Governor General David Johnston speaks to SIAST business administration diploma graduates at Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry

As Chancellor of Ontario’s newest University, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, it was daunting to accompany Governor General Johnston on his visit to Hanoi’s Temple of Literature. The Vietnamese discovered the importance of higher education long before the first settler placed a foot on North American soil. The Temple of Literature traces its roots back over 1,000 years to Vietnam’s first university.

Education is close to the Governor General’s heart. He has spent a lifetime as a professor and university administrator and he has made promoting education a priority for his time in the office. It’s no surprise, then, that much of his first state visit is devoted to emphasising Canada’s educational ties to Asia, including seeking out Canadian students studying or doing volunteer work in this part of the world.

Just as growing numbers of Canadian students are discovering the benefits of receiving at least a portion of their education abroad, the presense of foreign students on Canadian campuses is increasing. This year, Canadian universities are hosting about 100,000 foreign students.

Having international students on campus provides cross-cultural experiences that help prepare Canadian graduates to work or do business abroad. Also, many international students choose to remain in Canada after graduating. And foreign grads provide Canadian businesses with a rich source of badly-needed workers who have lived in Canada, are trained to Canadian standards and speak at least one of our official languages.

Even when students return home, as they increasingly do, they weave a new thread into our relationships with other countries. They understand Canada and remain interested in us, are comfortable with Canadian technology and ways of doing business, and maintain networks of friends and contacts in Canada. These Canadian ties provide a valuable starting point for our commercial, cutural and political activities in their home countries. For Canadian companies looking to locate in new markets, foreign grads who have returned home can be invaluable employees.

Foreign students also raise the academic bar in Canadian universities. They are serious about their education and often win academic awards in our institutions. The reason is obvious: studying in Canada requires major sacrifices by these students and their families. It’s usually the best students who get a chance to study abroad and, when your family must struggle to send you to school, you don’t waste the opportunity. There is certainly no sense of entitlement.

There’s financial dimension as well. Foreign students provide a growing share of the money Canadian colleges and universities need to educate Canadian students whose tuition covers only a fraction of the cost. As provincial finances become ever more strained, foreign students’ tuition fees help cover expenses.

The economic impact is huge. A 2009 report by Roslyn Kunin and Associates, Inc. found that, iin the previous year, “international students in Canada spent in excess of $6.5 billion on tuition, accommodation and discretionary spending; created over 83,000 jobs; and generated more than $291 million in government revenue…Over all, the total amount that international students spend in Canada ($6.5 billion) is greater than our export of coniferous lumber ($5.1 billion), and even greater than our export of coal ($6.07 billion) to all other countries.”

Canadian colleges and universities don’t just educate foreign students in Canada. They also increaingly provide services abroad. On Friday, the Governor General spoke at the graduation ceremony of 133 Business Administration diploma students at Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry, where they were receiving degrees from the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST). Like SIAST, many other institutions are exporting their services to markets with a burgeoning demand for education.

Despite Canada’s growing educational exports, we have been slow to meet the demand. We are still substantially outperformed by other countries who have long seen the benefits of supplyiing education to an international market. The United States and Britain attract the largest numbers, but Australia and New Zealand are the most successful countries relative to population size. In fact, education is now Australia’s fourth-largest export, and the Australian government invests heavily in branding and promoting an Australian education

In a world that’s hungry for education, the potential is huge. The already large market will continue to grow and Canada can continue to increase its share. As we seek greater success in rapidly growing markets, education is a green and renewable export product that benefits both us and the people we help prepare of a better life.

-Perrin