Post-secondary transformation key to navigating the future

Canada’s post-secondary institutions have critical roles to play in helping fashion a more inclusive society, a cleaner environment, and a forward-looking economy that works better for everyone. Yet as they do so, Canada’s post-secondary institutions must also keep pace with changing times. Students today want and expect more from their post-secondary journeys, including more personalized experiences, enhanced integration of digital technologies, greater flexibility in courses and programs, more work-integrated learning opportunities, and—above all—degrees that position them for success. Funders of all stripes—including governments, industry partners, and other private donors—are also demanding more. As finances are stretched in countless directions, there are higher expectations that universities make the most of every dollar. Employers are increasingly joining this chorus, especially amid labour market constraints. If tax dollars are going to universities, they reason, then graduates ought to have the right critical skills required for the jobs of today and tomorrow. And all of this is happening against a backdrop of inflation, rising costs of living, an aging population driving rising health-care costs and placing increased stress on the public purse, and ongoing concerns about the affordability of university. Essentially, Canada’s universities are under more pressure than ever to demonstrate their value and continued relevance. Responding to these pressures involves more than a public relations exercise. It calls for an overhaul of how Canada’s major universities are organized and managed, and the outcomes they strive to achieve. It’s a comprehensive overhaul that we’ve undertaken at the University of Alberta—larger in size and scale than ever undertaken by a major university in Canada. Like many drastic changes, the impetus was, at first, financial in nature: a 34 per cent reduction in provincial funding—a $222-million cut—that had to be reconciled in 24 months. The timing and circumstances were not of our choosing, yet we had choices in how to respond. For instance, we could have dramatically reduced our size, eliminated entire faculties, or made random, haphazard cuts across the institution to balance our books. Instead, we took the opportunity to strategically reposition ourselves for longer-term success and relevance: a University of Alberta for Tomorrow (UAT). A big part of UAT involved putting an entirely new operating model in place. Administrative functions that used to be widely distributed across every academic department have been centralized to better meet the institution’s needs and achieve economies of scale. As a result, our faculties and academic staff can focus more of their time and resources on our core missions of teaching and research. We also undertook a bold academic restructuring, organizing 13 faculties under three colleges: a College of Social Sciences and Humanities, a College of Natural and Applied Science, and a College of Health Sciences. Having comparable size and scale, the colleges will help us elevate interdisciplinary teaching and research, facilitate more academic collaboration, and enable us to respond more quickly to international research opportunities with a global reach. There’s no sugar-coating things: these changes have been difficult, and there’s still work to do. Yet, as we increasingly work together as one university towards shared goals, we are creating an even richer environment for academics, researchers, and learners. Proportionally more funding and resources are now going directly into classrooms and research labs, generating greater impacts. We are better positioned to meet the modern expectations of students, employers, and funders, and to continue being a key driver of economic opportunity and societal evolution. Indeed, the hard work is already paying off. The latest QS World University Rankings in June placed the University of Alberta among the top eight per cent of the world’s top 2,500 universities. Our university also just had its best-ever showing in the Shanghai Rankings Academic Ranking of World Universities, placing fifth in Canada and 92nd overall—the first time that U of A has cracked the top 100 universities in the world. We’re also particularly proud of our result in the Times Higher Education Impact Ranking, which assesses universities against the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. On that measure, the University of Alberta ranked No. 11 in the world. These numbers not only reflect the turnaround we’ve made. They also illustrate our ability to translate funding into real-world impacts. Many universities do meaningful work. But not many in the world do globally recognized research on such a comprehensive array of the most significant challenges facing the planet. On this front, the University of Alberta stands out. Ours is among a handful of global universities with the research and teaching strength to make world-changing contributions on issues such as climate change, developing sustainable energy systems of the future, global food security, harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence to better society, and developing novel vaccines to face global health challenges. The UAT transformation further energizes this strength, expanding our capacity to lead and participate in major national and international research initiatives and partnerships. In short, we’ve shifted the long-term trajectory of our university on a new path towards “ambitiously thriving.” The University of Alberta is now more sustainable, poised for future growth and prepared to lead globally, with purpose. This is the new paradigm for post-secondary education in Canada. The University of Alberta is proud to be at its forefront. Bill Flanagan is the 14th president and vice-chancellor of the University of Alberta. He has led the university through a major academic and administrative transformation, positioning the U of A to be an even stronger driver of economic growth, innovation and creativity in Alberta, Canada, and beyond. The Hill Times

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Post-secondary transformation key to navigating the future

Responding to recent pressures calls for an overhaul of how Canada’s major universities are organized and managed, and the outcomes they strive to achieve.

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