- Total GO Salaries & Wages: $565 million (Up 92% since 2001, Up 29% since 2010)
- Academic Salaries (Academic Ranks): $256 million (Up 78% since 2001, Up 23% since 2010)
- Academic Salaries (Other Instruction & Research): $40 million (Up 87% since 2001, Up 14% since 2010)
- Total Academic Salaries: $296 million (Up 79% since 2001, Up 22% since 2010)
- Other Salaries & Wages: $269 million (Up 109% since 2001, Up 37% since 2010)
- Total General Operating Expenditure: $929 million (Up 98% since 2001, Up 29% since 2010)
- Enrollment – 35,034 (Up 59% since 2001, Up 22% since 2010)
Salaries & Wages account for more than 60% of GO Expenditure. They are categorized in accordance with three CAUBO definitions (see HERE – Page 14):
Academic Salaries (Academic ranks): Includes “both full and part time staff members who hold an academic rank at the reporting institution and are engaged in instruction and research activities.” These are the most experienced faculty.
Academic Salaries (Other instruction and research): Covers “payments to both full and part time staff and non-staff members without academic rank at the reporting institution, but who are engaged in instruction and research activities.” This category includes part-time adjunct faculty, sessional lecturers, teaching assistants, and “graduate and undergraduate students undertaking instruction and research activities”.
Other Salaries & Wages: Includes “All full and part time non-instructional staff” – clerical and secretarial, professional and managerial, janitorial, trades and maintenance. It also “includes payments to individuals who may hold an academic rank, or equivalent thereto, but are engaged in activities other than instruction and research”, such as the president, and vice-presidents.
The chart below shows the change across the Top 25 since 2001 in “Real PSE Dollars” (adjusted for both inflation and increased enrollment). Positive values denote increases exceeding inflation and increased enrollment combined:
4 A) Changes in Average $ Per FTE Student Since 2010 – By Type (Top 25)
1 A) 2024
Download this table (Opens in new tab)
Given the patterns outlined on the Resource Allocation page, it is inevitable that the prioritization of non-academic activities over the core mission academic focus will be reflected in the Salaries and Wages area. It has caused significant changes in overall expenditure levels:
2024 Shares of Total GO Expenditure (Top 25):
- Academic Salaries (Academic Ranks) – 27.5% (30.7% in 2001, 28.9% in 2010)
- Academic Salaries (Other Instruction & Research) – 4.3% (4.6% in 2001, 4.9% in 2010)
- Total Academic Salaries – 31.8% (35.3% in 2001, 33.8% in 2010)
- Other Salaries & Wages – 29.0% (27.4% in 2001, 27.4% in 2010)
As noted before, the relatively small share changes don’t convey the real significance of these shifts. A seemingly-small 1% decline in share of GO expenditure amounted to $9.3 million at the average Top 25 university in 2024. The share decline for Academic salaries represents around $30 million.
It’s difficult to process the notion that, during a prolonged period of rising enrollment, and student fees rising at an even faster rate, the universities would see fit to reduce the share of their budget allocated to academic salaries.
The fact that they have not only chosen that course, but stuck to it relentlessly for more than 25 years, validates the student and faculty frustration that has been too quickly dismissed as the grumblings of self-interest.
Efficiency Ranking
The underlying methodology for the Efficiency Ranking can be seen HERE.
4 B) GO SALARIES AND WAGES BY TYPE: 2024 EFFICIENCY RANKINGS
4 C) 2024Download this table (Opens in new tab)
Key Efficiency Indicator and Relative Cost Impact
The underlying methodology for the Key Efficiency Indicator and Relative Cost Impact calculation can be seen HERE.
These measures are provided for the Top 50, with 2020 as the base year, and for the Top 25, with 2010 as the base year. The Top 25 table shows the major dollar consequences of the efficiency decline in that timeframe.
4 C) KEY EFFICIENCY INDICATOR AND RCI: 2024 vs 2020 – and – vs LATEST GROUP AVERAGE (TOP 50) – Opens in new tab
4 D) KEY EFFICIENCY INDICATOR AND RCI: 2024 vs 2010 – and – vs LATEST GROUP AVERAGE (TOP 25) – Opens in new tab