Update on the Citizen and Immigration Canada Strike – Study permit delays for McGill’s international students
Quick summary:
- Foreign Service Officers from Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) are on strike.
- Study permit approval delays for international students.
- Particularly affects 15 CIC offices worldwide (Abu Dhabi, Ankara, Beijing, Cairo, Delhi, Chandigarh, Hong Kong, London, Manila, Mexico City, Moscow, Paris, Riyadh, Sao Paulo and Shanghai).
- Bolded cities are in McGill’s top 5 countries for international student enrolment.
- Good news: American students are not seriously affected. They can apply for and obtain a permit at the port of entry/border (border staff are part of a different, non-striking union).
Number of students at risk:
- Most at risk: 1184 students;
- Delayed to-date (self-reported): approximately 115 students.
These delays could lead to:
- Missed enrolment and revenue targets, particularly re: international registrants in deregulated programs;
- Negative public relations re: studying in Canada (longer-term student recruitment challenges.
Options:
- Allow students to start late (up to 17 September);
- Defer admission to later term (e.g. January or next September).
Context:
How many international (study permit holding) students are enrolled at McGill?
- Total new and returning: 8300 (20% of McGill’s registered students);
- Total new (Fall 2013): Approximately 2400;
- Total new registered students from the 15 targeted CIC offices: 1184 ß Most ‘at risk’ group.
The distribution of the 1184 students are described in the following table:
|
Total new admits registered |
Graduate level |
Undergraduate level |
Post-grad Medicine/Dentistry |
|
1,184 |
287 |
828 |
69 |
Update (12 August 2013) from CIC (via CBIE –this was communicated ‘unofficially’):
- Strike is on-going; as of 28 July, CIC has prioritized student files, in particular public colleges and universities, but in general all student files.
- Study permits are being processed at the rate of 6000-8000 per week (as of 7 August there were 24K to be processed).
- The service standard globally is at 49 days.
- Low-risk electronic applications are being transferred to posts that have capacity.
Implications of strike-related delays for McGill:
- ‘Unknown’ factor: We do not know exactly how many students have not received their study permits and this affects solid mitigation planning.
- Over 115 (6%) of our 1850 new international students have informed us that they have not received their study permit yet. We solicited this information from them.
- Researchers are depending on graduate students’ arrival for key support of research, laboratory operations, funding etc.
Options for students:
- They can arrive as late as 17 September (2.5 weeks into classes) – Space in residence will be held for them until this date (for those who were admitted to residence).
- Research graduate students may be permitted to arrive later with the agreement of their supervisor/graduate program director.
- Deferral of admission (to January 2014 for most programs; to September 2014 for some programs) if they cannot arrive by 17 September.
Communication:
- Two email notes directly to the approximately 2400 new international students and over 500 international returning students giving them information and options, and asking them to tell us if they expect a delay receiving their study permit.
- Website updates; social media messaging.
- Informed deans and other colleagues across McGill.
- McGill has contacted Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada and CIC for information and to share McGill’s mitigation plans.
- Media –radio, television and print media to distribute information about implications and options.
