Key Issues Facing Canadian Postsecondary Education

I’ve had the opportunity to be part of two industries at their “testing” points — the Indian hospitality sector during Covid, and the Canadian higher education sector today. In 2020, hospitality faced a nightmare: empty lobbies, silent hallways, cancellations as far as the eye could see. In 2025, higher ed faced a similar nightmare: empty lecture halls, fewer courses, and dwindling applications. The similarities are striking: • Both relied too heavily on a single market. • Both were blindsided by forces beyond their control. • Both were left with the same urgent question: What now? When hotels hit rock bottom, the survivors didn’t wait it out. They reimagined their audiences and their offerings: • New revenue streams like staycations, work-from-hotel, curated boutique stays. • Partnerships with food delivery, hospitals, and corporates. • Repurposed spaces as offices, vaccination centres, and even EV charging hubs. • New customer segments like doctors, essential workers, and local communities. • Leaner, smarter operating models. • Digital-first pivots with online check-in, contactless service, and virtual concierge. Canadian higher ed is now at the same crossroads. Empty seats can’t be filled by waiting. Universities need to: • Reimagine revenue streams beyond tuition. • Forge deeper partnerships with industry, corporates, government, and communities. • Repurpose spaces into co-working hubs, research centres, and community venues. • Tap new learner segments — adult learners, reskilling professionals. • Build more agile operating models that are financially sustainable. What struck me most is that the hotels who survived didn’t treat the crisis as a pause — they treated it as a chance to reinvent. Rock bottom forces clarity. It strips away “how we’ve always done things” and leaves room for “what’s possible now.” Hotels proved reinvention is possible. Now it’s higher education’s turn. Because empty rooms and empty seats tell the same story if you don’t act.

It will take a decade or so for us to see the ramifications of the lack of public investment in post-secondary, but it will come back to haunt us. Ontario attracts investment because of its talent - plain and simple. It has a highly educated population that is sought after. For decades, we made generational investments in post-secondary education and funding research. It's the reason AI emerged from Canadian universities. However, for the last few decades, we've been living off the fruit of those investments while successive governments cut post-secondary funding. The stat that really gets you is that in 1990, post-secondary institutions received 60% of their funding from the Province, and now it is only 16.7%. We've been able to mask this lack of investment with tuition from international students that subsidized the education of Canadians. That tap is being turned off, and if we're going to continue to attract investment and jobs in the future, we're going to have to start investing in education again.

Canada approved just 75,000 new post-secondary study permits in 2025. That's a 64% drop year-over-year. The lowest number in a decade. Lower than COVID-19. The data tells a hard story: → Only 36% of new applications were approved last year → 73% of all post-secondary approvals went to students already in Canada (extensions) → The pipeline of new students entering the system is shrinking fast This is not just a policy stat. It is a generational gap forming on Canadian campuses. Without a steady flow of new students, institutions face financial strain. And as Canada's domestic workforce ages, the country will need these graduates more than ever. The students most likely to become Canada's most impactful immigrants are those who hold a Canadian post-secondary education. Slowing that pipeline now will shape the quality of Canada's immigrant workforce for years to come. I still believe in Canada as a destination. But belief has to be backed by action from policymakers, institutions, and all stakeholders. We published our full 2025 analysis today. The data is sobering. But it also shows where the opportunities are for those willing to adapt. Something needs to change fast. If we look back in a few years and realize we did not get the balance right starting in 2023, that will be a hard moment for everyone who cares about this country. Link in the comments. #InternationalEducation #StudentMobility #ApplyBoard

🇨🇦 Canada's international student cap: the audit results are in — and they're damning. Canada's Office of the Auditor General has released a formal review of the federal study permit cap introduced in 2024. The findings are stark. 📉 The numbers tell the story: ✅ 2025 study permits projected: 255,360 ✅ 2025 study permits actually issued: ~50,000 ✅ Smaller provinces (MB, PEI, NS, NB) saw enrollment declines of at least 59% — versus the projected ~10% 🔍 What the audit found: ✅ IRCC didn't know why approval rates were so far below projections. ✅ Provinces weren't told their permit allocations on time in either 2024 or 2025. ✅ Fraud detected post-permit-issuance wasn't consistently followed up on. ✅ The cap formula — based on population rather than actual approval rates — disproportionately crushed smaller provinces 🏫 On the ground: Staff layoffs. Program closures—a CA$20M deficit at the University of the Fraser Valley alone. Communities across Canada that relied on international students for economic vitality are feeling the impact. The bigger picture: Canada has lost nearly 300,000 international students over the last two years. A policy designed to protect system integrity has instead created significant collateral damage — with no effective course-correction mechanism in place. For those of us in the private education sector, this is a critical inflection point. The post-secondary landscape is being reshaped in real time — and that has downstream implications for school operators, investors, and acquirers across the country. 📎 Full ICEF Monitor article in comments. #PrivateEducation #CanadaEducation #InternationalStudents #EducationPolicy #SchoolMA #HalladayEducationGroup https://lnkd.in/g3JsnhEt

Post-secondary institutions (PSIs) are critical to Canada’s economic growth. Teaching programs improve people skills needed for today’s fast-developing economies. Discovery and applied research support a more innovative society. The institutions themselves are significant contributors to the quality of life in the communities they serve, whether in the local area or a business sector ranging from agriculture to health services requiring specialized skills. Yet, as obvious as this may be, we overlook it at our peril. Today’s PSIs are challenged on many fronts. With the sharp reduction in full-fee-paying international students, institutions have lost a significant revenue source that helped cover the cost of domestic programs. The most pressing cases are B.C. and Quebec PSIs, which derive almost three-fifths of their revenue from international students, followed by Ontario PSIs (50 percent). Governments have capped domestic student tuition fees and reduced per-student funding. During this challenging financial squeeze, institutions are facing growing public scrutiny when the principles of freedom of expression, open inquiry, and non-discrimination are perceived to be eroded in hiring, admission, and teaching practices. We need a wake-up call to fundamentally address governance, funding, and the quality of post-secondary education in Canada. Recently, I chaired a panel on funding post-secondary education in Alberta that provides a new framework to incent better performance, reduce regulatory red tape, and encourage innovation. However, a funding framework is not the only answer. If PSIs want public support, they will need to address a growing public mistrust in institutions, as recently discussed in a paper by the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. https://lnkd.in/g-ZQ82Nt

Working-age Canadians overwhelmingly believe post-secondary education is critical to our country’s future. Our new survey for CASA shows 89% see investing in PSE as essential for Canada’s long-term economic stability, with strong support for helping low-income students, expanding apprenticeships, and funding both mission-driven and curiosity-driven research. At the same time, cost remains the biggest barrier. High tuition, student debt, and gaps in job-relevant training are limiting access and success. The message is clear: Canadians value post-secondary education, but expect governments to strengthen affordability and opportunity so its full potential can be realized. Thrilled to work with CASA on this important project—read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/g74vuMEV

A recent ICEF Monitor report revealed the impact of Canada’s 2024 foreign student enrolment cap. There has been a 48% drop in new study permits issued: Only 267,890 new study permits were issued in 2024, nearly 100,000 fewer than the government’s target, and a significantly steeper decline than the planned 35%. Study permit applications processed also decreased by 32%, signalling both policy restrictions and a waning appeal of Canada’s offering due to factors like tighter post-study work rights and higher financial requirements, among others. These sharper-than-intended reductions signal a disconnect between policy targets and actual demand. It is raising concerns about Canada’s competitiveness in international education. With fewer new international students, the universities, colleges, and local economies - especially those heavily reliant on student-driven revenue - are facing a financial strain. We sincerely hope that things are in better control now than they were 18 months ago. Although the Canadian government is continuing to take steps, we look towards the Canadian agencies to soften their stance against international students. India-Canada relations are also on the mend - we hope that this reflects in visa approvals and process timelines. This will bring back positivity in the sector and benefit all stakeholders, most importantly, international students who still wish to study in Canada.

Canada’s universities are approaching a financial reckoning, and we need to talk about it. For years, universities have kept domestic tuition disproportionately low for domestic students by relying on international student fees. Recent federal policy changes have made this approach unsustainable. In Manitoba alone, we've seen a 40% drop in international students. I don't advocate American‑style tuition hikes. But Canadian students should contribute closer to the true cost of their education—while we strengthen scholarships and grants to ensure access for all with desire and potential. Universities exist to serve the public good. That mission demands stable, sustainable investment. We can't take our excellent universities for granted. My thoughts in today's Winnipeg Free Press: https://lnkd.in/gWMmepWS