Climbing number of foreign students puts B.C. university's cap system to the test
For the first time since Simon Fraser University began accepting international students, the school did not open its spring term to them because the cap for international students for the whole year was filled in August.
International students' demand for positions at British Columbia postsecondary institutions has significantly increased in recent years and schools must juggle that increasing demand while remaining committed to the number of spaces they offer to domestic students.
Dan Peng is an international student from China currently studying at a local college affiliated with Simon Fraser. She aims to get into Simon Fraser's business program next fall and her studies at Fraser International College guarantee her a position there as long as she keeps her grades up. But she says the cutoff is alarming.
"I am a little bit worried," she said in an interview. "I think [I need] to check my e-mals frequently and keep myself updated about the application information. Meanwhile, I need to keep a high GPA."
Leanne Dalton, SFU's senior director for student success and strategic support, said caps on the number of international students are necessary because "it's extremely challenging" to guarantee there are enough supports in place for them, including accommodation and counselling support. By early August, far earlier than expected, those caps for the year had been reached.
"It's a difficult decision to not open our application to international applicants for this Spring 2018 term," she said. "The demand of international students has been really strong the last couple of years...and we had good retention [this year]."
At both Simon Fraser and the University of British Columbia, there are separate enrollment quotas for domestic and foreign students. Attracting foreign students has become an important recruitment method for schools because of the significantly higher tuition they pay, but school administrators are adamant that preferential treatment is not given to foreign students.