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Author: Alex Usher

Student Visas, Old Systems and New

If you want to know how messed up the visa processing system is about to get in the next couple of months…well, buckle up. Y’all may remember that when Minister Marc Miller announced caps on student visas, he indicated that each province would be responsible for allocating visas among its own institutions. All provinces will be required to provide students with a letter or certificate attached to their applications, indicating the institution that the student is to attend. This already

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February 6, 2024 2 Comments

The Dawn of a New Era

The events of the last couple of weeks have kept everyone in the higher education sector in a whirlwind. But step back a minute. It’s worth thinking about the big picture. Some of you may remember this graph which I drew about a year ago, looking at the history of higher education funding in Canada. It shows total university and college income by source back to 1955-56. Looking at the trends across these six decades, I think it tells a

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February 5, 2024 6 Comments

Malaysian Higher Education

If I asked most people to name an up-and-coming higher education system – one not from a wealthy country but perhaps from the middle-income zone – people would probably naturally speak about China. And they’d probably be right: China’s higher education system has achieved remarkable things in the half-century since it was re-constructed after the Cultural Revolution. But could you name a second? Let me give you my answer: it’s Malaysia. It’s not well-known outside the region, but in fact

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February 1, 2024 No Comments

Update on University Finances

Last week, I wrote about college finances. Today I thought I would spend some time updating some of the more interesting graphs I’ve done over the past few years with respect to university finances.  I do quite a lot on university finances in HESA’s annual State of Post-Secondary Education, but over the years I have also done some slightly more bespoke takes that don’t make it into SPEC. And so, herewith, my 2024 update on those numbers. In Figure 1,

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January 31, 2024 No Comments

How bad is it going to get in Ontario? Really Bad.

Last Friday, the Ontario government issued a media release outlining what it was going to do with respect to international students in the wake of the Government of Canada’s Monday announcement on study permits and work visas. I reproduce it substantially intact below because it is so objectively terrible. To protect the integrity of postsecondary education and promote employment in critical sectors like health care and the skilled trades, the government’s measures will include the following: Colleges and Universities Career

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January 30, 2024 7 Comments

One Thought to Start Your Day

One Thought to Start Your Day is our founder and CEO Alex Usher’s popular daily blog, brimming with up-to-the-minute insights and informed opinions on today’s higher education industry.

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