Foreign students from Asia and the Middle East give Canada top marks affordability and safety, a new international survey shows.
Canada is also given top rankings for its student visa programs, making it easier for international students to work while studying, and its multiculturalism.
The survey of 1,000 students from Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Singapore, China, India, Bangladesh and Middle East also found that international students was conducted by the global education agency IDP.
The survey is great news for Canada, which is pushing forth with its International Education Strategy that aims to double the number of international students and researchers — to 450,000 — in Canada by 2022 in an effort to create jobs and stimulate the domestic economy.
Canadian full-time undergraduate students pay an average of $5,700 in tuition every year. International students, meanwhile, can pay three times that amount — or an average of $19,500 every year. 
The government estimates that recruiting more international students could generate some 86,000 new jobs in Canada and add an additional $10 billion to the domestic economy each year.
The strategy will "advance Canada’s commercial interests in priority markets around the world and ensure that we maximize the people-to-people ties that help Canadian workers, businesses and world-class educational institutions achieve real success in the largest, most dynamic and fastest-growing economies in the world,” said Minister of International Trade Ed Fast in a statement. 
As it celebrated International Education Week in British Columbia, the province’s Advanced Education Minister Amrik Virk said:  “the growth in international students is exciting for the province, and I am proud of the success of the education sector. British Columbia is a world-class destination for international students who bring economic, cultural and social benefits to our campuses and communities.”
Under B.C.’s International Education Strategy, the province is celebrating a thriving international education sector. Today there are about 112,800 international students in B.C. - an increase of almost 20% over the last three years.
The Government of British Columbia is on track to meet the BC Jobs Plan target to increase international students studying in B.C. by 50% by 2016. Welcoming more international students will cultivate greater opportunities for cultural and educational exchanges for B.C. students, and create substantial positive economic growth for the province.
B.C. hosts almost one-third of all international students in Canada. To encourage open dialogue with international students, the Government of B.C. launched the second International Student Survey this month. Survey results will be used by the government and post-secondary institutions to enhance the study experience of international students. The survey will conclude in December and the final report will be released later in 2015.
In October, Premier Christy Clark and Advanced Education Minister Amrik Virk traveled to India with representatives from post-secondary institutions to promote B.C. as a high-quality education destination and to continue building strong education partnerships that support the two-way flow of students and ideas. The mission resulted in new educational partnerships, including the agreement between the University of British Columbia and Punjab University to establish a teacher and student exchange program. The Premier also announced funding for 20 new scholarships that support the exchange of students between the University of the Fraser Valley and Sanatan Dharma College in Chandigarh, India.
The International Student Survey and the momentum gained by the India trade mission are just two ways the B.C. government is working to increase international education opportunities. These provincial efforts are not going unrecognized; two of B.C.’s public post-secondary institutions, one private institution and one student leader will be receiving awards of excellence from the Canadian Bureau for International Education this week.
In May 2012, as part of the BC Jobs Plan, government officially launched British Columbia's International Education Strategy, which promotes the global exchange of students, educators and ideas between countries. The strategy was developed to position the province and its residents to benefit even more from the social, cultural and economic opportunities that flow from international education activities.

B.C. as an international education destination:

British Columbia has become one of the world's most popular destinations for international students, with 94,000 people choosing to study in B.C. annually.

The Province now hosts about 30 per cent of all international students living in Canada.

The top five countries sending students to B.C. to take post-secondary classes are: China (12,500), Japan (2,700), Saudi Arabia (2,600), Korea (2,600) and the U.S. (2,300).

The top five countries sending students to study at private language schools in B.C. are: Korea (9,200), Japan (7,600), Brazil (4,700), Saudi Arabia (4,000) and Mexico (3,900).

The top five countries whose students are enrolled in B.C.'s elementary and secondary schools are: Korea (6,100), China (1,900), Japan (800), Taiwan (700) and Germany (700).

The top five countries with students attending all school types, from K-12 to post secondary and language schools: Korea (17,900), China (15,400), Japan (11,100), Saudi Arabia (6,600) and Brazil (5,500)

International education as an economic driver

International education is helping to drive B.C.'s economy, creating an estimated 22,000 jobs and $1.25 billion in GDP. These benefits are felt regionally, for example, the total direct economic impact of all types of international students in:

Mainland/Southwest - more than $950 million in GDP and over 17,000 jobs.
Vancouver Island/Coast - more than $125 million in GDP and approximately 2,000 jobs.
Southern Interior - more than $136 million in GDP and over 2,000 jobs.
Northern B.C. - more than $16.5 million in GDP and about 250 jobs.
On a local level:

By the numbers:

$1.8 billion - the amount international students spent in B.C. in 2010.
$1.25 billion - the amount international education contributed to B.C.'s GDP in 2010.
$70 million - the estimated revenue to government in 2010 from international education.
22,000 - the number of jobs generated as a result of international education in B.C.
160 - the number of countries with students taking post-secondary courses in B.C.
70 per cent - the number of international students in B.C. who come from the Asia-Pacific.
3.3 million - the current number of internationally mobile students worldwide.
7.2 million - the number of international students expected globally by 2025.
Projected benefits by the numbers:
1,800 - the number of new jobs estimated to be created in B.C., if international student enrolment were to increase by ten per cent alone.
$100 million - the projected incremental increase in B.C.'s GDP, should international student enrolment increase by ten per cent.
$6 million - the amount in additional government revenue that could be generated from a ten per cent increase in international students.