Conestoga is a foreign student mecca. Is its climb to riches leading it off a cliff?
CTV
Aggressive international recruitment has brought in a flood of new money, but questions are also being raised within the institution about the sustainability of that growth, and the motivations behind it.
The smell of South Asian spices wafts from the "Blends and Curries" food counter.
Conversations in Hindi and Gujurati flood the bustling hallways, which quickly get packed as students pour in and out of classes.
Cliques of Indian youth, who appear to make up a majority of the student population, take full advantage of common areas to study, lounge around or wait for class to begin.
Everywhere you look at the main campus of Conestoga College, there's ample proof of an explosion of international students.
The school has become a poster child for aggressive international student recruitment.
Its efforts have brought in a flood of new money — a stark contrast to the financial pressures students themselves face — but also raised questions within the institution about the sustainability of that growth, and the motivations behind it.
And as the federal government seeks to stem international student flows with a two-year cap on study permits, even the immigration minister has singled the college out.
