CANADIAN UNIVERSITIES REPORT JUMP IN US APPLICANTS AMID TRUMP CRACKDOWN

Fri 18 April 2025:

An increasing number of US-based students are looking to Canadian universities as President Donald Trump’s policies cut federal funding to American institutions and revoke foreign student visas. These changes have spurred both US citizens and international students in the US to seek academic opportunities in Canada.

The University of British Columbia (UBC) Vancouver reported a 27% surge in graduate applications from US citizens for 2025 programs compared to all of 2024, per The Guardian. UBC briefly reopened admissions for select graduate programs, fast-tracking US applicants for September starts. The University of Toronto, Canada’s largest by enrollment, saw a significant rise in US applications for 2025, while the University of Waterloo noted more US campus visitors and a 15% increase in US web traffic since September 2024.

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UBC’s provost, Gage Averill, tied the trend to Trump’s visa crackdowns and social media monitoring of foreign students, noting, “The recent visa revocations and a new center scrutinizing students’ social media have driven this shift.” The Trump administration has also frozen millions in university funding, citing inadequate responses to campus antisemitism, and has detained or deported some foreign students involved in pro-Palestinian protests, raising concerns about academic freedom.

Canada, however, has capped international student admissions for the second year, potentially limiting spots. The Immigration Ministry requires schools to support admitted students, including with housing, and provinces allocate spaces. The University of Toronto, a rival to US Ivy League schools, reported a “meaningful increase” in US applications, while Waterloo’s engineering programs saw heightened US interest. UBC noted a modest 2% rise in undergraduate applications but a 20% jump in US campus tour requests.

Averill expressed concern for US universities facing pressure from Trump’s defunding of diversity and climate science programs. UBC’s report shows the US as a top source of international students, with about 1,500 currently enrolled across its campuses. As US higher education grapples with uncertainty, Canadian schools are becoming a stable alternative, despite admission caps.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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