IRCC will also impact Niagara College Toronto – our partnership with the Toronto School of Management. Under the new policy, students studying in public college programs through private partnerships will no longer be eligible for post-graduate work permits as of September.
Although the impact of this new policy on our revenues will be significant, when we launched Niagara College Toronto, we made the strategic decision to keep partnership revenue separate from our operational budget. Instead, these revenues have contributed to budget surpluses that will support strategic investments in new facilities on both campuses, as outlined in our Master Plan. We look forward to breaking ground over the next two years on a number of projects to enhance our on-campus learning environments, student experience and capacity in high-demand program areas.
The new IRCC policies will affect each institution differently and I know that media coverage has painted an unsettling picture in some parts of the province. Although the new IRCC measures will undoubtedly create challenges for Niagara College, our history of strong financial management (including being debt-free), our entrepreneurial mindset, and recent investments to build our brand and grow our exceptional team through record hiring, will position us well as we chart our course in the coming years.
While we continue to assess the full effect of the new IRCC measures and await further clarification on how they will be implemented, we’re focused on mitigating the overall impact on our operations to maintain the growth and momentum that we have worked hard to create.
These strategies include:
- A strong focus on domestic student recruitment. This has always been a priority but attracting more domestic students becomes more important than ever. We’ve already made progress in this key focus area through targeted, strategic investments as reflected in strong domestic student growth this Winter term, after several years of decline, and in our domestic student applications and confirmations for Fall 2024. We will develop new strategies to further bolster our domestic student enrolment.
- Enhancing our fundraising and development activities. With the creation of our Advancement division in 2023 we have built exceptional momentum in this area as we prepare for a comprehensive campaign to fund projects and initiatives that align with our strategic plan and expand our ability to produce highly-skilled graduates that are addressing urgent needs in key sectors of our economy.
- Leveraging our entrepreneurial spirit. We will continue to diversify our international activities and identify new revenue streams in Niagara and abroad while being nimble and responsive through new academic programming and applied research that responds to current and evolving industry needs.
- Advocating for greater government investment in colleges. The Ontario government’s Blue Ribbon Panel made a series of recommendations to enhance postsecondary education funding in the province. Niagara College has joined all of Ontario’s public colleges in advocating for an adoption of these recommendations to provide greater financial stability to our sector.
Much has been said about our sector in the wake of the IRCC announcement and I want to emphasize the importance of Ontario’s colleges, and the value of the work that all of us do, day in and day out. The impact of our graduates in the community and around the world is immeasurable, and the experience and success that we provide for students is reflected in the global demand for our programs.
I will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available; in the meantime, our focus will remain on our students, strategic priorities, and positioning NC for success in a very competitive and fluid postsecondary landscape. We will continue to dream big and harness our strong organizational culture, creativity and collaborative spirit. The sudden changes announced two weeks ago by IRCC may alter our course, but they certainly won’t stop us from getting to where we want to go.
