Understanding the Regulatory Landscape of Private Career Colleges was written by Seerat Gill, Elizabeth Buckner and Glen A. Jones, University of Toronto, for HEQCO’s Consortium on International Education.
Providing insights into career colleges – an understudied aspect of Ontario’s postsecondary sector
Private career colleges (PCCs) constitute a significant yet understudied aspect of the postsecondary sector in Canada. Career colleges, as they are known in Ontario, offer short, non-degree-level programs focused on career and vocational training suited to the labour market. While the number of PCCs in the country is in constant flux, Ontario had 780 such institutions in 2023, making up more than half of the 1,500 registered nationally. As part of the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario’s (HEQCO) Consortium on International Education, a new report from the University of Toronto scans the regulatory environment of PCCs, offering a comprehensive overview of the landscape in Ontario and across the country.
In recent years, a significant proportion of PCC enrolments were made up of international students. However, recently announced limits to student visas and work permits will likely see those enrolments drop. Amidst these policy shifts there remains a lack of detailed and current research on how career colleges in Ontario are established, governed and regulated to meet provincial goals. A clear understanding of the PCC landscape will be crucial to policy discussions about the future of PCCs when the recent visa and work permit limits expire in 2026.
The report offers an overview of PCCs using publicly available legislation, provincial regulations, grey literature and interviews with senior ministry officials responsible for the regulation of PCCs. Divided into four sections, the report outlines the types and requirements of PCCs across Canada; institutional licensing and renewal processes; the requirements for registration as a Designated Learning Institution, which is necessary for enrolling international students; and the student services and supports available at PCCs, including funding programs, counseling services and housing supports.
The HEQCO Consortium on International Education brings together higher education stakeholders to produce research projects that explore how institutions, government and communities can improve the quality, sustainability and accountability of international education. The University of Toronto’s report adds to the understanding of how PCCs are regulated and legislated and lays the foundation for future research that could inform recommendations for the sector.