A delegation of nine Canadian universities visited India Aug. 19-31 with the aim of recruiting potential students.
The trip was led by Carleton University’s international admissions and recruitment officer Robert Finlayson and Ryerson University’s Michelle Beaton. Organized by the Canadian Higher Education Committee, the tour included stops in Mumbai, New Delhi, Dehradun, Hyderabad, and Bangalore, according to a press release by the Canadian government.
Nine universities attended, including Carleton, the University of Toronto, McGill University, Ryerson University, York University, the University of British Columbia, Concordia University, Queen’s University, and the University of Guelph.
The trip was aimed at recruiting strong potential students for Canadian university studies, according to the press release.
Sarah Ramisch Stewart, manager of Carleton’s international admissions and recruitment office, said the trip was an opportunity to “raise the profile of Canada as a desirable destination” for post-secondary studies.
Universities benefitted from meeting some of India’s brightest students, according to Stewart.
She said international students are what make Carleton unique.
“Carleton is very proud of its diverse campus,” Stewart said via email. “International students bring a diversity of perspectives and rich cultural experiences that benefit the entire campus community.”
She said while Carleton presents its full range of programs to potential international students, some programs tend to attract more interest than others.
“Some of the programs we receive most enquiries about from Indian students are those in engineering, and across the arts and social sciences,” Stewart said. “Students with good grades from the national and international schools there tend to be well prepared for university in Canada, and are interested in the programs Carleton has to offer.”
This year Carleton plans to reach students in over 40 countries, and has 2,400 international students overall, according to Stewart. She said Carleton’s largest population of international students is from Asia and the Middle East.
Second-year student Shonalie Raha, who is from Mumbai, said the university was originally advertised to her at a university fair.
“Many careers . . . that are offered in Canada do not receive much recognition back home,” Raha said. “That is why I chose to be here.”
Ali Abbas, a master’s in sociology student from York University and an international student from India, said his choice in selecting which university to attend was about more than studying in Canada.
“While Canadian education does have a positive regard internationally, the opportunity to settle into Canadian society and become a resident drew me,” he said. “Canadian universities, at least in Ontario, are deeply engrained in the larger society.”
Indian students are desired by Canadian schools for a variety of reasons, Finlayson said in a press release.
“Indian students are sought for their academic strength and their rich contribution to student life on Canadian university campuses,” he said. “Each year we are seeing more Indian students choosing Canada as their first choice for study—as evidenced by the success of this tour.”
Abbas said about 15-20 of his peers from India came to study in Canada, but it was limited to those with the funds to pay international student fees.
“You cannot expect to pay international fees with no source of finance,” he said.
