It was a brutal year for most of B.C.’s colleges and universities, and the financial pressures that have sideswiped their budgets are only expected to intensify in 2026.

The B.C. government now says 20 of the province’s 25 post-secondary institutions are forecasting at least one deficit over the next three years, worsening an already dire situation of layoffs and course cancellations.

“We’re in a place now where the majority of public post-secondary institutions are actually projecting deficits, whether it’s one year or year over year,” Post-secondary Minister Jessie Sunner said in November.

“It’s just unsustainable.”

That’s a sobering assessment from the minister in charge, and it comes years after the first warning signs appeared.

B.C. has six research universities, five teaching universities, 11 colleges and three institutes.

Even on campuses still running (slim) surpluses, like the University of B.C., Simon Fraser University and the University of Victoria, there have been significant cuts to spending, staff positions and courses in 2025.

The most significant factor was the federal government’s continued crackdown on international students.

Foreign students pay upwards of six times as much for tuition as locals, and post-secondary schools relied on them as cash cows to prop up budgets strained by falling domestic........

© BIV