Pilot Program Creates Startup Opportunities for International Students in Canada

Jessica Lee Updated: January 17, 2025

It’s a tough time to be an international student in Canada.

Navigating a competitive job market alongside the uncertainties of visa restrictions can feel isolating. While many programs exist to help domestic students gain employability skills and the coveted ‘Canadian work experience,’ international students are often excluded from these opportunities.

To address this gap, Venture for Canada recently wrapped up its pilot employability program designed exclusively for international students.

In partnership with Langara College in Vancouver, the program united 24 students to experience some of the most impactful elements of Venture for Canada’s programs. This included work-integrated learning, community-building through high-energy in-person events, and regular entrepreneurial skills workshops to complement their work. Students also engaged with the Venture for Canada community through panel events and collaborating on short-term projects in teams alongside a Venture for Canada partner employer.

The five-week program officially kicked off at the end of October with an in-person event at Langara College. Students spent the morning getting to know each other and sharing their stories before selecting a project to work on for the remainder of the program.

In the afternoon, we were joined by Re-Defined, a non-profit that provides newcomers with resources to help establish their lives in Canada. During the panel event, four speakers challenged common misconceptions about living and working in Canada as a newcomer, including challenging the concept of the ‘Canadian experience.’

Students learned that it’s often more important to articulate their experiences in ways that resonate with employers rather than focusing solely on obtaining experience in Canada. As Redefined CEO and Founder Ritika said, we can only control ourselves and not the way others perceive us.

"We partnered because we know that gaining Canadian experiences is one of the key challenges for international students and this program helps cater to that.”

– Ritika Saraswat, Founder & CEO, Re-Defined

Over the next five weeks, students worked in teams on real-world projects set by Canadian start-ups. Balancing this work alongside school, exams, and part-time jobs, they honed essential skills like time management, teamwork, and creative problem-solving as they navigated this entirely new space.

Each week, students joined online workshops designed to help them address communication challenges in their projects or prepare for the job market. The series began with a session on Culture and Communication led by Cultural Anthropologist and VFC Employer Advisory member Samantha Stilwell. She provided practical strategies for overcoming communication challenges by examining them through a cultural lens.

Students also explored financial literacy in a session with the program’s founding sponsor Scotiabank, where they learned about the importance of maintaining a good credit score, staying safe against employment scams, and taking advantage of the saving products available in Canada.

"It was great to see a group of engaged high caliber students eager to learn about how they can ensure a financially sound future."

– Rex Anderson, Assistant Manager, Scotiabank

Throughout the program, students were introduced students to members of the Venture for Canada community—many of whom were international students themselves, just a few steps ahead in their journeys. Students were challenged to reach out to help build their professional networks–a task students initially found daunting but ultimately rewarding.

The program ended with a closing celebration event back where it all began at Langara College. Here we were joined by Venture for Canada employer partners, Nicola Claxton from Emoot, Maryam Parizi from Bayestudio, Winnie Hsu from Vision2Reality, and Taj Chhina from Career Contacts who listened to students share their stories from across their projects, before sharing their tips for succeeding in the job hunt and venturing into entrepreneurship.

Feedback from the participants has been exceptionally positive. An impressive 96% of students stated that the program opened up startup opportunities they would not have accessed otherwise, and the program achieved a 100% satisfaction rate among students, highlighting its overall success.

Ashley Olowojolu, a student participant, expressed her gratitude:

"I am so grateful for the opportunity, the virtual training sessions, the panels, the opportunity to learn a new skill due to the work placement and the staff of VFC. I left the program more confident and charged to go after what I want, notwithstanding fear."

– Ashley Olowojolu, Student

Employer feedback mirrored this enthusiasm with an 83% satisfaction rate reflecting their support for the program’s goals to enhance employment access for international students and to innovate within their teams.

Reza Enaloui, Founder of Semitechnic Corp., shared,

“Participating in the International Students Program was a rewarding experience for our team. We had the opportunity to work with talented international students who brought diverse perspectives, fresh ideas, and innovative approaches to our projects. The program helped enhance our team's cultural awareness and global outlook.”

– Reza Enaloui, Founder, Semitechnic Corp.

This pilot program’s success has significantly enhanced its participants’ confidence and career readiness. We appreciate the insights gained and are grateful to everyone who has supported the pilot so far. Venture for Canada values the opportunity to learn from such initiatives and looks forward to exploring how best to support international talent in the future.

About Venture for Canada

Venture for Canada is a national charity that fosters entrepreneurial skills and mindset in young Canadians. To be entrepreneurial is to act upon opportunities to create value for others. We recruit, train, and support young people to work for innovative Canadian small businesses and startups. Through our programs, participants develop the network, knowledge, and entrepreneurial skills to have more impactful careers.

Connect with Venture for Canada:

Website: https://ventureforcanada.ca

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/school/venture-for-canada/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/venture4canada/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Venture4Canada

Podcast: https://perspectives.ventureforcanada.ca/podcast

About Re-Defined

Re-Defined is a non-profit that was founded in 2023 with the goal of empowering international students, especially those from the BIPOC community. They do this by providing them with a community, upskilling opportunities, programs, and access to a 200+ mentor network. Through this work, they’ve created a community of 50,000 international students across Canada in 4 cities and have conducted 45+ events and workshops with 12+ institutions.

Connect with Re-Defined

Website: https://re-defined.community/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/re-defined11/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/redefinedcanada/

About Scotiabank

As one of Canada’s largest banks with a strong presence across the Americas, Scotiabank’s vision is to be our clients’ most trusted financial partner, to deliver sustainable, profitable growth and maximize total shareholder return.

Connect with Scotiabank

Website: https://www.scotiabank.com/ca/en/personal.html

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scotiabank/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scotiabank/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/scotiabank

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scotiabank

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Scotiabank