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2025 International Student Survey

Informed Consent Information

Thank you for agreeing to complete the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE)  2025 International Student Survey. Before continuing, we require your informed consent. Please read the terms and conditions below which are also available on our website. If you have any questions about this research initiative, the survey, the procedures or your rights as a participant, you can contact CBIE’s research team at [email protected].

About CBIE: 

CBIE is the national voice advancing Canadian international education by creating and mobilizing expertise, knowledge, opportunity, and leadership. As such, CBIE is a global leader in international education, dedicated to equity, quality, inclusiveness, and partnership. 

Purpose of the survey: 

The CBIE International Student Survey supports the international education sector’s capacity to drive informed, innovative practices by increasing understanding of the stories, motivations, and perceptions of international students who choose to study in Canada. Your responses will help the sector better understand the international student experience in Canada. Once published, the National Report of the International Student Survey will be available in the CBIE Research Library. 

Survey respondents: 

  • International students, sixteen years  (16) of age or older, enrolled in post-secondary institutions studying (full-time or part-time) to obtain a degree/diploma/certificate in Canada are invited to complete the survey. This includes international students studying in Canada with a student study permit, visitor’s visa, or undertaking research on a work permit.
  • Given the scope of this research, international exchange students are not meant to be included in this survey sample.

Completing the survey: 

  • The survey is designed to study the international student experience in Canada. Details regarding this national surveying initiative are available on the CBIE website. 
  • This survey will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. 
  • You will be asked a number of questions regarding your experience as an international student on campus and in the extended community.  
  • Participation in this survey is voluntary.  
  • You have the right to refuse to answer any question by selecting the “prefer not to answer” option. 
  • You can save your progress (option located in the top-right corner of your screen) and exit/return at any time until the survey closing date (November 26, 2025). 
  • If, at any point during the survey, you experience any discomfort, know that resources are available from the Canadian Mental Health Association or from the mental health services offered at your institution.  

Data and confidentiality: 

  • The data of respondents remains strictly confidential. 
  • Your email address is collected only to validate the institution at which you are studying, remove your data if requested, and contact you if you win one of the prizes.
  • We do not collect information on your IP address.
  • All data collected is anonymized for analysis and retention. CBIE only shares the anonymized datasets with participating institutions.
  • CBIE will retain the anonymized data for 25 years and use it to produce longitudinal studies.
  • CBIE uses its professional Alchemer business account to collect participant data. CBIE has exclusive access to the survey data collected through Alchemer.
  • Alchemer complies with Canadian privacy (all data resides on Canadian servers) and accessibility standards (W3C). 

Refusing or withdrawing from the survey:  

  • You may withdraw from the survey at any time by closing your browser.  
  • Refusal to participate or discontinuation of participation will involve no consequences or loss of benefits, however, incomplete questionnaires will be automatically removed and will not be eligible for the draw. 
  • You can request the removal of your data before November 30, 2025, by sending your request to [email protected]. 

Survey draw and prizes: 

  • At the end of the survey, you will have the option to participate in a draw to win $1,000. There are three $1,000 prizes. Winners will be randomly selected from the pool of students who complete the survey. The odds of winning depend on the number of students who complete the survey. For the 2023 iteration of the survey, the odds were about of 1 out 10,000.
  • If your email is selected in the draw, CBIE will contact you in December 2025. 
  • Please ensure that the email you provide is valid and that you check your inbox (and spam/junk mail) regularly from December 8- 18, 2025, for an email from [email protected]. 
  • The three winners must claim their prize within 14 days of the email notification and validate their identity. 
  • Email addresses will not be associated with any of the data provided in the questionnaire. 
  • Direct deposit information will be required to transfer the $1,000 prize. 
  • The institutional representative will be copied on the message to validate the legitimacy of CBIE’s communication and to ensure the email is not treated as spam or junk mail. 

Ethics approval: 

  • This survey has been reviewed and received ethics clearance through the Community Research Ethics Office (CREO). If you feel you have not been treated according to the descriptions in our information, or your rights as a participant in research have been violated during the course of this project, you may contact the Chair, Community Research Ethics Board, at Community Research Ethics Office (Canada) Corp. c/o Centre for Community Based Research, 190 Westmount Road North, Waterloo ON N2L 3G5, Email: [email protected], Telephone: 1-888-411-2736.

Informed consent: 

  • By agreeing to continue, you consent to participate in this research and agree that your anonymized data will inform this national research initiative.