EDMONTON- For many post-secondary students, the first day of school can be daunting. But it can be even more daunting for the thousands of international students coming to Edmonton to further their educations.
“I’m nervous because it’s a whole new experience,” said Oyebanji Oyenekan, who is from Nigeria and is a first-year business student at NAIT.
According to a new HSBC study, Canada continues to attract a record number of students from abroad. In 2013, Canada welcomed a record 100,000 international students, an increase of 60 per cent from 2004, according to the research.
“We have about 300 international, incoming students right now. I believe we’ve been welcoming students for the last 10 years,” said Patrick Sullivan, international student advisor at NAIT.
It was international student orientation day at NAIT on Friday. Hundreds of new students arrived on campus to learn more about the upcoming school year.
Sullivan says the number of international students NAIT accepts has been steadily increasing over the past 10 years. In total, there are about 1,600 international students enrolled at NAIT this year alone.
“I would say 40 per cent come from China, maybe another 30, 35 from India. South Korea and Vietnam are probably 10ish each, and Saudia Arabian students also come,” Sullivan explained.
“The majority come for business programs. A lot want to come into engineering programs, not all get in, and then they go into either business or DMIT (Digital Media and IT). Lots come for hospitality, culinary as well.”
According to HSBC, international students pay about US$18, 474 per year for their education in Canada. On average, Canadian students pay about $5,500 per year.
So why is studying in Canada, and at NAIT in particular, so appealing?
“I have come here because I’ve heard really good feedback about NAIT, regarding the technical education they provide. What I’ve heard is they provide hands-on skills,” said Nandini Karumbur Ramu, a first-year Instrumentation Technology student from India.
“I had plans to apply to SAIT also, and to the University, but… I felt NAIT is better so I just came here.”
“I went to university in Nigeria, but international schools, western education is far more better, so I went for it,” added Oyenekan.
“I think NAIT’s reputation is increasingly becoming more global in scope, and word of mouth.,” Sullivan explained. “A student that graduates here with a great education that phones his family back home and tell his family is the best ambassador.”
Students officially head back-to-class on Tuesday morning. But for Oyenekan, his education has already started.
“I spoken with virtually everybody from all areas of the world,” he said. “And hearing from different people that I’ve never seen before and I don’t know of their culture, but getting to know them here is really, really amazing.”
The following chart, compiled by HSBC, outlines tuition fees for higher education in 13 countries around the world:
With files from Vinesh Pratap, Global News.
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