UW facing $75M operating budget deficit for upcoming year

The University of Waterloo is projecting a deficit of around $75 million for its 2024-2025 operating budget.

In a statement to CityNews 570, the university said that a 10 per cent cut in domestic tuition fees by the provincial government in 2019 is causing a financial strain.

“As a result of these constraints, and to manage within a lower-cost environment, we are looking at our processes and how we deliver programs and services in ways that maximize our resources while ensuring that students continue to receive the high-quality education and campus experience that they expect from the University of Waterloo,” the statement said.

UW will look to do this by implementing a limited hiring program, reducing base operating budgets for all units as well as targeting additional budget restrictions.

The provincial government recently announced $1.3 billion in funding for the post-secondary sector, however, UW said that won’t be enough to reduce the deficit significantly.

“We remain concerned about long-term financial sustainability of our sector given the impact cumulative frozen operating grants and tuition rates have had just on our institution.”