In a recent article in Halifax CityNews, journalist Rachel Morgan asked an important question: can Nova Scotia universities survive the red line? Budget deficits, tuition controls and caps on international student numbers combine to threaten their stability and perhaps, in some cases, their existence. The issues are not for Nova Scotia alone; they are present in all provinces. 

Though we sometimes speak of universities in generic terms, there are sharp differences among them. Dalhousie University in Halifax is a medical-doctoral institution well known throughout the Atlantic region and across Canada. Other universities in the province vary in size and stature but have more of a local impact, and some are embedded in communities that are dependent upon them, e.g. Acadia in Wolfville, St. Francis Xavier in Antigonish, and Cape Breton University in Sydney. Ten universities are a lot in a province with a population approaching 1.1 million, but they are all established institutions with communities that are intent on their survival and success. 

The hurdles in their way are substantial. In Nova Scotia, as in other provinces, the percentage of budgets from government grants has been steadily declining but the decline has not been met by offsetting fee increases, and provincial governments continue to control tuition, prescribing levels that are insufficient to make up budget shortfalls. Where, historically, universities have been able to set their own tuition fees — for international students — the federal government has intervened to impose caps on their numbers. While the impact among universities varies depending on the extent of their reliance on students from other countries, it is felt by all. 

Continue reading at the National Post, here. 

Peter MacKinnon served as the president of three Canadian universities and is a senior fellow with the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy. Photo: iStock.