Catherine Sas Says Why Immigration gets an A-grade for helping foreign students Finally, we have an immigration minister who understands the value that international students bring to Canada. Minister Joe Volpe is going to allow them to work here while they study. The immediate benefit to Canada will be an increase in skilled workers. Historically, foreign students who come to study at Canadian educational institutions have been precluded from working in Canada to earn money that would help pay for their education. Even though they pay higher fees than Canadian students – effectively subsidizing education for our kids – they have been shut out of the labor force. But if the new minister is as good as his word, international students attending public post-secondary institutions will be allowed to work off campus. Canadian employers will benefit from their skills, energy and initiative. And the nation will have a larger pool of skilled workers from which to draw. Ironically, it’s taken a shortage of skilled workers in Canada to bring common sense to the table. Ask almost anyone in the service sector, particularly tourism, which employs large numbers of seasonal workers, and they’ll tell you how tough it is to find reliable, intelligent staff, particularly outside major metropolitan centres. This new initiative will alleviate that problem – and here’s how. Minister Volpe is also planning to extend the period of time that students can get a work permit after they graduate from Canadian post-secondary institutions. Currently, they are allowed 12 months here to work in their chosen field after they get out of school. After that time is up, they are sent packing. Now, foreign students who secure a job outside the greater Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto regions will be able to get a two-year work permit to stay. Not only will this give them valuable on-the-job experience, it will assist them to gain permanent residence status. Given the worldwide shortage of skilled labor, the greatest long-term benefit will be to Canada and the Canadian economy. And if anyone says there are political motives at work here, I say who cares? There was more good news recently for foreign students in British Columbia who have obtained a diploma or degree in the province over a period of two years or more. The B.C. government’s new Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) for qualified foreign students makes them eligible to apply for permanent residency providing they can get a permanent job offer in their field. This enables B.C. to retain the skills of students who have invested in the province by buying an education here. They pay. They stay. We all benefit. I say hooray for both levels of government. It’s about time we saw more of these common sense initiatives introduced into Canada’s immigration process. Archives: Aug/05 Why are the provinces stymieing this sensible legislation? July/05 Let’s get business immigration back on the fast track May/05 Why Immigration gets an A-grade for helping foreign students