No Campus Jobs for International StudentsChelsea Scherer

International students at Humber College are finding themselves squeezed out of campus jobs by a work-study program that makes it cheaper for campus employers to hire domestic students.

The work-study program, funded by the Federal government, gives money to the school to hire domestic or permanent resident students. This means there is no subsidy for employing international students, resulting in the school’s lack of hiring them.

If a department chooses to hire an international student, then the money will need to come completely out of the departments’ funds to pay for it.

The only place that permits international students to work within their first six months of living in Canada is at their school. Without the opportunity to work, they are unable to gain Canadian work experience that would benefit them down the road.

“There are a lot more students on campus than jobs, and the jobs go very quickly,” said Kristina Mathias the international student advisor at Humber College.

This year there are more than 19,000 full-time students enrolled at Humber College and about 16 per cent of them are international students. There are roughly 200 student jobs at the college at the start of the school year.

Besides the work-study program, there are other factors contributing to making employment difficult for international students.

“I think as an international student they often need time to adjust to their new surroundings and get familiar with campus,” said Mathias.

“Another issue they face is timing. They show up on campus a day or two before classes start so they are not aware of on campus jobs,” said Linda MacDonald a Humber College career advisor.

Oftentimes, students employed have kept their jobs from previous semesters and the turnover becomes infrequent.

“If the international student does not have their [English] language skills and communication skills up to par then that might also be an obstacle,” said MacDonald.

She said that the application process is the same in regards to submitting a cover letter, resume, and timetable, but whether or not they are work-study eligible is when the employer decides if the faculty can subsidize for the student.

“Although, recognizing the international students’ previous experience is always applicable,” said MacDonald.

Shivanie Mangal, a third year student from Guyana, South America, disagrees.

“Employers on campus did not count any international experience I had. However, when a department is looking for a diverse team they look for international students. Quite unethical in my view,” she said.

Mangal has already graduated from the American University of Peace Studies in Georgetown, Guyana with two diplomas and two certificates.

“It makes me feel as if I lack something. It is always disappointing when I see a position for which I qualify for and it says work-study only,” she said.

For the past two years, Mangal worked for the ‘First Year Experience’ program, which helps to integrate new students into Humber College when she was turned away from a promotion.

When the program was hiring a new senior peer mentor to work throughout the summer months, she applied hoping her previous contribution to the program would be enough.

She was denied the position because she was not work-study eligible, which was a requirement to be hired.

“It feels like taking a trophy away from someone after they have won it,” she said.

International students can work on campus for the first six months of study, to which they can then apply for an off campus work permit and work up to 20 hours a week.