• Français
Future Skills Center logo
Français
Polygon Created with Sketch. Home | Research
Research

International Students’ Transition to Work

International college students tend to have poorer employment outcomes than their Canadian-born peers. Except for those in STEM fields, international college graduates earn 15 to 23 percent less after graduation. They face multiple labour market barriers, including challenges with networking, language, discrimination, and job interviews.

To understand how colleges can innovate to help improve the employment outcomes of international college students, we: 

  • surveyed 1,002 final-year international college students and recent international college graduates;
  • interviewed 42 final-year international college students and recent graduates and 42 public college staff working in international student services, career services, and experiential learning.
Download Report Button
a group of three office workers talking and laughing next to computers

Key insights

We found that participation in career services was linked to several positive employment outcomes for international college students and graduates, including higher levels of job satisfaction and increased likelihood of having Canadian work experience.

Despite the clear benefits of career services, over a third of international college students we surveyed have not used them. Common barriers for international college students include difficulty accessing information on relevant programs and services.

Colleges can leverage peer support networks to create formal peer mentorship programs within career services. These programs can ensure that students receive consistent and accurate information while offering professional development and paid opportunities for international student mentors.

More from FSC

Person on computer using an AI image generator app
Research

Rising Concerns About the Impact of New Technologies on Employment

  • December 2025
  • Diversity Institute, Environics Institute
The proportion of Canadian workers who are worried about losing their job in the coming years because the work they do will soon be done by computers or robots has increased, and this cannot be accounted for simply by pointing to growing pessimism about the economy in general. Rather, there is a more direct relationship between concerns about the impact of automation on employment, and the use of AI programs at work.
1 Related Reports
Group of young coworkers analyzing data while sitting in front of computers while one of them looking through notes in notebook
Research

Scoping a PIAAC Research Agenda: Programme for the International Assessments of Adult Competencies

  • December 2025
  • Shift Insights
This project was initiated to develop a Canadian PIAAC research agenda that can guide policymakers, researchers and practitioners in using these new data to close knowledge gaps, enhance policy decisions and improve national performance in skills development.
1 Related Reports
Indigenous Canadian using a mobile device
Project

Project Connect: Professional Project Administrator Program

  • December 2025
  • Royal Roads University
Indigenous Peoples represent the fastest growing and youngest population in Canada, offering critical potential to address skills shortages. Yet systemic inequities in access to education and training persist, resulting in lower employment outcomes and increased vulnerability to economic downturns.
2 Related Reports
View all Research