A day after CTV Northern Ontario told his story, an international student from India has received a spot in the college program he wants to pursue.
Savan Sabu was originally accepted into Northern College’s two-year supply chain management program last summer, with a start date of January at the Timmins campus.
But Sabu was one of 211 international students – almost all from India – who had their acceptance to the January semester suddenly revoked. That’s in addition to 500 admissions that were revoked in July for the September term.
That left Sabu already paying for his $30,000 student loan but forced to wait almost a full year before he could start work in his field.
The problems were caused by a college policy similar to airlines that overbook flights on planes, expecting a certain number won’t show up. In this case, however, the federal government approved more students to attend Northern College than the institution expected.
Northern College told CTV News that it was working to help each student affected.
“Northern College offers its sincerest apologies to those affected students and is working closely with them on a case-by-case basis to find solutions that fit their needs while ensuring they have access to the basic supports needed to succeed in pursuing their post-secondary education.”
On Tuesday, Sabu confirmed that he will be able to attend a Northern College affiliate in Toronto, for the same fees and tuition.
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“We are committed to your successful transition and this means that you will not be charged any additional tuition,” said the email Tuesday from the college.
“You will pay the usual Northern College tuition amount for the duration of your program. If you have a two-year program, you will pay the Northern College tuition rate for both years.”
“I (am) really excited,” Sabu said in an email to CTV News.
“Thank you so much for sharing my story and working on it.”
