Sheridan’s program cuts disrupt student dreams & shake the local Brampton economy

“I was shocked.”

That was Parul's initial reaction upon learning of the deep program cuts at the college she travelled nearly half-way around the world to attend. The first-year chemical laboratory technician student at Sheridan College, whose parents made significant sacrifices to send her here in August from India, was caught off guard by Sheridan’s recent decision to suspend 40 academic programs and review others that could be discontinued.

Her program at the Brampton campus was one of those that will be discontinued. 

“In response to a particularly challenging external environment, Sheridan has made the difficult but necessary decision to reduce and restructure our administration, suspend 40 programs, as well as conduct an efficiency review for 27 additional programs," Sheridan’s president and vice-chancellor, Janet Morrison, wrote in an email response to questions from The Pointer. She did not address how impacted students will be supported or what options they will have to pursue post-secondary education at the institution. Many international students face a particularly precarious future.

"These changes are required for Sheridan to remain a financially sustainable and vibrant community in response to chronic underfunding, changing government policies, and social, technological, and economic disruption."

The financial reality facing the college, due to Ottawa’s decision to dramatically reduce international student enrolment, made the move inevitable.

"Based on our enrollment projections, we will have about 30 percent fewer students in the coming years, which will lead to a loss of approximately $112M in revenue in the next fiscal year. As such, we must reduce our expenses," Morrison wrote.

"We introduced cost-saving measures earlier this fiscal year, but more is needed. Having started by reducing our administrative roles and finding efficiencies, program suspensions are now unavoidable." 

Parul, a first-year Chemical Laboratory Technician student at Sheridan College, says her parents in India are anxious about her academic future.

(Muhammad Hamza/The Pointer)

“When I got to know about the elimination (of her program) I told my parents about it, and they were also shocked,” Parul said. She is now waiting to decide what her next steps will be.

One of her professors, she said, put the situation bluntly: the decision was for the benefit of the college, not its  students.

It has left her and hundreds of other students confused about their future.

Despite the need to fill labour shortages in STEM fields, Sheridan’s move has upended education across science, technology and engineering areas, raising questions about options for students and the impact on employers across the country, as post-secondary institutions scramble to address new rules around international student admissions. 

After years of runaway enrolment, with students from abroad gaining admission at unsustainable levels, the federal government finally took steps earlier this year to dramatically curtail the trend. Now, facing major reductions in revenue as the number of international students gets reduced, many colleges and a handful of universities along with companies that have relied on new graduates to bolster their workforce are trying to adjust. 

“We are facing a historic labour shortage, with 100,000 more workers needed in the construction sector over the next decade alone,” David Piccini, Ontario Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development, said earlier this year.

Sheridan is suspending a range of STEM programs including chemical engineering technology, electronic engineering technology, mechanical engineering technology-design, electro-mechanical engineering technology and computer engineering technology.

"Some suspensions will go into effect as early as May, but programs will close on a rolling basis over the coming months and years," the college announced.

A federal government 2022 report on the “Economic Impact of International Education in Canada” estimated that international students in the long-term contributed $30.3 billion to Canada’s GDP and supported 353,850 jobs.

Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced a cap for the number of international student study permits for 2024, limiting them to 360,000, which could cut the number of students from abroad in half. Some colleges could be financially crippled, after charging international students three to five times more than domestic ones.

The pain will ripple through local economies where campuses are located.

Arsh Chawla, owner of a local pizza restaurant located near Sheridan in Brampton’s south end, just off Steeles Avenue a kilometre west of Hurontario Street, said he has already noticed a decline in walk-in traffic compared to last year, as many prospective students already knew prior to the fall that Canada’s international enrolment was set to drop. 

"Out of the 100 percent, 70 percent of our business is students in this area," he told The Pointer. "So, we did see a little change in numbers, not too dramatic, but again, now we have to spend money on marketing and advertising for other clientele."

Chawla believes the program suspensions will significantly impact all industries, with businesses near Sheridan being hit the hardest.

Local restaurant owners Arsh Chawla (Pizza Machine) and Harmeet Sandhu (Subway) serve a large student clientele near Sheridan's Brampton campus.

(Muhammad Hamza/The Pointer)

"So I think, yes, if you are coming back to your question, did it take a hit or a toll? Yes, it will… We will take a little bit more of a hit because we are in that vicinity."

Harmeet Sandhu, owner of a nearby Subway, told The Pointer she has seen a drop in business but expects the impact could worsen in the coming year.

"It has been slow since last year," she said, “especially with the international students not coming at all, it's already left, but let's see, probably less next year."

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