CANADA: Revenues fall behind enrolments

Despite government investments in post-secondary education in recent years, revenues per student in the general operating budgets at Canadian universities are much lower than at American public universities, according to the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada.

The association's latest volume of Trends in higher education shows overall revenues supporting teaching and research per student at Canadian universities have fallen significantly since the 1980s and have remained virtually unchanged since 2000. Canadian universities had $2,000 (US$?) per student more than their US public peers in 1980-81 but now have $8,000 less to fund teaching and research. Canadian universities also have less per student than UK universities.

"This funding disadvantage is a potential quality disadvantage for Canadian university students," says Claire Morris, President and CEO of AUCC. "It also has implications for the competitiveness of Canada's universities and their ability to attract and retain faculty and to produce graduates capable of competing in a global knowledge economy."

Increases in both operating and research funding to Canada since 2000 have failed to produce any change in the level of funding per student largely because of rapid growth in student enrolments. The number of students enrolled in Canadian universities has increased by 56% since 1980 and by 31% since 2000.

University enrolments have grown at almost triple the rate of faculty growth while in the US, faculty growth has matched that of enrolments.

Report is available at:
www.aucc.ca