Going to college after finishing a degree

Release date: November 30, 2022

More information The Daily release PDF version

Infographic: Going to college after finishing a degree — Description: Going to college after finishing a degree

Nearly **1 in 5 college^{Note 1} students** in Canada (19.4%) had previously completed a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Close to **1 in 10 Canadian-born college^{Note 1} students** had previously completed a bachelor’s degree or higher.

More than **1 in 3 immigrant college^{Note 1} students** had previously completed a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Share of college^{Note 1} students who had previously completed a bachelor's degree or higher
Table summary
This table displays the results of Share of college students who had previously completed a bachelor's degree or higher. The information is grouped by Province (appearing as row headers), Share (appearing as column headers).
Province Share

Newfoundland and Labrador 9.1%

Prince Edward Island 16.6%

Nova Scotia 17.2%

New Brunswick 13.5%

Quebec 10.8%

Ontario 25.8%

Manitoba 20.7%

Saskatchewan 17.7%

Alberta 19.4%

British Columbia 24.1%

**Note:** Ontario and British Columbia had the highest shares.

Among college^{Note 1} students, **women were more likely than men to have a previous bachelor’s degree or higher.^{Note 2}**

Women: 22.2%

Men: 16.0%

The most common college^Note 3 fields of study for college graduates with a previous Canadian bachelor’s degree were :
Table summary
This table displays the results of The most common college fields of study for college graduates with a previous Canadian bachelor’s degree were :. The information is grouped by College field of study (appearing as row headers), Percentage (appearing as column headers).
College field of study Percentage

Human resources management and services 7.6%

Registered nursing specializations (e.g., critical care nursing) 5.7%

Allied health diagnostic, intervention and treatment professions (e.g., paramedic, respiratory care therapist) 4.0%

For more information, please consult *The Daily*: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221130/dq221130a-eng.htm

**Sources:** Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021 and 2016, Postsecondary Student Information System; Wall, Katherine. 2021. “Completion of a college certificate or diploma after a bachelor’s degree.” *Insights on Canadian Society*. April. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 75-006-X.

Notes

Note de bas de page 1.

“College” includes colleges, CEGEPs, business schools, technical institutes, trade schools and other non-university postsecondary institutions.

Retour à la référence de la note de bas de page 1 referrer

Note de bas de page 2.

Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is sometimes necessary to protect the confidentiality of responses provided. In these cases, individuals in the category “non-binary persons” are distributed into the other two gender categories. Unless otherwise indicated in the text, the category “men” includes men, as well as some non-binary persons. The category “women” includes women, as well as some non-binary.

Retour à la référence de la note de bas de page 2 referrer

Note de bas de page 3.

For this table, “college” includes only public colleges and CEGEPs.

Retour à la référence de la note de bas de page 3 referrer

Share of college^{Note 1} students who had previously completed a bachelor's degree or higher
Table summary
This table displays the results of Share of college students who had previously completed a bachelor's degree or higher. The information is grouped by Province (appearing as row headers), Share (appearing as column headers).
Province	Share
Newfoundland and Labrador	9.1%
Prince Edward Island	16.6%
Nova Scotia	17.2%
New Brunswick	13.5%
Quebec	10.8%
Ontario	25.8%
Manitoba	20.7%
Saskatchewan	17.7%
Alberta	19.4%
British Columbia	24.1%
Note: Ontario and British Columbia had the highest shares.

The most common college^Note 3 fields of study for college graduates with a previous Canadian bachelor’s degree were :
Table summary
This table displays the results of The most common college fields of study for college graduates with a previous Canadian bachelor’s degree were :. The information is grouped by College field of study (appearing as row headers), Percentage (appearing as column headers).
College field of study	Percentage
Human resources management and services	7.6%
Registered nursing specializations (e.g., critical care nursing)	5.7%
Allied health diagnostic, intervention and treatment professions (e.g., paramedic, respiratory care therapist)	4.0%

More information

Note of appreciation

Canada owes the success of its statistical system to a long-standing partnership between Statistics Canada, the citizens of Canada, its businesses, governments and other institutions. Accurate and timely statistical information could not be produced without their continued co-operation and goodwill.

Standards of service to the public

Statistics Canada is committed to serving its clients in a prompt, reliable and courteous manner. To this end, the Agency has developed standards of service which its employees observe in serving its clients.

Copyright

Published by authority of the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada.

Catalogue no. 11-627-M

Frequency: Occasional

Ottawa

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Date modified:: 2022-11-30

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Going to college after finishing a degree