A private degree-granting school in Calgary is closing its doors after more than three decades of teaching the basics of engineering, computing and business administration.

But approximately 180 current students of DeVry Institute of Technology will still qualify for student aid and be able to complete their education online.

Devry’s president, Ranil Herath, said 20 staff and 14 faculty members will lose their jobs when the facility in southeast Calgary closes its doors at the end of June.

“It’s a response to what the market is telling us,” Herath said.

“More and more students are telling us they’re interested in studying online and fewer are interested in studying on site.”

The closure of Devry’s only Canadian operation comes as the school’s publicly-traded parent grapples with declining enrolment and earnings from its dozens of campuses around the continent.

In its most recent year, Devry Inc. saw undergraduate enrolment slip nearly 16 per cent to just over 50,000 students, and net income plummet more than 50 per cent to $141.5 million.

The Illinois-based company reported that 86 per cent of its 2011 graduates in the active job market were employed in their field of study within six months of leaving school at an average annual salary of more than $42,000.

But the default rate on student loans among its U.S. students continued to climb and was well above the national average.

More than 14 per cent were behind on their payments in 2009, compared to 8.8 per cent for all college and university students south of the border. Comparable data for its Canadian students was not available.

Devry opened its doors in Calgary in 1981, but only began granting degrees in 2001 when the Alberta government accredited its Bachelor of Technology program. Starting in 2006, the province also approved the school’s Bachelor of Science program.

Michael Shields, spokesman for Alberta Enterprise and Advanced Education, said when the current crop of students complete their studies in 2016, Devry will no longer be able to grant degrees.

“It’s been a good relationship and Devry has had a good reputation in the technology, business and management field,” Shields said.

While those students midway through their program will remain eligible for student loans, he said aid applications from new online enrollees will be reviewed and approved on a case-by-case basis.

The campus closure coincides with the expiry of Devry’s lease at a business park in southeast Calgary. The company will maintain a student support centre downtown that will provide financial aid, registrar and career services.

Herath said some current students had expressed surprise at the closure. and those who began their studies at Devry this term will be given the option of a full refund.

“Half their courses were already being taken online, so it wasn’t anything alien to them,” he said.

“There are some courses, though, that they said they would have preferred to take on campus to get the interaction with the professor and other students.”