Dreaming Big, Coming Up Short: The challenging realities of international students and graduates in Atlantic Canada

This paper relies on interview data emerging from interviews with 50 international students, recent international graduates, and policy and service providers at four urban centers in the Atlantic region. We focused on participants’ understanding of emerging policy avenues to permanent settlement in the provinces, as well as students’ willingness and perceived challenges in pursuing settlement in the Atlantic region specifically, and Canada more generally. We found that international students are generally attracted to universities in the region by comparatively low tuition and cost of living rates, institutional agreements such as the ‘Two Plus Two’ programs, as well as social networks that provide potential migrants with support and confidence. Students are also attracted by policies that allow them to work during and after their studies, and that provide accompanying family with work-permits as well. This is particularly important as many students attracted by lower tuition and living costs seem to be more financially vulnerable. Our data indicates that although an overwhelming majority of students are interested in settling in Canada, participants encountered some obstacles in entering the Atlantic Canadian labour market post-graduation, as many found networks of employment that are not open to them. In some cases, students and graduates reported being discriminated against based on race and accents. Moreover, we found that negative experiences with social isolation and limited availability and quality of jobs during their studies impact further decisions to attempt settlement, mostly acting as deterrents in students’ settlement in the Atlantic region.