The majority of principal applicant immigrants (72%) arriving in Calgary have at least one university degree.
Immigrants comprise 27.6% of Calgary’s population of 1.2 million. By 2020, Calgary’s immigrant population is estimated to grow to half a million. However, immigrants continue to struggle to secure employment that is within their field of education and expertise.
ISCC has demonstrated success in its work on immigrant labour market integration. For example, working with The City of Calgary - an employer with more than 15,000 employees - to set standards for hiring and retaining immigrants.
Much of ISCC’s success is driven by comprehensive assessments of systems and policies that lead to recommendations for multi-sectoral collaboration. In 2014, ISCC is developing a collaborative strategy for helping achieve better labour market integration for immigrants to Calgary.