The issue
Canadian society places a high value on higher education. Students, their parents, employers and governments recognize the value and benefits of a university education, both for individuals and for the country as a whole. This heightened recognition will continue to drive a increasing demand for higher education over the next decade. Universities in turn must respond to this growing demand by expanding their capacity to take on more students. At the same time, institutions are expected to enhance the quality of the education that they provide to an increasing numbers of students.
Canadians also rely heavily on the new ideas, processes and products generated from university research. Fueling Canada's innovation performance will require Canadian universities to attract more researchers to engage in increasing amounts of research.
Universities are ready to rise to these challenges but need more resources to do so. Despite recent growth in operating support from provincial governments, government funding has not kept pace with enrolment growth. Government investment is essential for universities to expand capacity to serve all qualified students, enhance quality, serve the needs of a more diverse student body, provide more opportunities for lifelong learning, renew outdated infrastructure, and renew and expand their faculty.
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