The Most Popular Canadian Universities and Colleges For International Students in 2022

Designated Learning Institution (DLI) data for 2022 is in, and a large number of Canadian institutions have reason to celebrate.

Today, we’re diving into full-year 2022 numbers to take a complete look at the landscape of Canada’s post-secondary sector. Which colleges are most popular among international students? What do the top 10 university rankings look like? And which institutions are vaulting up the priority lists of international students?

We’ll answer all these questions and highlight some of the most interesting insights about Canada’s most popular institutions.

Canadian Study Permit Numbers Continue to Rise

Midway through last year, we predicted that 2022 would set an all-time high for study permit approvals in Canada. Not only was 2022 Canada’s best ever year for international education, it shattered the previous high.

Let’s take a look at how study permit approvals have trended over the past five years:

In 2022, over 356,000 students were approved to study in Canada at the post-secondary level, surpassing the previous high of nearly 286,000 set in 2021. That’s an increase of over 30%.

Let’s put this into context. Discounting the pandemic rebound from 2020 to 2021 (+350%), the 30% growth in post-secondary study permit approvals seen between 2021 and 2022 is the highest-ever recorded annual increase in Canadian history.

Which institutions are powering this growth? Let’s break down the top colleges in Canada among international students.

The Most Popular Colleges in Canada for International Students

Colleges are growing in popularity among international students. 62% of the post-secondary study permit approvals in 2022 were at the college level, up from 55% in 2021. The number of college approvals in 2022 rose by 40% year-over-year.

Here’s how the 10 most popular colleges among international students in Canada have evolved since 2018:

Colleges accounted for 8 of the 10 most popular institutions in Canada in 2022, and have decisively become the favourite post-secondary choice of international students over university.

Let’s take a closer look at the top five Canadian colleges last year:

Kitchener, Ontario’s Conestoga College is the most popular institution in Canada among international students. With over 21,000 new study permit approvals in 2022, Conestoga welcomed over 9,000 more students than the next-most-popular school last year.

Since 2018, Conestoga’s new international student population has grown by over 250%. With the addition of over 1 million square feet of college campus and plans to expand their campus to the nearby city of Guelph, Conestoga is undergoing the physical expansion necessary to keep up with this growing demand.

After dropping down to the number four spot in the college rankings during the 2020 pandemic year, Toronto-based Centennial College experienced a huge rebound in 2022. 12,000 international students were approved to study at Centennial last year—the highest-ever single-year total for study permit approvals in the school’s history.

A main draw for Seneca College is its location. Seneca’s multiple campuses located throughout the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) have helped attract over 35,000 international students since 2018. Although it did experience a slight decline in enrollment compared to 2021 (-12%), this is no cause for concern.

2021’s high was likely a product of pent-up demand produced during the pandemic. In 2022, Seneca welcomed nearly three times as many students as in 2018—the highest growth among top 10 colleges not named Conestoga.

With roots in Sarnia, Ontario, Lambton College has been a favourite among international students for the better part of a decade. Lambton has made the top 10 colleges list each of the past seven years and welcomed over 9,000 new international students in 2022. The trusted community of international students that flourished over recent years is sure to keep Lambton on this list for the foreseeable future.

London, Ontario’s most popular post-secondary institution among international students is Fanshawe College. In 2022, 9,000 new international students were approved to study at Fanshawe, a single-year record for the college. With a 120% increase in the number of study permit approvals compared to 2018, Fanshawe is the third-fastest-growing college in the top 10.

Most Popular Canadian Universities for International Students in 2022

While the tide seems to be shifting slightly towards colleges, several Canadian universities are as popular as they’ve ever been.

Here’s what the top 10 universities among international students looked like in 2022:

While Canadian universities saw a lower share of new post-secondary international students in 2022 for the third consecutive year, there are some success stories that give reason to be excited about.

Here are the five most popular universities for international students in Canada in 2022:

After steadily rising up the rankings over the past five years, University Canada West has finally claimed the title of most popular university in Canada among international students. Welcoming over 10,000 new international students in 2022, Vancouver, British Columbia’s UCW saw a 93% increase in new international students compared to 2021. Even more impressive, this was a 1,100% increase from 2018, when this university admitted just 842 foreign students.

The University of Toronto has held a place on the top 10 university rankings for each of the past five years. While the 7,000 new international students U of T welcomed in 2022 did not eclipse the all-time high of 9,200 set in 2021, it was still good for second in the 2022 rankings.

Toronto’s biggest university by student population has not experienced the same seismic growth as some other schools within the top 10, but the university’s location and pedigree figure to be enough to keep it high on the wish lists of international students for years to come.

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario’s Algoma University has admitted international students for several years, but has only recently exploded in popularity. Just 223 international students were approved to study at Algoma in 2018. In 2022, that number catapulted to nearly 6,000—over 26 times the 2018 total.

From 2021 to 2022, new international student enrollment increased by 230%, making Algoma the fastest-growing institution among international students in all of Canada.

Located just outside Vancouver, UBC ranked second on this list in 2021 and fell to fourth last year. Much like U of T, UBC is a model of consistency, ranking within the top five schools in all of the past 7 years. From 2015 to 2019, UBC was the most popular Canadian university for new international students.

Despite a modest five-year growth of 7%, UBC’s long-standing reputation and strength should help this institution remain popular among plenty of international students moving forward.

2022 was a record year for Toronto’s York University, as it welcomed 4,600 new international students to campus. This was a 25% increase from 2021, a notch higher than the university average during that period of 22%. York has shown steady growth over the past five years, which, coupled with its location, positions this university well for the future.

Fastest-Growing Institutions in Canada

Location, reputation, and size will always be factors that power institutions to the top of these rankings. However, there are pockets of growth all over the international education landscape of Canada.

These were the fastest-growing institutions in Canada among international students from 2021 to 2022:

Remote Universities Growing in Popularity

Students can often be drawn to the diversity and vibrancy of larger cities. But now more than ever, we’re starting to see international students settle down at some of Canada’s more remote universities.

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario; Langley, British Columbia; and Sydney, Nova Scotia are the homes of the three fastest growing universities in Canada from 2021-2022. These universities are becoming better at recruiting. In part by building satellite campuses and in part by working with third parties, like ApplyBoard, to accelerate targeted and diverse recruitment efforts.

Interest among international students can snowball quickly. A very recent example of this is the growth of Filipino students within several rural communities across Alberta. Outside the top 15 source markets in 2016, the Philippines was the second-largest source market in Canada in 2022. Travelling to places that their friends and family can vouch for can be a hugely meaningful factor to students.

As universities in smaller towns continue to prioritize their international recruitment and lean into building new cultural communities, we expect this encouraging growth to continue. Don’t be surprised if more small Canadian towns show up on these growth rankings in future years.

The Shifting Post-Secondary Preferences of International Students

2022 was the biggest year ever for international education in Canada. And while annual record-breaking enrollment has been the headline in Canada most recent years, how this growth forms is changing.

College is now the popular choice for post-secondary education in Canada. Students want to land jobs in their field of study after graduation and colleges offer them a streamlined path to do so. With some of Canada’s largest employment vacancies appearing in college-educated fields, it makes sense why colleges are piquing the interest of international students.

Meanwhile, universities are seeing growth in unexpected places. Recent growth numbers from some of Canada’s smaller university towns are proof that any place can feel like home with the right community. Look for Canada’s smaller universities to grow in big ways over the next few years, while their larger, more established counterparts continue to demand the attention of international students.

About the ApplyInsights Team

FOOTNOTES:

2. All data courtesy of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).