International students allege private college made them campaign for Conservative candidate

When Yanisa Kapetch decided to leave Thailand to study digital media at a private B.C. college, she never expected it would lead to her knocking on doors and handing out flyers in support of a federal Conservative candidate.

The 25-year-old travelled to Canada to study at Pacific Link College, a private college in Metro Vancouver. In December 2024, the school course’s in-class instruction was put on pause so students could work at Conservative candidate Tamara Jansen’s campaign office during a federal byelection, she told CBC News.

According to email correspondence reviewed by CBC News, the volunteer campaign work was framed as a component of their digital media course, with one campus director suggesting it would even help them get permanent residency.

“We felt it didn’t relate to our studies, and we didn’t know why we had to do this for them. And also, we didn’t know who Tamara was,” Kapetch said. 

Jansen won the byelection and currently serves as a member of parliament for the Cloverdale-Langley City riding.

Kapetch is one of two former students of Pacific Link College who told CBC News the school required their class to work on the campaign, which included door knocking. Both students shared their email exchanges with school staff and photos of their participation. The second student, who has filed a formal complaint against the school over their involvement in the campaign and the overall quality of the program’s education, did not wish to be identified publicly due to concerns about their uncertain immigration status.

Both students said they only attended one day of campaigning before telling the school they didn’t believe it was related to their studies, and never went back.

A representative from Pacific Link College denied the allegations, claiming that while the school does offer students volunteer opportunities for both community and political organizations, the roles are entirely optional. The school says it has no political affiliations.

Jansen’s office said it was unaware of the school’s involvement in the campaign. A representative said byelection campaigns are typically managed by federal party staff. CBC News has reached out to the Conservative party.

The province did not comment on the case but said enforcement actions can be taken against schools that compel students to participate in activities that aren’t aligned with their learning objectives. Enforcement actions include monetary penalties and even licence suspension or revocation.