It seems the city's English cegeps are bucking the trend of declining enrolment.
Many are experiencing a record number of students this year and this has resulted in overcrowded hallways and classrooms.
At Ste. Anne de Bellevue's John Abbott College a record 5,900 students have enrolled this fall.
The growing student population has forced school officials to make special arrangements, including adding three portable classrooms to deal with the overcrowding.
John Abbott director general Ginette Sheehy says the school is coping.
"We have had to add sections," she said. "We have had to hire new teachers. The classrooms are full."
It's much the same story at Vanier in St. Laurent and Dawson College downtown, where school officials say they have had to turn students away.
8,000 students applied for 3,500 available spots at Dawson, and right now 7,600 students are filing through the halls.
Dawson does not expect the crowding to last. School officials anticipate the school will become less crowded as the dropout deadline looms.
