Carleton’s vice-president (finance and administration) Duncan Watt gave his annual presentation on the university’s finances at the Senate meeting March 22.
The presentation included details on Carleton’s annual income, expenses, student demographics, and upcoming changes in how Carleton handles its money such as a possible tuition increase.
How much will tuition increase?
The provincial government has indicated it will raise tuition by between zero and five per cent. The university cannot be sure how much of a tuition hike the province will allow until the province announces the figure next week.
Working off an estimate of a three per cent raise, tuition for a typical bachelor of arts or bachelor of science full-time Canadian student will increase by about $169 starting this May.
“For international students, we can do whatever we want . . . there’s no restrictions,” Watt said.
International students will probably see a six per cent increase, Watt estimates, meaning about an increase of $1,260 for a full-time international undergraduate paying $21,000 a year. The increase hasn’t been finalized.
Depending on the province’s decision, Carleton will finalize its 2013-14 budget by the end of April.
Where does Carleton’s funding come from?
“Undergraduate students are the economic engine of the university,” Watt said.
About half of Carleton’s revenue comes from tuition fees. The second largest source of income was government grants, making up 44 per cent of the school’s revenue.
Aside from tuition, students pay about $800 in miscellaneous fees. These go to different aspects of the expense budget, Watt said.
Carleton also gets some income from interest and investments, Watt said.
Carleton’s total revenue was $354 million, $1M below its total expenditures.
The university plans to increase revenue in the future by means such as attracting research funding for graduate students.
What does Carleton spend the money on?
“We spend, like 76 per cent of our money on [employees],” Watt said.
That includes salaries, pension fund payments and benefits such as health/dental plans, and long-term disability care, Watt said.
About $27 million went to other items like travel expenses, running WebCT and CULearn, photocopying, and getting supplies, Watt said.
The university also spent $5 million on library acquisitions and $26 million on student aid.
Where do our students come from?
About 80 per cent of Carleton’s first-year students came from Ontario in the 2012-13 academic year. The second largest demographic was international students, making up 13 per cent. The rest came from other Canadian provinces. Altogether, about 5,100 students enrolled in September 2012.
According to the census done in 2006, there will 13,000 fewer 18-year-old Ontarians in 2020.
However, the university said it expects to have more students from the Greater Toronto Area in the coming years, because high school graduates from that area are increasing, Watt said.
Watt said the university wants to see a slow increase in the number of first-year undergraduates, like having 15 per cent of international students instead of the current 13 per cent, for example.
“We don’t want a lot of extra students, we just want a few [more],” Watt said.
What about the pension plan fund?
Carleton expects to see its employee pension plan payments cost almost double starting in July 2014: from $19 million to $37.4 million.
The hike in payments stems from a need to address a deficit in the university’s pension fund. Because of lower returns, the pension fund has run into a deficit.
Watt said at a Senate meeting that the university had seen the increase in pension fund payments coming and has planned to pay for it.
