The Impact of Macroeconomic Factors On Student Enrollment in Canadian Post-Secondary Institutions

Abstract

Using data from Statistics Canada (1992-2013), this study examined the impact of macroeconomic factors such as the unemployment rate, GDP growth, and the exchange rate on student enrollment in Canadian post-secondary institutions. In order to estimate regressions, this study used the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) method. The results from the overall model show that both GDP growth and unemployment have a positive impact on enrollment in the long run. However, in the short run, only the unemployment rate has a positive effect on total enrollment. The study divided samples on the basis of gender, and the results show that the unemployment rate has a positive effect on male enrollment, while GDP growth has a positive impact on female enrollment. The study also examined the impact of the exchange rate on the enrollment of international students. The results show that a depreciation of the Canadian dollar leads to an increase in enrollment.