It is a return of sorts to pre-pandemic conditions for international students. The Minister of Immigration, Marc Miller, announced the end of a temporary policy which had allowed them to work forty hours a week in order to compensate for the lack of labor and help the country’s economic recovery. Before, they could only work twenty hours a week while studying. In September, when we return to class, it will be twenty-four hours, the equivalent of three eight-hour shifts each week.
To justify this approach, his ministry cites recent studies which “showed that students who work more than twenty-eight hours per week see their academic performance decline significantly and that working more than twenty-four hours per week increases the risk of dropping out of school”.
Political motives?
Other reasons seem to have weighed in the balance, writes the CBC : “Critics have warned that allowing international students to work full-time could turn a study permit into an unofficial work visa.”
Allowing students to work the equivalent of three eight-hour shifts each week is “reasonable”, believes the minister, noting that research carried out by his ministry shows that “more than 80% of international students currently work more than twenty hours per week”, summarizes the broadcaster.
Maybe. THE Toronto Star note that “the ability to work off-campus has become an important incentive for international students to study in Canada, as they can work to offset the costs of their studies and sometimes gain the work experience necessary for their eventual permanent residency”.
During vacations, including summer months, observe The Globe and Mail, “international students will be allowed to work more hours, even full time”.
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