Heather Wright/The Independent

Students arriving at Lambton College this year will have a lot more space to walk the halls.

College officials say there will about 30 per cent fewer students at the Sarnia campus this year as the impacts of the changes to the International Student Visa programs take hold.

In January 2024, the federal government admitted the program was out of control with nearly one million students in the country. It cut the number of student visas to 360,000.

Lambton College, like many other community colleges in Ontario, relied heavily on international students as a source of funding. 

In the 2023-2024 school year, Lambton attracted about 7,500 international students to its partner colleges in Toronto. Lambton College President Rob Kardas says under the new federal rules, those programs are being phased out, with no admissions this year. Those partnerships will end at the end of this school year.

Another 3,050 international students made Sarnia their home that school year, taking in many of Lambton’s business programs curated for their needs. This year, Kardas says, just 650 will join the domestic student body. In all, the college is preparing for about 3,550 students when classes begin Sept. 2.

Kardas says the federal government’s “aggressive” changes have “damaged Canada’s brand” as a place for international students to learn. 

Overseas agents helping international students interested in an education abroad are spelling out Canada’s visa cuts and how it is much harder to get the ones which are available. Kardas says International students accepted to Lambton aren’t guaranteed entry into Canada.

“Visa approval rates, generally speaking, have gone from 90 plus per cent (approval) at our peak, to 25 per cent,” said Kardas in an exclusive interview with The Independent. 

That uncertainty and the swift changes have been difficult, Kardas said. As the international student enrolment plummets, so does the revenue which they brought in. 

Figures provided by Lambton show international student education brought it $86.6 million at Lambton in the 2023-2024 school year. This year, it will be a quarter of that – $22.5 million.

“With the revenue being impacted like it has been, I think it’s really exposed a systemic funding issue in post secondary for both colleges and universities,” says Kardas.

Ontario colleges receive grants of about $6,800 for each full-time student. The Canadian average for college funding is $15,000.

And it’s not getting better. Lambton College received $26.4 million in provincial grants in the 2023-2024 school year; this year, it’s expecting $25.5 million.

Kardas says the province has promised a review of college funding, something Colleges Ontario called for last year as the Ford government prepared its budget. 

The province did pump another $1.3 billion into community colleges, but Colleges Ontario estimates by the end of 2026, Ontario’s institutions could be $1 billion in debt because of the cuts to international student visas.

Lambton College has already closed 18 programs and, according to union officials, laid off as many as 40 support staff. 

The president of the college wouldn’t give a concrete answer as to how many people could lose their jobs, saying they’re still working through the process. Kardas says every part of the college will feel the pain.

Kardas is hopeful the funding review will bring changes including the possibility of allowing the institutions to raise tuition. It’s been frozen for over a decade. 

That could be tough for students, but Kardas says the province could offer more aid to low-income students to offset any increase.

Kardas still looks for the bright side. Domestic enrolment is up for the third year and the nursing program is filled to capacity. And the college’s new residence is under construction, expected to be complete in two years, he says. 

And Kardas is even hopeful some good will come of the cuts to the visa program. 

“I think there’s lots of discussion that has to be had about what is the role of colleges going to be moving forward? “

Because I think we’re a big part of the solution.”

He says Lambton is training the next workers for industry and health care, NOVA and Bluewater Health particularly, and “they’re relying on us. It’s a big responsibility,” he says.

“I think it’s really obvious how important colleges are on the best of days, never mind a tariff war and everything that the economy is currently looking at.”