Degrees of difficulty for international university students

“In the beginning, leaving home was exciting,” said Sean, a 23-year-old McMaster University student from Incheon, South Korea. Sean said he “feels safe living in Canada” and believes it is a “more politically and socially stable environment than his alternative options.” Many of his friends study in the U.S., but he chose Canada instead. He even returned for a second and third year and appreciates the “relaxed cultural atmosphere” of McMaster.

But Sean rates his experience as a Canadian international student a five out of 10. The question is: why? Compared to domestic students in the same program and year, Sean has found three major differences in his experience: the cost of tuition, limitations on employment and precarious housing.

Sean rates his experience as a Canadian international student a five out of 10.

Cost of tuition

Sean pays about three times as much in tuition as his Canadian peers and has found it difficult to meet these costs.

“I barely received any scholarships,” explained Sean. He adds that the ones he could secure were small and difficult to find. “No one told me how to get them; I had to find the opportunities myself.”

“The harder costs came from groceries and cost of living because you can’t get scholarships for those sorts of things,” Sean added. He also acknowledged the additional costs that came with being a student-athlete, including laundry and increased food needs.

Sean even had to take a gap year in Korea between his first and second year to save money for his student costs, pausing his degree just to make enough to get by in the years ahead.

Employment challenges

Since returning to school, Sean has been working via the school. As an international student, his hours and opportunities for work are limited, so he takes whatever student jobs are available and accepts very limited hours.

“It feels extremely unfair,” added Sean. “My Canadian friends are making more money per week and paying less money per term. I am willing to work, but the opportunities just aren’t there for me.”

But some international students might call Sean lucky for acquiring a student job, as others, like Evan, haven’t had any success getting hired. Evan is a third-year Health Sciences student from Singapore who, like Sean, had to take a gap year between first and second years. Both Evan and Sean had to do mandatory military service for their countries, but for Evan, his service actually interrupted his degree.

Housing and timing

When Evan returned to Canada, life as an international student became harder. In his first year, Evan was able to live on campus and pay for a food plan. This helped him focus on his studies and gave him convenient access to classes and school resources. However, when he returned in the second year, the on-campus student housing opportunity was gone.

Evan knew he needed to live near the university because he did not have a Canadian driver’s license or a car, and he worked hard to contact landlords over the summer when he was still in Singapore. Because of his gap year for military service, Evan had lost the opportunity to live with the friends he had made in his first year, leaving him isolated and desperate.

Paying almost $700 per month, Evan lives in a very small room in the basement unit owned by a family he doesn’t know. He shares the basement with four other guys and sleeps in a closet-sized room with no space even for a desk.

“It is very challenging to get out of bed every morning. Every day, I just question why I ever left home, even though this was what was best for my future. It’s really hard to see how it’s worth it when you live in a situation like that,” Evan said. In vivid detail, he describes the stained mattress topper, the thin bed, the mouldy bathroom and the dark, windowless walls.

“Housing is really limited around the campus. Unless you have a big group of friends to rent a house with, landlords don’t really like renting out to young guys,” Evan explained. He acknowledged that his place was at least “better than some other international students I know.” Sean said something similar, noting how “most of the international students I know live in situations I do not envy.”

Partial solutions

Sean decided to apply for a residence life staff position in his third year. The role allows him to stay on campus and reduces his cost of living. But it comes with its own challenges. When the university is closed for a break, Sean is expected to leave the residence. With no home to return to nearby, he spends the breaks couch-hopping from friend to friend.

“It doesn’t make sense to make students who live in residence (especially international students) leave during winter break because the break isn’t that long, and students pay for a month’s worth of rent to live there. If students are required to leave, they shouldn’t have to pay the full cost of December housing,” Sean explained.

For Sean, who is a Christian, celebrating the holidays alone or at a friend’s house because he can’t access his own dorm room is a major stressor, even though he is grateful to have close friends who take him in.

Evan also struggled to find a place to go over winter break. “The system of student housing seems to overlook those whose homes aren’t nearby.”

Advice for others

Both Evan and Sean agreed that they would recommend attending a Canadian institution for post-secondary education, but would tell those interested to spend more time educating themselves about the systems, opportunities and challenges of being an international student in Canada. Evan and Sean felt disoriented and underprepared to pursue studies in Canada, emphasizing how independent they had to be to figure out how the new culture worked.

They both agreed that their transition to Canada was not as smooth as it could have been due to the lack of information, support and resources provided by the school.

“I feel like it is their job to help us get on our feet in this new country, but they really expect you to do all the reaching out yourself,” Sean said.

Evan’s final thought was: “I just think that everything is overpriced and unfairly put on international students, considering most of us don’t even have opportunities to work.”

This story was first published on the Global Scholars Canada website in March 2026 as one of 12 international student stories.