U.S. trade pressures are forcing Canada to rethink how we build and protect our industries, leveraging major projects, procurement, and Canadian content to stay competitive. At the same time, an aging population, rapid technological change, and ambitious national initiatives in housing, infrastructure, energy, and healthcare are driving urgent demand for skilled workers. Canada’s success depends on policies that not only build the nation but also equip the workforce of today to deliver on our priorities.
Yet our skills policy is moving in the wrong direction. Budget 2025 changes will restrict access to training. Starting August 1, 2026, students enrolled in two-year programs at regulated career colleges will no longer be eligible for the Canada Student Grant for Full-Time Students, instead needing to rely on repayable loans. Grants are the only feasible approach for many learners, working adults, career changers, newcomers, and parents.
Student financial assistance should empower choice, not restrict it. Canadians need the flexibility to select training that fits their schedules, family responsibilities, and career goals without penalty because of institution type. When grants disappear, choice narrows, access shrinks, and workforce gaps widen.
Thoughtful consultation and targeted adjustments can protect learner choice, avoid debt traps, and ensure Canada’s workforce strategy matches its economic ambitions. Canada cannot invest billions in housing, infrastructure, and innovation while quietly making it harder for Canadians to train for the very jobs those investments depend on.
A snapshot of Canada’s workforce shows critical shortages across sectors:
- Healthcare: respiratory therapists , medical technologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, diagnostic imaging professionals. dental hygienists, dental assistants, dental office administrators personal support workers, healthcare aides care planners and case managers are urgently needed.
- Skilled trades & construction: electricians, plumbers, welders, and carpenters are needed for housing and infrastructure.
- Technology & digital skills: cybersecurity experts, data analysts, cloud and AI specialists are in high demand.
Canada is doing many things right: OECD rankings show above-average adult learning and strong foundational skills. Yet compared to leaders like Singapore, Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands, Canada lags in flexibility, inclusivity, and rapid reskilling. International models show the importance of modular, employer-aligned programs, dual classroom-and-workplace training, and public-private partnerships that provide multiple pathways for adult learners.
Replacing grants with loans does not lower the cost of education, it shifts risk onto learners and the workforce Canada depends on. Career colleges train over 200,000 learners annually, including skilled tradespeople, cybersecurity professionals, early childhood educators, and dental staff. These workers keep social programs running while government focuses on nation-building, from Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care to the Canadian Dental Care Plan.
Regulated career colleges fill these gaps. Career colleges meet people where they are, helping Canadians quickly re-enter the workforce and support our economic resilience, inclusion, and productivity. Educating hundreds of thousands of Canadians each year, these institutions deliver applied, job-ready skills quickly. Our learners are overwhelmingly adults balancing jobs, families, and responsibilities. One size does not fit all: single parents need online delivery, mid-career workers need evening programs, and rural Canadians need self-paced learning at home.
Fifty-seven percent of career college graduates financed their education through student loans, and Canada is receiving its return on investment.
A recent Nanos Research study shows the negative impact these Budget 2025 changes will have:
- Three in five career college graduates in Canada report being hired within three months of graduation.
- Over four in five employed career college graduates currently have a job that is either related or somewhat related to the program they graduated from.
- One in three graduates were hired by the organization where they completed their practicum/internship.
Internationally, leaders in workforce retraining illustrate the path forward: Singapore’s SkillsFuture program emphasizes modular, employer-aligned lifelong learning; Germany’s dual training system blends classroom and paid, on-the-job learning; Denmark and the Netherlands use adult education centers and public-private partnerships to offer part-time, online, and employer-responsive programs. Across these systems, flexibility and multiple pathways not one-size-fits-all models are essential.
We understand that Minister François-Phillipe Champagne faces fiscal challenges and is working hard to navigate Canada’s fiscal and trade challenges; but restoring this student funding will provide short- and long-term solutions to Canada’s current challenges.
Trade, technology, and demographic pressures demand a modern and flexible workforce. Reskilling is no longer optional; it is essential. Career colleges are not just education providers. They are critical partners in nation-building, offering immediate, practical solutions in partnership with employers and government to fill skills gaps and keep Canada’s social programs running.
We can’t have it both ways: we cannot invest billions in nation-building while making it harder for Canadians to train for the jobs those investments demand. Choice matters. When learners succeed, communities thrive, and Canada delivers.
Michael Sangster, CEO, National Association of Career Colleges
The views expressed are those of the author(s). National Newswatch Inc. publishes a range of perspectives and does not necessarily endorse the opinions presented.