Education Indicators in Canada: Handbook for the Report of the Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program June 2016
Section B:
Financing education systems Section B:
Financing education systems

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• B2 Average university tuition fees
• B3 Student debt

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B2 Average university tuition fees

Tables B.2.9 and B.2.11

This subset of Indicator B2 includes data on average undergraduate and graduate university tuition fees, over time, in current dollars, at the Canada level and by province (Table B.2.9) and by field of study (Table B.2.11). These tables are based on data from the Tuition and Living Accommodation Costs (TLAC) survey which covers the academic year (eight months).

Concepts and definitions

• Average university tuition fees represent the tuition fees charged to full-time Canadian students over the academic year; that is, September to April. International students are not included. Average tuition fees for graduate studies (Master's and doctorates) are also presented. These average tuition fees do not include additional compulsory fees such as those for athletics, health services and student associations.
• The fields of study classification for undergraduate and graduate programs are adapted from the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP), Statistics Canada's standard. The average tuition amounts for both types of programs are presented ranked from highest to lowest, based on the most recent year of data.
• Information is presented for the following 17 fields of study in both undergraduate and graduate programs: agriculture, natural resources and conservation; architecture and related services; business, management and public administration; dentistry; education; engineering; humanities; law, legal professions and study; mathematics, computer and information sciences; medicine; nursing; other health, parks, recreation and fitness; pharmacy; physical and life sciences and technologies; social and behavioural sciences; veterinary medicine; and visual and performing arts, and communications technologies.
• The graduate programs also include Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs; specifically, Regular MBA and Executive MBA.
• All tuition fee amounts are presented in current dollars. To convert the current dollar amounts to constant dollar amounts for comparison over time, it is suggested that the September Consumer Price Index corresponding with the beginning of the university academic year (September to August) be used. For the index and further details on converting, see Table F.1.4.

Methodology

• The Tuition and Living Accommodation Costs (TLAC) survey collects data for full-time students at Canadian degree-granting institutions that are publicly funded. The survey was developed to provide an overview of tuition and additional compulsory fees, and living accommodation costs that students can expect to pay for an academic year.
• The target population of TLAC is all degree-granting institutions (universities and colleges) in Canada. The survey is a census with a cross-sectional design. Data are collected for all units of the target population; therefore, no sampling is done.
• A major redesign of the Tuition and Living Accommodation Costs (TLAC) questionnaire was implemented for the 2007/2008 collection cycle, to include the standard coding structure for fields of study based on the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP). Executive MBA and Regular MBA, previously included in the "Business, management and public administration" category were presented independently under the graduate programs; this change had a substantial impact. In 2010/2011, MBA programs were excluded from the national and provincial weighted averages to eliminate the impact of the high cost of these programs on the overall tuition fee averages for graduate programs.
• Using the most current enrolment data available, average tuition fees have been weighted by the number of students enrolled by institution and field of study.
• As of 1998/1999, Quebec weighted averages include the different tuition fees paid by "in-province" and "out-of-province" Canadian students. As of 2007/2008, Nova Scotia weighted averages include the different tuition fees paid by in-province and out-of-province Canadian students.   In Ontario, the undergraduate weighted averages are calculated using the average of the lower and upper tuition values including enrolments by field of study.  All other provinces except for Nova Scotia and Quebec use the lower tuition values including enrolments by field of study to calculate undergraduate weighted averages. Graduate weighted averages are calculated using the average of the lower and upper tuition fees including enrolments.
• All surveys are subject to errors. Only non-sampling errors apply to this survey given that no sampling process was used to produce the final results. Each year, data comparability is performed for each university and college, and any major discrepancies are investigated with the respondent. Tuition fee data is available at the provincial level and by province and field of study in CANSIM.  Tuition fees at the institutional level are available through Client Services upon request and for a fee; these are the raw data reported by each institution.

Limitations

• Since the distribution of enrolment across various programs varies from period to period, caution should be exercised when making historical comparisons.

Data source

• Survey of Tuition and Living Accommodation Costs (TLAC), Statistics Canada. For more information consult "Definitions, data sources and methods", Statistics Canada Web site, survey 3123.

University revenues

Table B.2.12

This subset of Indicator B2 presents the percentage distribution of university revenues, by source, at the Canada and provincial levels (Table B.2.12). Amounts are presented in current dollars, for the financial year.

Concepts and definitions

• Government revenues at universities captures grants and contracts from government departments and agencies at the federal, provincial, municipal, and foreign levels.
• The federal portion of income is mainly from six major federal government agencies: the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Health Canada (HC), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), and Canada Research Chairs. Grants and contracts from all other federal government departments and agencies are also included.
• Grants and contracts at the provincial level include: income from provincial government departments and agencies, including provincial CFI matching grants; and provincial CFI matching income from the ministry responsible for the institution. "Income from other provinces," which includes grants from, and contracts with, provinces other than the province with jurisdiction, is also included.
• Grants from urban transit, communication and parking authorities are examples of income from municipal governments.
• Income from foreign nations includes grants from the National Endowment for Humanities, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Science Foundation.
• Private revenues at universities refer to those obtained from any source other than government, categorized as:
  • Student fees: Payments obtained from students directly in the form of tuition (credit and non-credit courses) and other fees.
  • Non-government grants and contracts, donations and bequests: Financial support received by colleges and universities from donors, bequests from wills, and contracts from sources other than government, the latter provided with specific stipulations.
  • Sales: Institution revenue from sales of services and products.
  • Investment: Revenue from dividends, bonds, mortgages, short-term notes, and bank interest. Includes the "Endowment" fund, a restricted fund (primarily donations), which cannot be spent. Investment income generated by endowments may be used for various purposes, which are often restricted by donors.
  • Miscellaneous: Commissions, royalties, and fees from the use of institution-owned rights or properties, fees for services rendered, library and other similar fines, rentals, net gain or loss on the sale of fixed assets, and any type of revenue not identified under other forms of revenue.

Methodology

• Data were drawn from the Financial Information of Universities and Colleges Survey (FIUC), which was developed to provide financial information (income and expenditures) on all universities and affiliated institutions ("institution" may refer to universities, university-colleges, colleges, institutes and hospitals) in Canada. The survey is a census with a cross-sectional design, and the target population is all degree-granting institutions (universities and colleges) in Canada. Data are collected for all units of the target population; therefore, no sampling is done.
• The collection process for FIUC is conducted using two separate questionnaires:
  1. A questionnaire developed in conjunction with the Canadian Association of University Business Officers (CAUBO) that was designed and implemented by the CAUBO Finance Committee, which comprises financial administrators from six universities. These administrators meet twice a year and any proposed changes to the questionnaire and guidelines are discussed and implemented by the Committee.
  2. A non-CAUBO questionnaire, which is a virtual duplicate of the CAUBO questionnaire. Any modifications to the CAUBO questionnaire or guidelines are applied to the non-CAUBO questionnaire.
• Ontario CAUBO universities report to the province's own collection authorities (Council of Finance Officers — Universities of Ontario [COFO]). This information is sent to Statistics Canada, where a mapping and integration process converts the COFO data into the CAUBO format database.
• In 1999/2000, there was a break in the series, when major changes made to the CAUBO questionnaire and guidelines affected the historical comparability of the data; therefore, 1999/2000 was selected as the basis for comparison. Data from 1999/2000 onwards are comparable as they are based on the same guideline definitions.
• "University-colleges" are part of the FIUC universe made by CAUBO and as such are considered universities.
• Each university (and university-college) returns its questionnaire with accompanying audited financial statements, thus ensuring data accuracy. Nevertheless, each year a data comparability review is done for each institution and any major discrepancies are investigated with the respondent.

Limitations

• Non-CAUBO data are amalgamated with the CAUBO data at the provincial level. Data for non-CAUBO institutions are not released publicly at the institution level. They can only be released at the provincial level.
• Comparisons of financial data over multiple years should be done with caution because of changes in generally accepted accounting principles that could alter the underlying data and changes in the guidelines that govern the reporting of the data.

Data source

• Financial Information of Universities and Colleges Survey, Statistics Canada. For more information, consult "Definitions, data sources and methods," Statistics Canada Web site, survey 3121.

University expenditures

Tables B.2.13 and B.2.14

This subset of Indicator B2 includes university expenditures by type of expenditure, for Canada and the provinces. Amounts are presented in current dollars (Table B.2.13) and percentage distributions (Table B.2.14). Expenditures figures are drawn from multiple sources including financial survey data and institutional financial reports. Some of the data are estimated in order to produce a complete and coherent financial picture.

Concepts and definitions

• The capital expenditures category reflects all expenditures on capital assets by universities and is not restricted to those originating in an institution's capital fund. Capital expenditures include: acquisitions of buildings, land, major equipment and furniture; major renovations and alterations; space rental; etc.
• Operating expenditures include the following funds: general operating; special purpose and trust; sponsored research; and ancillary enterprises. Such expenditures reflect the items that an institution purchases and consumes within a year, and those the institution purchases on an ongoing basis. Costs directly attributable to instruction such as salaries, instructional aids, administrative support, teacher development, and costs for other educators such as counselors, are included. Operating expenditures refer to:
  • Compensation, which includes gross salaries for educators and other staff (before deduction of taxes, contributions for retirement or health care plans, and other contributions or premiums for social insurance or other purposes), plus expenditure on retirement (actual or imputed expenditure by employers or third parties to finance retirement benefits for current educational personnel) and other non-salary compensation (fringe benefits). These statistics on compensation of university staff are categorized as:
    • Academic salaries – salaries paid to full- and part-time staff members engaged in instruction and research activities (includes deans, professors, associate professors, assistant professors and lecturers; also includes payments to staff members in the academic ranks for various types of leave such as administrative, academic or sabbatical).
    • Other salaries and wages - payments to all full- and part-time non-instructional (support) staff including, among others, technicians, teaching and research laboratory technicians, clerical and secretarial, professional and managerial, janitorial, trades and maintenance. Also includes payments to individuals who may hold an academic rank (or equivalent), but are engaged in activities other than instruction and research.
    • Benefits – includes the costs of institutions' contributions (with respect to salaries) for pensions (including payments for actuarial deficiencies and past service liability), group life insurance, salary continuance insurance, dental plans, Workers' Compensation, health taxes, tuition remission, Employment Insurance, and other costs of employee benefit programs. Also includes the cost of benefits paid during early retirement periods, as well as the cost of post-retirement benefits.
• The other operating expenditures category includes all non-salary related items such as spending on tuition fees and books, spending attributable to research and development, membership fees include fees paid by the institution to organizations such as AUCC and CAUBO, utilities, school services under contract, building operations and maintenance staff and so on. Other non-salary costs include those related to the maintenance of buildings as well as supplementary costs such as lunch programs and transportation and other expenses not covered elsewhere.

Methodology

• Data were drawn from the Financial Information of Universities and Colleges Survey (FIUC), which was developed to provide financial information (income and expenditures) on all universities and affiliated institutions (institution may refer to universities, university-colleges, colleges, institutes and hospitals) in Canada. The survey is a census with a cross-sectional design, and the target population is all degree-granting institutions (universities and colleges) in Canada. Data are collected for all units of the target population; therefore, no sampling is done.
• The collection process for FIUC is conducted using two separate questionnaires:
  1. A questionnaire developed in conjunction with the Canadian Association of University Business Officers (CAUBO) that was designed and implemented by the CAUBO Finance Committee, which comprises financial administrators from six universities. These administrators meet twice a year and any proposed changes to the questionnaire and guidelines are discussed and implemented by the Committee.
  2. A non-CAUBO questionnaire, which is a virtual duplicate of the CAUBO questionnaire. Any modifications to the CAUBO questionnaire or guidelines are applied to the non-CAUBO questionnaire.
• Ontario CAUBO universities report to the province's own collection authorities (Council of Finance Officers — Universities of Ontario [COFO]). This information is sent to Statistics Canada, where a mapping and integration process converts the COFO data into the CAUBO format database.
• In 1999/2000, there was a break in the series, when major changes were made to the CAUBO questionnaire and guidelines, which affected the historical comparability of the data; therefore, 1999/2000 was selected as the basis for comparison. Data from 1999/2000 onwards are comparable as they are based on the same guideline definitions.
• "University-colleges" are part of the FIUC universe made by CAUBO and as such are considered universities.
• Each university (and university-college) returns its questionnaire with accompanying audited financial statements, thus ensuring data accuracy. Nevertheless, each year a data comparability review is done for each institution and any major discrepancies are investigated with the respondent.
• The percentages presented in Table B.2.14 were calculated using the current dollar values for Canada from Table B.2.13.

Limitations

• While considerable effort is made to ensure that universities and colleges are preparing information in accordance with the prescribed guidelines, there are limitations in the comparability of the data because of differences in the underlying accounting practices followed by institutions. Institutional comparisons are subject to interpretation and clarification because of differences such as size, academic programs, structure, physical environment, management philosophy, and budgetary and accounting procedures. Therefore, comparisons of financial data over multiple years should be done with caution.
• When making inter-jurisdictional comparisons, the following should be taken into account: variations in sources of funding; differences in fiscal year-end dates, which can vary from March 31 to June 30, and variations in provincial policies and provincial funding responsibilities.

Data source

• Financial Information of Universities and Colleges Survey (FIUC), Statistics Canada. For more information, consult "Definitions, data sources and methods," Statistics Canada Web site, survey 3121

B3 Student debt

Tables B.3.1 and B.3.2

Indicator B3 provides data on student debt from government-run student loan programs, for the class of 2009-2010. Using data from the National Graduates Survey (NGS), the tables look at the percentage of students who borrowed and their average debt at graduation (Table B.3.1), as well as the incidence and repayment of government student loans among 2009-2010 graduates who did not pursue further postsecondary education (Table B.3.2) in Canada and the provinces.

Concepts and definitions

• In the National Graduates Survey (NGS), graduates include those who graduated from: university programs leading to bachelors, masters or doctorate degrees or specialized certificates or diplomas; other postsecondary programs such as programs of a one-year duration or longer that normally require secondary school completion or its equivalent for admission in colleges of applied arts and technology, CEGEPs, community colleges, technical schools and similar institutions; and skilled trades programs, which are usually three months or more in duration. This indicator, however, covers only those from university with a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate degree or those from college. The NGS was conducted three years (class of 2009-2010) after graduation.
• Government student loan programs include all federal and provincial student lending resources; that is, programs under which provincial and federal governments provide loans to Canadians enrolled in full- or part-time postsecondary education, based on eligibility and need.
• The data in Table B.3.2 include only 2009-2010 graduates who did not pursue any further postsecondary education program; i.e., a program leading to a diploma, certificate or degree above the high school level that would take three or more months to complete when attending full-time.

Methodology

• Survey information collected from graduates on student loans includes the amounts owed to both federal and provincial student loan programs as well as the amount owed to other sources. Results presented refer to borrowing from government student loan programs only. Borrowing from private sources is not included.
• In Table B.3.1, average debt at graduation for 2009-2010 graduates is expressed in current  dollars.
• For PCEIP 2015, the data in Table B.3.1 capture all 2009-2010 graduates who borrowed from government student loan programs and who reported data three years after graduation
• In PCEIP 2015 Table B.3.1, the calculation of the average debt at graduation for those who borrowed from government student loan programs includes graduates who had paid off government student loans completely at graduation. 
• In Table B.3.2, only graduates who still owed at graduation and at three years after graduation are reflected in the average debt numbers. Hence, Table B.3.2 excludes those who have already paid off their debts by calculating the average debt of only the population still owing at each time period.

Interjurisdictional comparability

• Provincial data refer to the province of study, which may differ from the province of residence three years after graduation. The Canada totals include data for the territories. Separate estimates for the territories were suppressed because of high sampling errors.

Limitations

• The National Graduates Survey (NGS) 2013, class of 2009-2010 was conducted three years after graduation, whereas previous National Graduate Surveys were conducted two years after graduation. While information on graduates at the time of graduation is comparable across cycles, information on graduate’s activities at the time of the interview is not directly comparable.  For example, labour market outcomes and debt repayment pertain to status three years after graduation for the NGS 2013 compared to two years after graduation for other cycles of NGS.

Data source

• National Graduates Survey, 2009-2010 graduates, Statistics Canada, survey 5012.