Queen’s approved its Final 2026-27 Operating Budget Overview at the May 8 Board of Trustees meeting with a warning that financial pressures are expected to continue despite new provincial funding.
Queen’s total operating budget for 2026-27 is $751.5 million, with a projected deficit of $8.5 million. The budget also projects deficits of $2.3 million in 2027-28 and $2 million in 2028-29.
This follows several years of financial strain across Ontario universities, including provincial tuition freezes, rising operating costs, and federal caps on international student permits.
The 2026-27 budget includes an increase in government grant revenue, including $15.9 million in STEM program funding, $4.3 million in incremental Postsecondary Education Sustainability Fund Funding, $2.1 million for additonal teacher training seats, $1.6 million for medical expansion, and $0.2 million for nursing expansion.
The Faculty of Arts and Science (FAS) remains the only faculty at Queen’s not projected to be in structural balance next year, according to the budget documents. The faculty is projected to run an $8.5 million deficit in 2026-27.
To offset the shortfall, FAS is expected to receive $39.7 million in financial support from the University’s central budget. The budget projects this support will decrease to $24.6 million in 2027-28 and $15 million in 2028-29. Queen’s confirmed in a statement to The Journal that FAS received increased financial support this year.
During the Board meeting, Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) Matthew Evans said “it [additional funds] will be great for a while, but it will eventually run out.”
“We will need to continue to be vigilant and continue to maintain the cost controls and the sustainability measures that we are undertaking at the moment,” he said.
The University said annual compensation increases of about four per cent, or approximately $20 million, alongside inflationary pressures are expected to absorb much of the new provincial funding within two years.
The report states the faculty’s outlook improved compared to previous projections because of provincial operating grants. However, “future years remain uncertain due to international student permit caps and inflationary pressures.”
At the same meeting, trustees also approved the Tuition Fee Report 2026-27 and 2027-28, including the School of Computing tuition increases of 7.5 per cent in 2026-27 and 6.6 per cent in 2027-28. The report projects continued enrolment growth in Computing, which is expected to generate additional tuition revenue.
The University is expected to increase spending in several areas next year. Shared services investments are projected to increase by $9.1 million, including $2.7 for facilities, $1.3 million for human resources, $0.8 million for advancement, and $0.3 million for the University Secretariat and Queen’s University Library.
Queen’s statement said the province’s new operating funding increases will be held centrally while the University conducts a strategic proposal process over the summer.
According to the University, students experiencing financial pressure can access need-based bursaries, emergency funding, and donor-funded awards through Queen’s Financial Aid and Awards Office.
Queen’s also released its final operating fund projection for the 2025-26 fiscal year, showing a projected $2.3 million surplus compared to a budgeted deficit of $26.4 million.
Tags
Faculty of Art and Science, Operating Budget, surplus, Tuition Fees, tuition freeze
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