UTM’s reliance on international students as a source of revenue may be “problematic,” according to UTM’s vice-principal academic and dean Amrita Daniere in an email to The Medium.
In a Campus Affairs Committee meeting held on November 21, Daniere had stated that 61 to 66 percent of international students come from China.
“We value [Chinese students] and want to offer them the best education possible,” stated Daniere to The Medium.
“[However], relying too much on students from one country could mean that if that country gets better universities that cost less than Canadian ones and are comparable in quality, we will lose these students and be left vulnerable to funding pressures created by loss of revenues due to not having international students to replace them.”
Daniere also added that with the Chinese universities getting stronger, it could be a matter of time before less Chinese students seek coming to UTM, in which case declined revenues will result.
Another issue that Daniere explained was how the global economic trends change. Should the international students abstain from attending UTM due to an economic downturn in their country, UTM would be prone to losing crucial revenue.
Apart from broadening UTM’s source of revenue, Daniere noted that attracting international students from a variety of countries will broaden the diversity of the campus and will increase the “intellectual climate” of UTM.
Currently, 20 percent of all students at UTM are international students.
