2017-18 Budget

Revenues and Expenses

• Total projected revenues for 2017-18: $473.7 million.
• Total projected expenses for 2017-18: $477.6 million.
• Like all Quebec universities, Concordia relies on grants from the Government of Quebec. This represents more than 62% of the total revenues of the university’s operating budget.
• Salaries and benefits represent 71% of our expenses; 54% of these salaries and benefits are dedicated to teaching and research into the classroom
• 68% of our resources are dedicated to teaching and research, an increase of 3% compared to 2008-09.
• From 2008-09 to 2017-18, expenses for land and building have decreased by 1%, during a period when our footprint increased by a higher proportion.
• Administrative expenses have also decreased by 2% during the same period, from 15% in 2008-09 to 13% for 2017-18. When we consider a total operating budget of $473.7 million, this means Concordia has reduced its administrative expenses by $9 million per year, compared to 2008-09.

Tuition fee claw back

• Like all Quebec universities, Concordia has to remit a portion of the tuition fees received from international and out-of-province students.
• Concordia represents about 10% of the total number of students in the Quebec university sector. However, we remit a greater percentage to the Government of Quebec.
• Our $50 million annual contribution to the Government of Quebec represents 18% of the total claw back remitted by Quebec universities from international and out-of-province students. 

Scholarships and Financial Aid

• Since 2008-09, tuition fees have increased by 25%. During the same period, the scholarships and financial aid supported by Concordia have increased by 61%.
• As result, the university is now investing $4.8 million more per year compared to 2008-09 for scholarships and financial aid

Looking ahead

• The projected deficit of $3.9 million in 2017-18 deficit is a 36% reduction when compared to the 2016-17 deficit and a 58% reduction compared to the $9.3 million deficit in 2015-16.
• A balanced budget is a necessity to support Concordia’s long-term financial sustainability.
• To this end, the university is aiming to balance its budget within the next two years.

Investments and new funding

• Concordia remains committed to supporting its nine strategic directions and enhancing the student experience.
• To achieve this, we have made strategic reallocations totalling $9.8 million to support enrolment strategies and incentives, implement strategic directions initiatives, hire postdoctoral students and support researchers.
• To support these strategic reallocations, Faculties will contribute 1.1 % of their respective budgets and administrative units will contribute to 2.5 % of their respective budgets.
• We are also able to inject $2.3 million increase in the base budgets of the Faculties, $5.1 million in scholarships and student services, and $1 million to support capital investments.

Tuition fees

• An increase of 1,600 additional weighted full-time equivalent students.
• Tuition fees for Quebec and international students in regulated programs will increase by 2.7%, as set by the Government of Quebec.
• Students from the rest of Canada and from France will see an increase in tuition fees of 2.29%, as set by the Government of Quebec.
• Concordia will increase tuition fees for international students in deregulated programs by 2.7%, which is in alignment with the Government of Quebec’s increase.

Voluntary Retirement Program

• Net savings from the Voluntary Retirement Program, launched in 2016-17, have been included in the operating budget.

Pension reform

• The 2017-18 budget includes funding for pension changes, which take effect on January 1, 2018, as mandated by the Government of Quebec.
• Concordia’s pension contributions, as the employer, also include contributing funds to a stabilization fund, as mandated by the Government of Quebec to support the ongoing costs of the pension.

1) What are the key things I need to know about Concordia’s 2017-18 operating budget?

• The 2017-18 operating budget includes strategic investments that build on the momentum we’ve created through our strategic directions initiatives, along with our growth in research funding and student population.
• The good news is that Concordia will be injecting $13.2 million in new investments and funding in the 2017-18 fiscal year.
• This includes a $2.3 million increase in the base budgets of the Faculties, new investments totalling $5.1 million for scholarships and student services, and $1 million to support capital investments.
• The total projected revenues are $473.7 million and the total projected expenses are $477.6 million.
• While the 2017-18 budget anticipates a deficit of $3.9 million, we have reduced our deficit by 58% over the past two years. We are well on our way of achieving our goal of presenting a balanced budget within the next two years.

2) Where did these new funds come from?

• The Government of Quebec announced in March 2017 that its budget would include a 3% increase in funding for the higher education sector. This includes 1.1% of new money ($32 million) and 1.8% for growth and indexation ($53 million).
• Concordia’s share of the new funds is $3.2 million.
• We have also made strategic reallocations within our existing operating budget to support our strategic directions initiatives and to enhance the student experience.
• To this end, the Faculties are contributing 1.1% of their respective budgets and administrative units are contributing 2.5% of their respective budgets.
• As a result, we are be able to invest $9.8 million to support enrolment strategies and incentives, implement strategic directions initiatives, hire more postdoctoral students, and increase support to our researchers. 

3) Have years of budget compressions ended?

• Since 2010-11, Concordia, along with other Quebec universities, has been impacted by budget compressions.
• As a result, Concordia has had a cumulative reduction of more than $90 million to its operating budget since 2010-11.
• We have implemented several measures over the years to address the budget shortfalls, including careful financial management to keep costs down, a Voluntary Departure Program for staff members in 2014, a Voluntary Retirement Program in 2016 for staff and faculty, and a reduction in our administrative expenses.
• The Government of Quebec has allocated new funding for the university sector in 2017-18, which is good news. This follows a modest reinvestment that was made in the 2016-17 fiscal year. We hope this trend will continue in years to come.

4) What is Concordia doing with the savings from pension reform?

• The 2017-18 budget includes funding for pension changes, which takes effect on January 1, 2018, as mandated by the Government of Quebec.
• Changes that will take effect on January 1, 2018 largely affect the cost-sharing arrangement between employees and employers (45% and 55%, respectively).
• At this time for 2017-18, there are no projected savings for the university since it will be contributing to a stabilization fund to support the ongoing costs of the pension, as mandated by the Government of Quebec.

5) Is Concordia increasing tuition fees?

• Tuition fees for Quebec and international students in regulated programs are set by the Government of Quebec. The government has announced that these will increase by 2.7% in 2017-18.
• The Government of Quebec also sets the tuition fees for students from the rest of Canada and France. In 2017-18, the government will increase these tuition fees by 2.29%.
• Concordia will increase tuition fees for international students in deregulated programs by 2.7%, which is in alignment with the Government of Quebec’s increase. 

6) What will Concordia do with these additional revenues?

• Like all Quebec universities, Concordia has to remit to the Government of Quebec a portion of the tuition fees it receives from international and out-of-province students from Canada as well as from students from France.
• In 2017-18, this means we will be remitting approximately $50 million to the Government of Quebec.
• Concordia will continue to make investments to increase financial aid and scholarships to students.

7) How is Concordia reducing its deficit?

• Since 2010-11, we have implemented several measures to reduce administrative costs over the long term.
• This has included ongoing careful and rigorous financial management to reduce operating costs without compromising our academic mission or losing the momentum we have generated as a result of our strategic directions process.
• We also implemented a Voluntary Departure Program in 2014 and the Voluntary Retirement Program in 2016.
• While deficits made sense in the past to deal with unexpected budget shortfalls, we have been diligent in our goal of returning to a balanced budget, as illustrated from some of the measures outlined above.
• While the 2017-18 budget anticipates a deficit of $3.9 million deficit, this represents a reduction of 58% over two years.
• We believe that our goal of presenting a balanced budget is within our reach within the next two years.