Australian universities have been crying poor for so long that an unexpected and large surplus has quite suddenly painted a rosy picture of the presumed beleaguered sector.
A report quietly released by the federal government late last year shows universities enjoyed a welcome $2.1 billion surplus in 2024. The previous year, the nation’s 43 universities collectively managed a comparatively low $122 million surplus.
The analysis, Finance 2024: Financial Reports of Higher Education Providers, found the sector was quite healthy: “Universities are … pursuing revenue growth, and most institutions remain in a sound financial position, supported by strong asset bases, healthy liquidity, and adequate reserves. Universities are generally well-positioned to navigate the current challenges.”
The outcome is perhaps a surprise given COVID-19 wreaked widespread damage to university coffers. The sector also suffered from perceptions it was too focused on revenue and appeared to take its eyes off the core business of domestic students.
But much of it was damage of their own making. There were reports of campus antisemitism, massive underpayments to casual staff, lavish pay packets to vice chancellors and consultants, and continual staff redundancies and widespread course cuts. Some universities further complicated the parlous situation by backflipping and restoring some courses. Little wonder that student demand softened and drop-out rates have hit a record 25 per cent plus.
The federal government gave $21.2 billion in funding to universities in 2024 – an increase of 8.7 per cent compared to 2023. Universities’ coffers were further topped up by an $186 million increase in domestic student fees and $12.3 billion in fees from international students – a 21 per cent increase since 2023.
Herald analysis of international student fees last month showed that international students pay up to eight times the fees of a domestic student, with more than 583 degrees costing north of $250,000.
Despite the cost to international students, back home the price eventually to be paid to join the Higher Education Loan Program started to bite, with many school-leavers beginning to lose faith that their chosen courses will remain available as they question whether the acquisition of a university qualification is worth the debt.
The tertiary sector is certainly a big business. More than 1.4 million students were enrolled at Australian universities, and they employ about 130,000 staff.
But not all NSW universities fared well in building their surpluses.
The University of Sydney posted a surplus of $545 million in 2024 and the University of NSW climbed from a debt of $84 million in 2023 to a surplus of $131 million a year later. But Macquarie University was $8 million in debt (compared to $88 million in 2023), the University of Wollongong owed $26 million ($39 million) and UTS was $80 million is debt ($107 million).
It is possible the depth of the surpluses may extend only to the upper echelons of university rankings.
Even so, many Australians used to universities crying poor may think they misheard a weeping wolf.
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