International grads more likely to hold jobs below their education levels: StatCan

OTTAWA — International students who graduated from Canadian schools are more likely to be underemployed than their Canadian peers — and many are living with lower incomes as a result.

Statistics Canada’s national graduates survey looked at the employment rate for more than 83,000 international students who graduated in 2020, remained in Canada and did not pursue further education.

The survey said slightly more than a third of international graduates with bachelor’s degrees held jobs that required university degrees, compared with three in five of their Canadian peers.

Statistics Canada said this helps explain why the median annual income for international students with bachelor degrees is 20 per cent below the median level for all Canadian graduates.

The survey also found that international graduates are more than three times more likely to work in the sales and services sectors than their Canadian counterparts.

Despite all this, the survey said international and Canadian graduates report similar levels of job satisfaction.

André Côté, the director of public policy and research at The Dais, a think-tank at Toronto Metropolitan University, said new international grads entering the job market can lack “Canadian experience,” which can be a barrier.

“An important factor in securing employment is often your network to be able to get connected into opportunities as you enter the recruitment process. Also, employers often look to see whether people have relevant Canadian experiences on their CVs,” Côté said.

“So a challenge for international students, new to Canada, is they often won’t have those on their CVs.”

Côté co-authored a report earlier this year that called on governments and post-secondary institutions to revise how international student programs are managed after a major reduction in student visas being issued over the next two years.

The report recommended introducing more supports to help international students get their careers going.

“Universities and colleges should be doing a lot more. These students are paying massive fees to be able to study here, and there is definitely more that our institutions can be doing to be setting them up for success in work after,” he said.

Côté’s report said too many international students are taking general business degrees instead of training for jobs in sectors like health services that are short of people.

International graduates accounted for 24 per cent of all students completing post-secondary programs in 2020.

While the income gap between recent international and Canadian graduates is significant, it appears to narrow in the medium to long term.

Côté pointed to a January 2020 study by the Labour Market Information Council that tracked the tax data of 2010 post-secondary graduates.

That study found a 21 per cent gap between the average incomes of Canadian and international students one year after graduation, but said it narrowed to nine per cent five years after the completion of studies.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 5, 2025.

David Baxter, The Canadian Press