Acknowledgements
Competition for International Students: What Atlantic Canada Universities Have to Offer
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- The Demand for International Students
- International Students Surveys: Results from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK
- Results from the First Survey of International Students in Atlantic Canada
- University
Competition for International Students: What Atlantic Canada Universities Have to OfferTo help the Agency (ACOA) better define the role that universities could play with regard to immigration (attraction, integration, retention), interviews were held with international student advisors in 8 of the region’s universities. They provided information on what Atlantic Canada universities have to offer in terms of programs and services to international students to facilitate their stay and encourage/help them to remain in the region after completing their studies. To attract international students into the area, universities use various marketing strategies: Agents in other countries Alumni Abroad Campaign in Target Areas (which have been successful in the past) Disseminate information through Canadian Education Centres (CEC) Network International Fairs Recruiters- International and Domestic Videos, CDs Websites Numerous programs and services are also offered to international students through international student advisors or general student advisors to facilitate their integration into the university and the community: Academic Assistance Airport Reception Program Centralized services Coffee Club Community Outreach Counselling Employment Services Financial Aid Graduate Student Short-term Emergency Loans Health Services Health Insurance Holiday Hosting Program HomeStay Host Family Immigration Advice Informational, Educational, Social, Cultural Sessions International Film club International Student Association International Student Centre International Student Orientation Language Support- academic, conversational language supports Listserve On campus/ Off campus and Emergency housing Peer Correspondent Program/ Pen Pal Program Peer health Program Advisor Promotion of international development education Residential Program (room, board) Resource Settlement Issues Social Room Website Maintenance Welcome Program/ First Contact Services Women’s Discussion Group Writing Tutorials In setting up such programs and services, university officials take certain strategic objectives into consideration: International Focus Internationalization Policy Mobility such as student exchanges Time Restraints/ Degree of Flexibility To be proactive To improve academic and living experience of international students To integrate international students To put themselves in the students’ positions in terms of rational for programs To research, plan, provide outreach to faculty and staff To retain students at the university- enrolment has been declining in some universities in the region Partnerships are also established with other community members to offer these programs and services: Churches Community Associations Host families in the community Local Settlement Agencies (provide information) Mayor & municipal councils Rotary Club World University Service of Canada (WUSC) With internal university departments such as employment services, health office, alumni society A number of issues and constraints also appear to prevent the establishment of some additional services: Financial Budget Human Resources- limited staff No CIC contact Red Tape SIN Cards starting with 9 were cancelled and SIN cards issued now have an expiry date46 The additional services needed include the following: Additional communication services- teaching styles Cross cultural trainer/ cultural sensitivity for faculty, students Include international students in student societies on campus Language support- free ESL tutoring on campus Link student cultural organizations with community cultural organizations More community based programs and settlement services (possibly in partnership with municipalities, RDAs) More social outings/ programs Peer Support/ Buddy System (Canadian Students and International Students) The Demand for International StudentsAs Atlantic Canada continues to face demographic challenges such as aging population, low birthrate, and the out- migration of youth, along with economic challenges such as labour shortages, and fiscal pressures, immigration has become increasingly important. Stakeholders including federal, provincial, & municipal governments, universities, settlement providing organizations, business and industry, community groups, regulatory bodies and professional associations have brought immigration to the forefront of economic development policy. In Nova Scotia, for example, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (Nova Scotia Division) lists more flexible immigration practices as one of the ways in which governments can help reduce the shortage of labour in Nova Scotia47. Similarly, one of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s 2004 Policy Resolutions included the ‘Skills Agenda’ and the need for immigrants to be integrated into the workforce48. However, David Chaundy, an Economist with APEC, mentions the “downward trend in the share of immigrants destined for Atlantic Canada and high rates of outmigration raise questions about the ability of the provinces to attract and retain larger numbers of immigrants.”49 Considering this, it is apparent that international students have become increasingly crucial to Atlantic Canada. A ShiftCentral Report prepared for ACOA on the ‘International Student Populations and Trends in Canada and the Atlantic Provinces’ lists a number of advantages to targeting international students, as a potential source of immigrants or long-term residents of Canada, such as local educational credentials, training and experience along with existing friendships and familiarity with the region.50 The members of the Atlantic Provinces Chambers of Commerce identified international students as a source of skilled labour and passed the following action item at their May, 2004 General Meeting: Advocate for a tax-credit program that sees domestic and foreign post-secondary graduates who stay and work in Atlantic Canada for a period of at least 5 years have their taxes payable go directly toward paying down their student loans.51 The overall value of international students has been recognized by a number of industrialized countries. One such organization is UKCOSA, formerly the UK Council for Overseas Student Affairs, now the Council for International Education, 52 As the Chair of UKCOSA’s Board of Trustees stated: International students are vital to the current and future health of UK further and higher education: the international diversity on our campuses enriches the environment for all staff and students. Additionally, they bring in fee income, make viable courses, which would otherwise, close for lack of numbers, and constitute a very significant proportion of the research student population whose work is vital to maintain and renew academic communities. They contribute to the UK economy more widely, not just to the education sector, through their depending in local communities. They provide a pool of highly skilled labour on which both universities and UK businesses call to make up for skill shortages in the domestic market. Perhaps most importantly, their familiarity with the UK will allow them to influence others- positively or negatively, depending on their experiences- both in their home countries and wherever else in the world they go.53 New Zealand has experienced growth in the export education industry54 with it bringing in $530 million in foreign exchange in 1995 and it has created an estimated 20, 000 jobs and contributed $1.7 billion to the local economy.55 Given the growing economic importance of international students, it is essential for policy makers to have a wide-ranging picture of their experiences and their level of satisfaction so that their interests can be included in policy planning and development. This is often difficult as Leonard, Pelletier & Morley found that research on international students is limited- small scale, and many times unpublished.56 International Students Surveys: Results from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UKThat being said, there have been a few larger studies on international students. The Australian Education International57, Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE)58, New Zealand Ministry of Education59 and the UKCOSA: Council for International Education60 all conducted surveys of international students studying in their respective countries. Please see Table 6 for a summary of findings from these reports. Concerns have been raised with the results of the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) study; however, it has been included in the analyses as it is the only known Canadian study of international students. It must be noted, that there are no known satisfaction studies of international students in Atlantic Canada. These international comparisons are useful, as mentioned by UKCOSA, because it allows policymakers to distinguish features of the international student experience and benchmark against some ‘competitor’ countries.61 The UK understands that quality is key- “If we are to continue recruiting international students successfully then the experience has to compare favorably to the expectation generated by the promotion, whether that promotion is undertaken at a national level by the Education UK brand or at a local level by individual institutions.”62 Study Destinations Fifty-seven percent of students that participated in the Canadian survey indicated Canada was their first country of choice, in which to study.63 This is lower than the sixty-two percent of students in the Ministry of New Zealand’s report who named New Zealand their number one choice study destination64 and the seventy-nine percent of students in the Australian International Education report who chose Australia as their number one country to study.65 Canada First reported that seventy- three percent of students cited the quality of education in Canada as the most common reason for choosing it as a study destination while sixty seven percent cited ‘safe environment.’66 The Experiences of International Students in New Zealand Report listed both factors as important to their students along with: “English- speaking environment,” “international recognition of New Zealand’s qualifications,” and “the cost of education.”67 While the ‘Why Choose Australia?’ Report placed “quality of education”, “safe and friendly”, and” English- speaking” as the most important factors considered when deciding to study in Australia, it also includes reputation for the type of course wanted to study and improving one’s chances of getting a good job as top factors.68 The Canadian69, New Zealand70, and Australian71, studies all found that the Internet was the number one media source of university information for international students. The Canadian72 and New Zealand73 reports showed that students were more influenced by peers’ and friends’ university recommendations than by parents’ or teachers’. However, the Australian74 report states students are most influenced by family at home. Educational Experiences For the most part international students have a positive academic experience studying abroad. According to the Canadian study, eighty- eight percent of students reported that that their instructors treat them fairly in class and consider their instructors to be accessible outside class75. The study also showed that ninety- three percent of students understand content and information presented in courses and eighty- seven percent are meeting academic demands.76 Eighty- seven percent of students in the UK Study were satisfied with their academic experience77 while New Zealand’s study indicated that over ninety percent of students described their academic progress as excellent, good or average.78 The data showed that overall, academic demands were not regarded as demanding as only two percent of students who participated in the research found the academic activities very difficult.79 Immigration The Canadian study reported that fifty-four percent of students said they had some difficulty with Canadian immigration officers either in their home country or at the port of entry, or when renewing or changing their study permit within Canada. The survey also suggests that a frequent issue in dealing with immigration services was the length of processing times. 80 Views varied in the UK as the study showed that thirty-eight percent of students agreed that the process of applying for an extension of leave was straightforward and efficient while thirty-four percent disagreed (twenty percent strongly disagreed) with a widespread complaint on the question of charging for visa extensions. 81 It was also noted that of those that applied for a visa extension over half (56%) made the application with the assistance of an international student advisor at their institution.82 The Australian study found that students generally had a positive visa experience with the majority of respondents ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with the visa terms, other than the cost and fee for a work permit.83 Support, Services & Facilities By and large international students are satisfied with the support, services, and facilities provided. The Canadian survey revealed that approximately eighty percent of students were pleased with the language labs, computer facilities, library resources, recreational facilities, and the International Student Advisor.84 Most students reported meeting with the International Student Advisor (62%), and using the recreational facilities (59%) and the international student handbook (53%).85 The UK survey had similar findings with seventy- eight to eighty-six percent of students satisfied with the student union, health centre, career services, social activities, and institutional advice.86 The services and facilities most used by students, as established by the UK survey, are: orientation session (80%), university’s advice service (70%), and student union’s advice service (50%). 87 The Australian survey also showed that students were happy with the support, services, and facilities provided as seventy- eight to eighty six percent said they were ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ with the help provided prior to arrival, during arrival, after arrival, and when settling in and meeting people.88 The New Zealand survey found that sixty- nine to seventy- two percent of students thought the language labs, counseling and learning support were good or excellent.89 These numbers are slightly lower than that of the other aforementioned surveys. Although students have access to social support, according to New Zealand’s findings informal sources were seen as more readily available than formal sources: People from the student’s home country were an important source of social support for emotional needs.90 In addition, New Zealand’s survey report noted that a large portion of were actually unaware of the support, services, and facilities available.91 For example, forty percent of students did not know if their institution had a mentoring program.92 Relationships Canada has fared better at integrating international students socially than other countries. In the Canadian study93 sixty-three percent of international students said they were friends with Canadian students while the UK study94 said only thirty-two percent had UK and International friends and the New Zealand study95 reported that merely thirty-six percent had a few New Zealander friends. In fact, the UK data96 shows that just seven percent of students have mainly UK friends and the New Zealand report97 reveals just six percent of international students have many New Zealander friends. The New Zealand study pointed out regional variations in attitudes toward intercultural friendships. For example: While Chinese students were significantly more likely to see New Zealanders as friendly, they were also more likely to believe that New Zealanders should make the first steps in establishing friendships. Overall, the pattern of results converge to suggest that although Chinese students see the circumstances in New Zealand as more conducive to friendship building than other students, they are less likely to express interest and make efforts and more likely to see New Zealanders as being responsible for initiating friendships.98 Both New Zealand’s99 and the UK’s100 studies indicated that language proficiency could prevent international students from forming friendships with local students. For instance, two-thirds of native English speakers have UK friends, compared to thirty-six percent of speakers of English as a second language, and twenty-nine percent of those for whom it is a foreign language.101 Despite everything, the UK report102 showed that fifty-nine percent of students wanted more chances to experience UK culture and family life and the New Zealand report103 stated that seventy percent of students would like to make friends with New Zealanders. Life The Canadian study reported that ninety percent of students were ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ with their decision to attend their institution and ninety-one percent of students were ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ with their decision to study in Canada.104 Most students felt their Canadian studies were valuable and beneficial for the following reasons105: Helping make me a more educated person (89%); Preparing for further study (78%); Preparing me for employment (74%); Helping me discover my career interests (71%); Increasing the chances for making more money during my working years (67%); and Contribute to the advancement of my country (57%). This is comparable to the UK study findings where eighty nine percent of respondents described themselves as ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ with their stay in the UK and the most common benefits listed as their academic experience, improving their English, becoming more independent, meeting people from all over the world and learning about the UK and other cultures.106 New Zealand’s study uncovered slightly different results as its students were only somewhat to moderately satisfied: thirty- three percent agreed with the statement “I am satisfied with my life” and twenty-eight percent viewed the conditions of their lives as excellent.107 The students evaluated the major features of the towns and cities in which they resided as average and good with public transit (40%), shopping (24%), and entertainment rated as poor (20%).108 Future Plans Both Canada and New Zealand show promise in the future retention of international students. Canada First reported that almost fifty percent of the students expected to continue their education, most commonly studying for another degree. Of these students seventeen percent wanted to continue their education in Canada,109 The study also showed that approximately fifty percent of students expected to work after completing their current program with twenty-five percent wanting to apply for permanent residence status and work in Canada and another twelve percent wanting to work for a year before returning home.110 In total, fifty- four percent of international students were interested in remaining in Canada upon graduation. The Experiences of International Students in New Zealand Report illustrated that forty-two percent of the students intended to further their studies in New Zealand, and when the 11% who intend to find work there were also considered, over half of the international students in New Zealand planned to remain in the country immediately after completing their current program of studies.111 Table 6 Comparison of International Students Survey Findings in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK
Results from the First Survey of International Students in Atlantic CanadaBackground InformationSurvey RespondentsThis section describes the respondents who completed the pilot Survey of International Students in Atlantic Canada. The description is based on the details provided in section A: Background Information. One hundred and thirty five international students took part in this study. The sample included seventy nine (59%) females and fifty six (41%) males. Ages ranged from seventeen years to fifty three years with a mean of 24.9 years. Table 7
The majority of students were unmarried (81%). As seen in Figure 14, only twenty- nine out of the hundred and thirty- five (22%) had family members in Atlantic Canada. Figure 14 
Students from forty four countries/ regions were included in this sample. Figure 15 reveals the sample was consistent with regional trends, China (18%) was the number one source country followed by India (10%) and the United States (10%). Smaller source countries/ regions included: Africa (6%), Bermuda (5%), Mexico (4%), Hong Kong (3%), Malaysia (2%), and Kuwait (2%). The remaining students (less than 1% in each case) originated from: Austria, Australia, Argentina, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Norway, Palestine, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia. Figure 15 
Figure 16 shows most students identified themselves as Christian (34%) or as having no religious affiliation (34%); however, 15% of the sample were Muslim, 8% were Buddhist, and 6% were Hindu. Small numbers of Sikhs (1%) and other religions (2%) were included in the sample. Figure 16 
For most of the students (70%) this is the first time studying overseas. Out of those that had studied in Atlantic Canada (11%) or rest of Canada (16%) or Canadian institution abroad (2%): 6 attended secondary school 4 attended polytechnic/ institute of technology 22 attended university 2 attended other tertiary institution 8 attended private language school 6 attended other Length of stay so far in Atlantic Canada ranged from less than a month to seventy two months with a mean of twenty five months. Seventy six students (56%) indicated they planned to study in Atlantic Canada for more than three years. UniversityAs seen in Figure 17, students who participated in the study were primarily (68%) located in Nova Scotia, with 50% in Halifax and 18% in Wolfville. 19% of students were located in Newfoundland (St. John’s) and 10% in Prince Edward Island (Charlottetown). Figure 17 
The sample consisted of seventy one Bachelors students, forty five Masters students, and twenty PhD students. As seen in Figure 18, most students were enrolled in their first year (46%) and second year (33%) of studies at their respective universities. Figure 18 
As seen in Figure 19, Science (38%) was the leading field of study followed by Business & Management (18%) and Engineering (15%). A number of students were enrolled in Computer Science (13%) and Arts & Social Science (12%) and the remainder of the students were enrolled in Health Professions (2%), Medicine (1%), and Education (1%). Figure 19 
Parents (63%) were the number one source of financial support for these students’ education in Atlantic Canada. Additional financial support came from self (33%), Canadian scholarship (21%), international loan (8%), international scholarship (7%), own government (7%), employer (6%), other family members (5%), husband/ wife (3%), and in rare cases Canadian loan (1%). As seen in Figure 20, payment for education was most frequently described (32%) as ‘moderately difficult’ however, quite a few students found payment ‘very’ (27%) to ‘extremely’ (19%) difficult. Only 11% of students did not find it difficult at all to pay for their education in Atlantic Canada. Figure 20 
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