Service needs and gaps for international students transitioning to permanent residency in a "two-step" immigration process : a Toronto-based study

Despite the increase in efforts to attract and retain international students in Canada, including the introduction of the Canadian Experience Class in 2008, there has been little investigation into what supports will assist international students as they transition from students to workers to migrants. This research paper is a Toronto-based investigation of the service needs and gaps that exist for international students aiming to transition to permanent residency in Canada. Data gathered from interviews with front-line workers assisting international students, an immigrant-serving organization, and government suggests that immigration policy reforms aiming to attract and retain international students have not been accompanied by the necessary changes to traditional settlement and international student services resulting in service gaps for this segment of Canada's international student population. The present study also connects these findings to neoliberal immigration policies and practices in place in Canada since the 1990s.