Addressing financial challenges
Like many universities across Canada and globally, Dalhousie is working to address the impacts of reduced international enrolments against the backdrop of rising costs outpacing government funding.
For more details, read the latest budget report, . Members of the Dal community can also learn more at the (login required).
Revenues
Nearly 90% of Dalhousie’s operating revenue comes from two sources:
Tuition fees, set by the university's Board of Governors
The university’s provincial operating grant, set by the provincial government
The remainder comes from other various smaller sources, most notably endowment revenue.
Expenditures
More than half of the operating budget (nearly 60%) is allocated to Dalhousie's academic units, while an additional 15% goes to administration / support units. This allows Faculties and units to deliver on priorities in support of the university's mission and to carry out their day-to-day work.
The vast majority of Faculty and unit spending is on compensation for faculty and staff (salaries, benefits and pension payments). Faculty and staff compensation makes up 71.8% of overall university operating expenses.
Dalhousie allocates resources similar to its U15 comparators (Canada’s group of leading research‐intensive universities). Dalhousie spends 61.1% of its operating budget in academic areas (Faculties, including Graduate Studies and Continuing Education), compared to the U15 average of 58.6%.
Student financial assistance
Across all university funds (operating, research, endowment, etc.) Dalhousie currently spends nearly $92 million each year on student assistance, including scholarships, bursaries, student employment, research and external funds.
From the operating budget specifically, Dalhousie spends 8.9% of total operating expenditures on scholarships and bursaries — compared to an average of 6.4% at other U15 universities.
Budget planning
Dalhousie's operating budget planning process is coordinated through the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) — a group chaired by the Provost with membership from senior leadership, faculty, staff and students.
Through a transparent and consultative process, the BAC is tasked with considering Dalhousie’s varied and diverse priorities and interests and making high-level recommendations for allocations of funding across the university. From there, it is up to leadership in each Faculty or service and support unit to determine how best to allocate resources to deliver on their plans and ensure Dal’s strategic goals are achieved. Learn more about integrated planning at Dalhousie.
The operating budget is approved by the university’s Board of Governors each March.