Evaluation of the Canadian Experience Class
Appendix A: Profile of CEC Principal Applicants
Table A-1 summarizes the socio-demographic characteristics of CEC PAs arriving in Canada from 2009 to 2014. For CEC PAs who applied prior to the 2013 program changes, separate profiles have been developed for CEC PAs admitted under the worker and student streams. Characteristics of CEC PAs are also contrasted with those admitted through other comparable economic immigration programs, namely the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) and Provincial Nominee (PN) programs.
| Characteristics at Time of Admission | Worker | Student | Merged program | CEC overall | FSWs | PNs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gender | ||||||
| Male | 75.8% | 53.7% | 66.3% | 64.6% | 63.1% | 67.3% |
| Female | 24.2% | 46.3% | 33.7% | 35.4% | 36.9% | 32.7% |
| Total Number | 8,994 | 11,030 | 12,652 | 32,676 | 126,472 | 97,784 |
| Age | ||||||
| 18-25 | 2.4% | 24.3% | 13.9% | 14.2% | 1.7% | 9.0% |
| 26-35 | 55.0% | 71.8% | 65.6% | 64.8% | 48.1% | 48.5% |
| 36-45 | 30.1% | 3.4% | 16.1% | 15.6% | 36.2% | 29.5% |
| 46-55 | 9.8% | 0.4% | 3.6% | 4.2% | 13.0% | 11.4% |
| 56+ | 2.7% | 0.1% | 0.8% | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.5% |
| Total Number | 8,994 | 11,030 | 12,652 | 32,676 | 126,472 | 97,784 |
| Marital Status | ||||||
| Single | 41.6% | 87.4% | 66.7% | 66.8% | 27.3% | 41.9% |
| Married/Common law | 54.7% | 11.6% | 31.8% | 31.3% | 70.5% | 55.4% |
| Separated, Divorced, Widowed | 3.7% | 1.0% | 1.6% | 2.0% | 2.3% | 2.7% |
| Total Number | 8,993 | 11,030 | 12,652 | 32,675 | 126,469 | 97,784 |
| Education | ||||||
| 0-9 years of schoolingFootnote * | 19.8% | 16.4% | 2.0% | 11.8% | 6.2% | 10.9% |
| 10-12 years of schooling | 4.4% | 0.0% | 2.3% | 2.1% | 0.2% | 8.9% |
| 13+ years of schooling | 4.5% | 2.7% | 8.1% | 5.3% | 0.9% | 4.9% |
| Trade certificate | 5.4% | 0.8% | 5.3% | 3.8% | 1.9% | 9.8% |
| Non-university diploma | 9.8% | 18.1% | 11.4% | 13.2% | 7.4% | 13.1% |
| Bachelor degree | 32.8% | 49.9% | 49.6% | 45.0% | 39.8% | 38.9% |
| Master’s degree | 15.0% | 11.1% | 17.2% | 14.5% | 37.0% | 11.6% |
| Doctorate | 8.3% | 1.0% | 4.2% | 4.2% | 6.7% | 1.8% |
| Total Number | 8,994 | 11,030 | 12,652 | 32,676 | 126,472 | 97,784 |
| Official Languages | ||||||
| English | 90.8% | 95.0% | 94.6% | 93.7% | 83.8% | 88.0% |
| French | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.6% | 0.2% |
| Both | 7.9% | 3.9% | 5.1% | 5.5% | 7.3% | 3.4% |
| Neither | 1.1% | 1.1% | 0.2% | 0.8% | 8.4% | 8.4% |
| Total Number | 8,994 | 11,030 | 12,652 | 32,676 | 126,472 | 97,784 |
| Intended Province of Destination | ||||||
| Atlantic | 1.4% | 1.7% | 1.5% | 1.5% | 1.6% | 9.8% |
| Ontario | 49.8% | 64.5% | 57.1% | 57.6% | 62.6% | 5.6% |
| Manitoba | 0.7% | 0.4% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1.0% | 25.8% |
| Saskatchewan | 0.8% | 0.6% | 1.6% | 1.0% | 0.9% | 18.9% |
| Alberta | 31.2% | 14.9% | 23.7% | 22.8% | 15.8% | 21.7% |
| BC | 15.9% | 17.7% | 15.5% | 16.3% | 18.0% | 17.6% |
| Territories | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.7% |
| Total Number | 8,994 | 11,030 | 12,652 | 32,676 | 126,472 | 97,784 |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.
Source: GCMS and FOSS
Administrative data showed that CEC PAs tend to be single (66.8%), males (64.6%) and between 26 to 35 years of age upon admission (64.8%). In addition, many have a university degree upon admission as a PR (63.7%), and almost all (99.2%) report knowing English and/or French when they become a permanent resident. About half of the CEC PAs admitted were either born in China (22.3%), India (19.7%) or the Philippines (6.4%). Over 95% of CEC PAs were intending to settle in Ontario (57.6%), Alberta (22.8%) or British Columbia (16.3%) when they obtained their permanent residence in Canada.
There are some differences by CEC stream. A greater percentage of CEC PAs admitted under the worker stream (75.8%) are males (compared to 53.7% for the student stream). Those admitted under the student stream are generally younger, with 96.1% being between 18 and 35 years of age upon admission (compared to 57.4% for the worker stream). A larger proportion of CEC PAs admitted under the student stream (87.4%) are also single when they become permanent residents (compared to 41.6% for the worker stream). Although a relatively similar share of CEC PAs have a university degree upon admission for both streams (56% for the worker stream, and 62% for the student stream), a greater percentage of those admitted under the worker stream have a graduate degree (23.3%, compared to 12.1% for the student stream).
In addition, while those admitted under the two streams tend come from different countries, they tend to settle in the same areas of Canada. The top three countries of birth for PAs admitted under the worker stream are India (20%), the Philippines (10.5%) and the United Kingdom (10.4%), while those admitted under the student stream come from China (45.6%), India (11.7%) and the Republic of Korea (5.9%). CEC PAs under both streams mainly intend to reside in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. However, a greater proportion of those admitted under the student stream intend to settle in Ontario (64.5% for the student stream versus 49.8% for the worker stream), while a greater proportion of those admitted under the worker stream intend to settle in Alberta (31.2% for the worker stream versus 14.9% for the student stream).
In comparing the socio-demographic profile of PAs admitted under the CEC to the profile of those admitted under the FSW program or the PNP, key differences were noted. Those admitted under the FSW program and the PNP tend to be older, with respectively 50.1% and 42.4% aged 36 or older upon admission, compared to 20.9% of those admitted under the CEC. In addition, a greater percentage of FSW (70.5%) and PN PAs (55.4%) are married compared to 31.3% of those admitted under the CEC. While a larger share of FSW PAs have a university education (83.5%), a smaller share of PN PAs have this level of education (52.3%) compared to their CEC counterparts (63.7%). Finally, a slightly smaller proportion of FSW and PN PAs reported speaking English and/or French upon admission, with 8.4% of PAs admitted under both programs reporting not knowing either of Canada’s official languages upon admission (compared to less than 1% of CEC PAs reporting no official language capacity).
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