Mired in financial difficulties, Concordia University expects to lay off workers to plug a $35-million budget hole — and still can’t balance its books.
Even with layoffs and a six per cent budget cut, the university expects to post a $20.7-million deficit in 2026-27, Concordia president Graham Carr told students and staff in a message this week.
The university says a buyout program last year resulted in 110 positions being “closed or identified for closure.”
“Unfortunately, as the staff and faculty voluntary retirement programs did not generate the required savings, layoffs are expected to be necessary to meet our financial obligations,” Carr wrote.
A Concordia spokesperson said the university has yet to determine which departments or job types will bear the impact.
Carr said Concordia faces “another challenging year.”
The university must “realize a combination of $34.8 million in cuts and new revenue generation. Once again, this is a tall order, particularly given all the efforts made these last four years.”
Staffing is its biggest expense, representing 72 per cent of total expenditures, Concordia said.
The university said its finances are being squeezed because revenue is shrinking as high-paying international students disappear, while costs keep climbing.
Federal and provincial policy changes have led to a decline in international student enrolment in Quebec and across Canada.
In addition, the Quebec government has hiked tuition by 33 per cent for students from the rest of Canada enrolling at Concordia and McGill.
“Concordia is particularly vulnerable to these pressures because of its historical reliance on revenues generated from international and rest-of-Canada students,” the university said in a separate budget update.
Concordia has scaled back operations in recent years, cutting the number of classes offered, as well as shuttle-bus service and cleaning and security schedules.
However, Carr included a hopeful note in his message.
“There are some indications that the most severe effects of government policy decisions are behind us,” he wrote.
“In addition, as we track our enrolment numbers, there is finally room for some cautious optimism, although it would be premature to say more this early in the registration cycle.”
Concordia is projecting “modest enrolment growth” in 2026-27 — a 2.4 per cent increase in total full-time equivalent students.
“Growth is expected primarily among students from Quebec, while international student enrolment is projected to continue declining,” the university said.
Concordia said it remains on track to achieve a balanced budget by 2028-29 under a recovery plan approved by the Quebec government.
McGill, Montreal’s other English university, has also faced financial pressures.
The university laid off 60 employees last year as it worked to eliminate a projected $45-million deficit.
For 2026-27, McGill’s board of governors has approved a balanced budget, including a $10-million contingency.
However, in future years, expenses are projected to outpace revenue growth, and McGill is forecasting deficits of $33 million in 2027-28 and $55 million in 2028-29.
The numbers underscore “the need for strategic, recurring revenue and expense measures,” the university said on its website.
McGill has said it plans to open satellite programs and campuses in other countries.
The university’s board recently endorsed a proposed strategic plan that also calls for an increase in enrolment from French CEGEPs, particularly outside the Montreal region.
In addition, McGill wants to expand “French-language services and academic offerings, recognizing the French language as central to Quebec’s identity and public life.”
A Montreal native, Andy Riga has reported for The Gazette since 1991, covering technology, transport, business, and now politics, language and other Quebec issues.
Montréalais d’origine, Andy Riga est journaliste à la Gazette depuis 1991. Après avoir couvert la technologie, le transport et les affaires, il traite aujourd’hui de la politique, des enjeux linguistiques et d’autres sujets d’actualité au Québec.
ariga@postmedia.com
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