Helping International Graduates Find Their Footing in Canada
International students are a critical part of Canada’s talent pool. They help address labour shortages, contribute to productivity and innovation, and many plan to build their careers here after graduation. But the transition from student to employed professional is often harder than it should be.
Greg Sears and Daniel Gulanowski have dedicated years to exploring this complex issue, bringing complementary theoretical perspectives to this research. Greg examines the issue through the lenses of Human Resource Management and Organizational Behaviour, emphasizing organizational practices, such as selection and training and development processes, as well as workplace dynamics relating todiversity and inclusion.
Daniel approaches the issue from an International Business perspective, focusing on the unique paths and cross-cultural challenges faced by internationally mobile workers and graduates. Combining these disciplines bridges the crucial gap between internal organizational systems and the broader realities of global talent mobility.
Together, they received funding through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council’s (SSHRC) Insight Grants program for their project, “Promoting Retention, Inclusion, and Integration of International Graduates”. The research explores what helps international graduates enter the Canadian workforce and what impedes their entry.
This recently completed project builds on earlier work. In 2022, Greg and Daniel were part of a team that reviewed 74 studies on international graduate workforce integration, published in the International Journal of Intercultural Relations. That review identified barriers at three distinct levels.
At the individual level, language fluency, cultural knowledge, local work experience, and social networks all matter. Graduates with prior Canadian work experience, for example, tended to have considerably better earnings and employment outcomes than those without it.
At the organizational level, hiring practices and workplace norms were recurring themes. Employers sometimes favour domestic candidates, raise concerns about visa status, or apply cultural fit criteria that quietly screen international applicants out. Some graduates also reported being steered toward lower-skilled roles despite their qualifications.
At the policy level, immigration rules, work permit conditions, and post-graduation pathways all shape what’s possible.
The review also highlighted a gap in the literature, as very little research had examined what organizations and institutions could actually do to reduce these barriers. This project aims to address that.
One focus is technology. The team is looking at how online tools and platforms can help international graduates build networks and find opportunities, the kinds of professional connections that often come more easily to domestic graduates. Networking is one of the strongest predictors of post-graduation employment success, and it’s also where international graduates tend to face the steepest disadvantage. They arrive without established local ties and building them takes time.
Recent Statistics Canada data supports this. Three years after graduation, international student graduates had lower employment rates, lower earnings, and weaker education-to-job match than their Canadian-born peers.
Canada is counting on international graduates to help fill workforce gaps. But open pathways only go so far without the right support. This research is a step toward changing that.