Marshia Akbar

Director, BMO Newcomer Workforce Integration Lab

EducationPhD, York University

Marshia Akbar is the Director of the BMO Newcomer Workforce Integration Lab and Research Lead on Labour Migration at CERC Migration. Her interdisciplinary research bridges policy, practice, and lived experiences to address pressing issues in international migration, employment integration, and social equity.

She examines employment challenges faced by immigrants and migrants with temporary status, including international students, post-graduates, and high-skilled temporary workers. Using a multi-sectoral, collaborative approach, she highlights the roles of diverse stakeholders in fostering equitable integration pathways. With expertise in both statistical analysis and qualitative methodologies, her work combines analytical rigor with contextual sensitivity, emphasizing gender, class, race, and intersectionality in migration.

Under her leadership, the BMO Lab conducts action-oriented research to help employers effectively recruit and integrate skilled immigrants by bridging research with practice. She actively contributes to public discourse through conferences, publications, and collaborations with policymakers and practitioners.

Marshia has secured several research grants, including the SSHRC Insight Development Grant (2022), SSHRC Insight Grant (2023), funding from the Intergovernmental Committee for Economic and Labour Force Development (2022), and grants from World Education Services (2024, 2025).

Beyond research, she teaches in the Department of Sociology and The Chang School of Continuing Education at Toronto Metropolitan University. Marshia received the Faculty of Arts Teaching Award in 2022 for her course "Immigration, Borders, and Belonging".

Journal Articles and Research Reports

(2023). (PDF file) Best Practices in Supporting International Students enrolled in Toronto-area Colleges (external link) , Intergovernmental Committee for Labour Force Development (ICE) Report.

With Deegan, H. and Aziz, A. (2023). (PDF file) Labour migration policies: Case study series Canada (external link) , PICUM - the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, Belgium.

With Perzyna, M., Ellis, C., Monteiro, S., Nalbandian, L., & Smith, C. D. (2022). (PDF file) Immigration policy ‘on the fly’: A critical review of pandemic policymaking in Canada (external link) . Working paper.

With Niraula, A. & Triandafyllidou, A. (2022). Navigating Uncertainties: Evaluating the Shift of Canadian Immigration Policies during the COVID-19 Pandemic. (external link, opens in new window) Canadian Public Policy.

(2022). Temporariness and the production of policy categories in Canada (external link, opens in new window) . Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1-18.

(2022) Who are Canada’s temporary foreign workers? Policy evolution and a pandemic reality (external link) . International Migration, 00, 1– 13.

With Preston, V., & Shields, J. (2021). Migration and resilience in urban canada: Why social resilience, Why now?. (external link) Journal of International Migration and Integration, 1-21.

With Preston, V. (2021). Entrepreneurial activities of Canadian Bangladeshi women in Toronto: a family perspective (external link) . Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1-20.

With Preston, V. (2020/10). Labour Market Challenges and Entrepreneurial Activities of Bangladeshi Women in Toronto: A Family Perspective (external link) . CERC-RCIS Working Paper No, 10, September 2020.

With Ray, B., Rose, D., & Preston, V. (2019) (PDF file) Industry of Employment by Immigration Status: A Comparison of Major Cities in Ontario and Quebec (external link) , BMRC Report 2.

With Preston, V. (2019) Migration and Resilience, Exploring the Stock of Knowledge: Review of Literature 2000-2016 (external link) , BMRC Working Paper.

(2019). Examining the Factors that Affect the Employment Status of Racialised Immigrants: A Study of Bangladeshi Immigrants in Toronto, Canada (external link) , South Asian Diaspora, 11(1), 67-87.

With Ray, B., & Preston, V. (2018) (PDF file) Trends in Immigration Class: Census 2016 (external link) , BMRC Report 1.

With Preston, V., Phan, M., Park, S. and Kelly, P. (2011) (PDF file) How does Full/Part-Time Employment Affect Labour Market Outcomes Over Time? (external link) TIEDI Analytical Report 25.

With Preston, V. Phan, M., Park, S. and Kelly, P. (2011) (PDF file) Continuity of Employment for Immigrants during the First Four Years in Canada (external link) , TIEDI Analytical Report 24.

With Kelly, P., Park, S. (2011) (PDF file) Profile of Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) Immigrants to Canada, 1996-2009 (external link) , TEIDI Analytical Report 26.

Chapter

(2024). Challenges Facing International College Students in Canada (external link) . In S. Irudaya Rajan (Ed.), India Migration Report 2023: Student Migration (pp. 138-160). Routledge.