London's Global Classroom: Indian Students Lead Record-Breaking International Enrollment
Source: IRCC Temporary Residents, August 31, 2023 Data. Data request tracking number: CR-23-0581.
India is the country with the largest number of international students in London, figures from Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada and analyzed by LMLIP’s Fact-Sharing work group show.
In total, 5,855 international students from India had a study permit, representing 37 per cent of the more than 16,000 students from 85 countries who chose the Forest City as their city of destination for their post-secondary education.
Indian students were followed by those coming from China, which at 2,145 students represented 13 per cent of the total international student population, while 1,810 students from the Philippines, or 11 per cent, rounded the Top 3 for London.
As was to be expected, Western University and Fanshawe College were the two institutions that attracted the vast majority of international students.
According to data made public by Western University, for instance, the university’s student body was about 40,000 people for the 2023-24 school year. Of those, about 6,000 are international students.
On its part, Fanshawe attracted about 6,500 students, according to data from the college.
The data analyzed by the LMLIP work group represent the most accurate picture of the international student population to date in London, which has seen the total number of student permit holders rise steadily in the past two decades.
While only 415 international students were reported in London in 1995, according to the IRCC data, that number has grown to 16,105 in 2022.
London’s growth mirrors that seen across the country, which in 2011 welcomed about 240,000 international students. That number has since risen to 900,000 in 2023, according to a report by The Toronto Star.
The only recent decline locally came in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic led to a drop in international students with only 7,770 obtaining permits that year.
The overall increase and attraction of international students has resulted in billions of dollars in economic spinoffs for the Canadian economy.
According to the Canadian government, international students contribute about $22.3 billion to the nation’s economy each year.
In Ontario alone, they also accounted for 30 per cent of college enrolment in 2021 but 68 per cent of tuition paid, according to The Star.
More importantly, international students represent an important pool of talent for an economy that continues to struggle with labour shortages and thousands of unfilled positions.