Ontario’s colleges stand at a critical crossroads. For decades, the province’s college system has endured severe funding shortfalls, with Ontario contributing less than 25 per cent of operating revenue, a stark contrast to other provinces where provincial governments fund 60 per cent of college’s operations

International student tuition temporarily masked this chronic underfunding, but the federal government’s recent changes to immigration policy have exposed the system’s financial fragility. Now facing mounting financial pressure, institutions are implementing painful program closures and operational cutbacks that threaten the province’s postsecondary landscape. 

College education is an extremely important tool for social mobility and increased economic well-being for core working age individuals—that is, people between 25 and 54 years old. Those metrics apply across all demographic groups, but the groups that benefit the most are those who face marginalization, such as women and racialized people. Let’s take a look at who, exactly, we’re talking about. 


In Ontario, college graduates occupy a middle ground between those with only a high school education and those with a university degree, 

While the gender distribution among college graduates is nearly even, high school graduates are predominantly men and women make up the majority of those with a university degree.

Similarly, non-born Canadians and racialized minorities comprise a larger share of college graduates than those with a high school diploma, but their representation is smaller when compared to university graduates.

Colleges play a crucial role in the socioeconomic mobility of these traditionally disadvantaged groups. By creating a pathway for higher education, colleges fulfill a unique role in advancing skills and knowledge, serving as vital bridges in Ontario’s educational landscape.

Households headed by women or racialized individuals are more likely to be low-income, but college education significantly reduces poverty rates—and those reductions are significantly higher for marginalized groups. Households led by non-racialized men are 5.4 percentage points less likely to be low-income compared to those with only high school education. For non-racialized women, the reduction is much more substantial at over 16 percentage points.


Racialized groups experience similar benefits. Racialized women who are primary earners see a 13.4 percentage point drop-in poverty rates, while households headed by racialized men experience a 12.8 percentage point decrease compared to high school graduates.

These reductions in poverty rates underscore how college education functions as a powerful equalizer in Ontario society, particularly for women and racialized communities. For thousands of families across the province, a college credential represents a tangible path out of financial precarity. As colleges face program cuts, these pathways to economic security hang in the balance. 


Another way of looking at this question is through earnings of college graduates. The role of college education in boosting earning also highlights how important colleges are for the broader economic wellbeing of Ontario. 

College education is linked to substantial earnings increases across demographic groups, but for racialized communities, the impact is particularly significant—college education is associated with a 64.4 per cent increase in average earnings for racialized women and a 40.9 per cent increase for racialized men compared to those with only high school education, translating to improved housing, nutrition, and educational opportunities those individuals and their families

Non-racialized individuals also saw significant gains, with both men and women experiencing approximately 33 per cent higher earnings with a college education.

At a time when economic instability threatens workers, colleges act as a safety net for workers. The effects of trade uncertainties are already reverberating across Ontario’s workforce, and as these challenges intensify, thousands will require retraining and re-skilling opportunities to transition successfully into new careers. A robust and accessible college system will be a key part of that transition.

Supporting Smaller Communities

The income and job stability brought by college education is particularly important for smaller and medium-sized communities across Ontario, where college-educated workers play an outsized impact.

In rural areas and urban centers with under 100,000 residents, individuals with a college education generated 40 per cent of total earnings ($18.6 billion) and 35 per cent of income tax revenue in 2022. The economic impact of this group is also representative in mid-sized urban areas (100,000-499,999 residents), where college-educated workers accounted for 36 per cent of earnings and 32 per cent of tax contributions. In Ontario’s towns and small cities, college-educated workers are a key driver of the local economy.


While universities cluster predominantly in major urban centers, colleges are distributed across the province, creating skilled workforces that sustain local economies. The disproportionate contribution of college graduates to rural and small-town earnings shows how colleges help maintain economic vitality in regions that might otherwise face declining prospects and youth exodus. As funding challenges threaten program viability, it’s these smaller communities that stand to lose the most, potentially accelerating regional economic disparities across the province.

College education plays a crucial role not only in individual livelihoods, but also in sustaining the economic vitality of communities across the province. These institutions are more than educational facilities—they are engines of economic opportunity, vehicles for social mobility, and pillars to community prosperity across the province. 

The provincial government’s STEM funding increase represents acknowledgment of the problem, but falls far short of the comprehensive solution required. 

At a time when Ontario’s economy is under major threat, the college system is an important safety valve for workers and communities across the province. The provincial government, though, doesn’t treat colleges as the economic drivers that they are. Instead, it provides only a small share of their operating revenue leaving them in a vulnerable position The social and economic costs of these choices are steep—and will continue to be so if they continue.