The World of Higher Education Podcast Listen now →

The World of Higher Education Podcast Listen now →

Category: Funding and Finances

Canadian Research vs. German Research

Hi all. I’m in Germany this week along with the members of our University Vice-Presidents Network having a blast networking with German institutions and hearing from some of the sharpest commentators on the German higher education scene, including Frank Ziegele, author of one of my favourite books of 2025, Authentic Universities (podcast interview here) and Jan-Martin Wiarda, my sort-of German equivalent in the sense of being a prominent education blogger, (albeit much more journalistically-inclined than I am). It’s been a

Read More »
May 6, 2026 No Comments

2026 Provincial Budgets

Last Wednesday, Newfoundland and Labrador became the tenth province to deliver its budget, and that means it’s time for my annual review of provincial budgets. Spoiler: while it’s the usual mixed bag across most provinces, Ontario is the epicentre of this year’s stories. And not in a bad way. Let’s start with overall budgeted provincial transfers to institutions, shown below in Figure 1. Growth this year after inflation is a stunning 6.5% – a rise not seen in 20 years.

Read More »
May 5, 2026 No Comments

Not the Traveling Wilburys

Late last week, two Ontario colleges—St. Lawrence College ( in Kingston, with a substantial presence in Cornwall and Brockville) and Sir Sandford Fleming (in Peterborough)—announced their intent to “integrate as equal partners.” Many people (including me) at first thought that meant the two schools were merging. However, on closer reading of the announcement, I am not sure this is quite the case. Let me quote here from the quite extraordinary announcement: “We are committed to ensuring that students have the

Read More »
April 14, 2026 2 Comments

Trade-offs and Menus

I heard an interesting story this week which I thought I would share with you. About two weeks ago the feds finally decided that they were, in fact, going to renew the $4200 maximum Canada student Grant (see previous blog explaining why they might not do so here) at a cost of something like $600 million (give or take $100M). This is good news! They have also hinted, though, that they won’t be able to do this again unless they find savings somewhere else and – apparently –

Read More »
April 7, 2026 1 Comment

That Was the Quarter that Was – Winter 2026

Morning, all. It being the first of April, it’s time for a quick look at the past three months of higher education stories from around the world. Let’s take a brief look at the issues that preoccupied the sector worldwide. The most important story of the last few months, obviously, is happening in Iran and the Persian Gulf. The year began with the regime massacring thousands of citizens, including hundreds of students on the night of January 8/9. After 40

Read More »
April 1, 2026 No Comments

One Thought to Start Your Day

One Thought to Start Your Day is our founder and CEO Alex Usher’s popular daily blog, brimming with up-to-the-minute insights and informed opinions on today’s higher education industry.

Subscribe

Search Posts

Search Publications

Social Media

Linkedin Youtube Spotify

Recent Posts

More thoughts on...