Studying in Canada helps international students improve their language skills and gain Canadian work experience - which enhances their earning potential when they become permanent residents here. "During the first two years after immigration, principal economic applicants with experience studying in Canada earned much more than those who did not study in Canada," according to a report by Statistics Canada.

"This advantage was entirely due to their better official language abilities and much higher engagement with Canadian work experience before immigration." Language improvement and work experience give international students an advantage in international students as a source of labor supply: Pre-immigration study in Canada and post-immigration earnings. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) researcher Eden Crossman and Statistics Canada researcher Feng Hou reveal that Canadian education often leads international students to earn more than others who obtained their permanent residence at the same time, more than two years after immigration. But it is not the quality of Canadian education that gives them the edge. It is the additional Canadian work experience and the opportunity to improve French and/or English language skills while in Canada. Compared to other immigrants who obtained permanent residency at the same time but have the same amount of education in their home countries and who also have similar French and English language skills, those who studied in Canada have already earned less than two years after immigrating here.

However, their Canadian education was not the reason for the potential lower income after two years of immigrating here. As the researchers point out, the low income of new permanent residents who received their education in Canada in the two years following immigration was only due to the tendency of many of them to continue working after graduation. Many stayed in school. By doing so, these new permanent residents had lower incomes during these two years because they were not working full-time. 

Canadian education pays off for international students in the long run. The researchers noted that "while the low annual income in the first few years after immigration reflects their continued status as students, the benefits of Canadian study experience grew over the long term." They wrote: "After 10 to 11 years of immigration, economic immigrants who had at least one year of Canadian study experience earned significantly higher earnings than those who did not have such experience, regardless of whether they had Canadian work experience before immigration."

. International students are a blessing for Canada; they are a ready group of skilled workers who can become permanent residents and help the country solve the massive labor shortage. Ottawa stated in a recent statement: "More than 58,000 graduates succeeded in applying for permanent immigration in 2019, and their decisions to stay in Canada will help address our stark demographic challenges." During the Covid-19 pandemic, border restrictions and public health restrictions led Ottawa to implement many changes in the employment of international students. The World University Rankings monitored study permit applications during the pandemic and gives strong marks to Canada for its measures to help international students. "The latest data, showing the number of study permit holders by the effective date, indicates a strong rebound in (international student enrollment in Canada in) 2021"