The Canadian Federation of Students is calling for a moratorium on new private colleges after a Toronto college was ordered to close.

On Wednesday, the province demanded that Goodwin College of Technology cease its operations because it was offering unapproved programs. The owner of the college has been charged with two counts of bribery.

Goodwin College had three campuses in the Toronto area. The door is locked at the 360 Bloor Street West location, above a couple of stores.

The website for Goodwin College advertises in Mandarin and English that it offers certificate training programs in health care, engineering and technology.

Shelly Melanesian, with the Canadian Federation of Students, said students are left unprotected far too often.

"The fact that this institution has been operating since 2002, that's a huge period of time where students have invested tens of thousands of dollars for a diploma that unfortunately isn't worth the paper it's written on," she said.

John Milloy, the provincial minister of training, colleges and universities, said the government has new legislation that ensures private colleges are up to standard. He said most of the 500 private colleges in the Ontario are legitimate.

"We have an example here of a bad apple and we've taken action, and we are not afraid to take action. The Goodwin example shows that we have some teeth and we will shut them down if they don't comply," said Milloy.

The Federation of Students said those who attend unregistered colleges are often new immigrants or international students who applied for the courses outside the country. It wants the province to stop approving private colleges and invest in public ones instead.