The president of Camosun College says the school continues to try to provide the best education to students despite recent budget shortfalls as a result of low enrolment from international students.
In 2015, the federal government started asking post-secondary institutions to increase the number of international students to address a demographic decline in industries like health care, trades engineering and technology. But in January 2024, the government introduced caps on the number of study permits for international students.
"What that did was that destroyed Canada's reputation internationally with respect to being a destination location for education," said Camosun president Lane Trotter. "Number two, it made us seem that we were unreliable in terms of providing a quality education."
Camosun built its budget based on the estimated target of 2,200 international students in 2024. However, as a result of the new legislation, the school only saw about 1,800 international students in 2024. In 2025, the number shrank more, with an estimated 1,600 students enrolling in Camosun programs, according to Trotter. The downward trend is expected to continue next year with an estimated 1,200 students enrolled.
As a result of the drop in international students, the school is expecting an $11 million budget shortfall this year, which resulted in several positions being eliminated, and some employees have been allowed to retire early or take voluntary severance pay.
"When we're going through this, this is impacting everybody in the institution," said Trotter. "Because when we're dealing with this, we're dealing with friends, we're dealing with colleagues, people we've worked with, people we know, people we know their families, we see these individuals in the grocery store."
Over the next two fiscal years – the first of which ended on April 1, 2025 – Camosun is aiming to balance its budget before enhancing services in accordance with its long-term strategic plan.
"I think that were the federal government to reverse the decision, it will take us five to 10 years to rebuild our reputation, and it's unfortunate, but this is where we're at," said Trotter. "But again, our focus is on making sure that the students coming to Camosun College get the best education, that they get the services that support their success, and that we support the community, and we will continue to do that within our budget."
Though they declined to participate in an interview, Royal Roads University said in an emailed statement, “Geopolitical tensions and visa restrictions have compounded to create a difficult environment for post-secondary institutions in Canada, which we have seen play out with institutional challenges on a local, provincial and national level.”
Royal Roads' 2024 to 2025 operational and capital budget acknowledged inflation, political and economic realities combined with recent federal and provincial changes in the student visa process are having a "chilling effect" on international student enrolment, and they are exercising caution over discretionary spending with the goal of achieving a balanced budget by the end of the three-year plan.
In 2024, Royal Roads budgeted for $45.1 million in revenue from tuition and other student fees, however, the annual financial statement identifies a shortfall of almost $5.5 million.
“While Royal Roads University is not immune to the impacts of these challenges. We are managing our budget and remain focused on raising revenue and increasing enrolment,” noted the emailed statement from Royal Roads.
According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the country is aiming to welcome 305,900 international students this year, a 10 per cent decline from 2024.
