Immigrant nurses in Canada: Alignment between intentions and employment outcomes

Hanqing Qiu, Feng Hou, Haozhen Zhang and Jianwei Zhong

Economic and Social Reports from Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies and Modelling Branch

Abstract: This article uses data from the Integrated Permanent and Non-permanent Resident File and the 2021 Census of Population to examine the alignment between occupational intentions and employment outcomes among immigrants who intended to work as nurses. The results show that among economic principal applicants who were admitted from 2010 to 2020 aged 18 to 54 and who intended to work as nurses, 63% found jobs in nursing occupations in 2021, while 25% worked in either lower-skilled health occupations or lower-skilled non-health occupations or were not employed. Pre-admission Canadian work experience was a strong predictor of alignment between intended and actual employment in nursing. The article also finds that among immigrants who worked as nurses in 2021, 35% had intended to work as nurses at the time of admission. The remaining 65% of immigrant nurses were not initially selected for nursing but later entered the profession after becoming permanent residents in Canada. These results highlight the dynamic nature of immigrants’ career pathways.

Keywords: Immigrant nurses; alignment between intentions; employment outcomes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J23 M21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-09-24
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:stc:stcp8e:20250090003e

DOI: 10.25318/36280001202500900003-eng

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