Education/training
University enrolment fueled by job marketThe job market's demand for university-educated employees helped fuel a record growth in enrolment, according to a new report on higher education. |
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 [ 2007-08-01 ] |
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And experts at the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada say that should send a clear message to students and educators.
The association's report, released May 1, says jobs for people with university degrees doubled to 3.8 million between 1990 and 2006.
"I would hope that for high school teachers for example, this becomes an opportunity to point out to students how much jobs are changing, how much jobs have changed," said association president Claire Morris.
"If you've ever lived in a community where natural resources are the basis of that economy, like forestry or fisheries, you can see how the changes in that work have brought about changes in the educational requirements," Morris said in an interview from Ottawa.
Even in Alberta's booming resource-based economy, jobs for university graduates grew by some 50% in six years since 2000, the report stated. By contrast, jobs filled by those with trade certificates grew by just 5%.
Overall, there were 1.3 million fewer jobs for people who had not completed high school or post-secondary education.
The report says that over the next decade, the requirements of an increasingly knowledge-based economy could fuel further growth in demand for workers with a university education.
Full-time university enrolment was up 31% between 2000 and 2006, to about 815,000 students -- and that number is expected to grow by between 70,000 and 150,000 over the next decade.
"The changing requirements of the labour force ... has had a remarkable impact on the numbers," Morris said.
"Students understand that Canada's labour market requires a highly educated and skilled workforce."
While Morris says university enrolment "has grown remarkably," she is still concerned about Canada's enrolment rate compared with other countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
"You know what it is? Twenty-three per cent," said Morris. "Seventy-five per cent, round it off, 75% of young people do not go to university."
According to the report, as of 2003 Canada "significantly trailed" other countries in university participation rates -- placing 18th out of 27 nations.
The university enrolment rate of 23% puts Canada below the median rate of 26%. Korea is ranked first, with 37% of students enrolled in university.
"It puts it all in perspective," Morris said. "Yes, the growth has been remarkable, but remember it's less than 25%.
"We're way behind a number of other countries who are again recognizing the need for the highly skilled people in the kind of economy that we live in."
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