The University closed last year with a surplus despite declining international enrolment and the continued provincial tuition freeze.
Queen’s finished the 2024-25 fiscal year with a reported surplus of $60.1 million, according to Consolidated Financial Statements approved by the Board of Trustees on Sept. 26. The statements attribute the surplus primarily to strong investment returns of over $151 million—without which the University would have recorded a consolidated deficit of $8.6 million.
Recognizing the increasing pressures on the University’s operating budget, Queen’s will almost double its annual allocation from the Pooled Investment Fund (PIF) to their operating budget, with Queen’s allocating $10 million instead of the previous $5.2 million for the next three years, beginning in 2025-26. Investment income allowed the operating fund to end 2024-25 with a surplus of $15.8 million, whereas it would have otherwise seen a deficit of $26.1 million before investment income not allocated to operations.
In a note accompanying the statements, Vice-Principal (Finance and Administration) Donna Janeic referenced financial constraints the University continues to face, namely the 10 per cent tuition cut Ontario implemented in 2019, the ongoing provincial tuition freeze, and a decline in international student enrolment—with international students providing 26 per cent of tuition revenue last year, despite only constituting 9.5 per cent of enrolment.
Despite these challenges, total revenues for the 2024-25 school year saw an increase of 1.6 per cent, due in part to an increase in research grants and contracts—with large contributions from the Tri-Agencies and the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). At the same time, however, expenses rose by 3 per cent, driven by increased spending on salaries and benefits, externally contracted research, student assistance, and higher utility costs, offset by a decrease in supplies and services.
Major capital projects during the year included beginning work on the Agnes Reimagined project, starting the Duncan McArthur Hall renovation, and completing the JDUC revitalization. Overall, the University spent $78.7 million on building projects and construction in 2024-25.
In spite of these capital expenditures, Queen’s still reported a $534.9 million deferred maintenance backlog—a collection of repairs to infrastructure and other assets that have yet to be done. Still, only $26.6 million is allocated to deferred maintenance annually, constituting just 0.69 per cent of the $3.9 billion value of the University’s campus, whereas the statements acknowledge the industry standard as being 1.5 per cent.
Queen’s highlighted the deferred maintenance backlog as being one of the University’s three major financial risks, alongside heavy reliance on grant support and government-controlled tuition, and reliance on international tuition revenue. Even with these risks, the S&P Global Ratings and DBRS Limited granted the University strong credit ratings of ‘AA+’ and ‘AA,’ respectively.
Looking forward, the University intends to mitigate the financial pressures by using the short-term reserve, maintaining certain hiring restrictions, redistributing enrolment, maximizing international student intake, and continuing to rely on the Queen’s Renew program.
Corrections
A previous version of the story misstated details about the University’s use of investment income and transfers from the Pooled Investment Fund (PIF).
Incorrect information appeared in the Oct. 10 issue of The Queen’s Journal.
The Journal regrets the error
Tags
Budget, budget deficit, Vice-President (Finance and Services)
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