Maclean's
What the Media Tells Us
% of Library Expenditures to Operating Expenditures - Source: Canadian Association of University Business Officers
% of Library Acquisitions to Library Budget - Source: Canadian Association of University Business Officers
% of Scholarships & Bursaries to Operating Expenditures - In the 2025 Canadian University Survey Consortium Survey of First-Year Students 56% of U of L students reported receiving a scholarship, financial award or bursary compared to 56% of students from all institutions participating in the survey. Source: Canadian University Survey Consortium
% of Student Services to Operating Expenditures - Source: Canadian Association of University Business Officers
| Residence of First-time, First-year Students in Previous Year | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | Fall 2023 | |
| Alberta | 84.8% | 89.4% | 83.2% | 81.0% | 74.9% | |
| Out of province Canadian | 8.9% | 8.1% | 10.2% | 7.0% | 6.9% | |
| Outside of Canada | 6.3% | 2.5% | 6.6% | 12.0% | 18.2% | |
| Faculty with Terminal Degree | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | Fall 2023 | |
| Full-time instructional faculty | 317 | 316 | 300 | 304 | 284 | |
| Faculty with a doctorate, first professional or other terminal degree | 303 | 312 | 295 | 296 | 275 | |
| Percentage of faculty with a terminal degree | 95.6% | 98.7% | 98.3% | 97.4% | 96.8% | |
| Retention Rate | Fall 2018 | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | |
| First-time, first-year undergraduate students returning in second year | 79.0% | 79.4% | 74.9% | 74.5% | 80.1% | |
| Entry Semester | ||||||
| Graduation Rate | Fall 2010 | Fall 2011 | Fall 2012 | Fall 2013 | Fall 2014 | |
| Full-time, first-year undergraduates | 851 | 854 | 834 | 913 | 849 | |
| Number of students above who graduated 7 years after entry | 600 | 604 | 602 | 716 | 624 | |
| Graduation rate | 70.5% | 70.7% | 72.2% | 78.4% | 73.5% | |
| Full-time, New Transfer undergraduates | 952 | 938 | 866 | 776 | 693 | |
| Number of students above who graduated 7 years after entry | 690 | 683 | 655 | 570 | 511 | |
| Graduation rate | 72.5% | 72.8% | 75.6% | 73.5% | 74.8% | |
| Full-time, new undergraduate students | 1803 | 1792 | 1700 | 1689 | 1542 | |
| Number of students above who graduated 7 years after entry | 1290 | 1287 | 1257 | 1286 | 1135 | |
| Graduation rate | 71.5% | 71.8% | 71.8% | 73.9% | 73.6% | |
| Grade Average * | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | Fall 2023 | |
| First-time, first-year undergraduate final grade average for Alberta students | 79.9% | 82.1% | 82.4% | 82.5% | 81.4% | |
| * See The Problem with Comparing University Entering Grade Averages Across Canada | ||||||
| Percentage of Students | ||||||
| Grade Average Ranges | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | Fall 2023 | |
| less than 70% | 9.1% | 7.0% | 5.9% | 5.4% | 6.8% | |
| 70% - less than 75% | 19.8% | 12.2% | 12.8% | 13.3% | 13.4% | |
| 75% - less than 80% | 21.9% | 19.9% | 19.9% | 18.4% | 23.0% | |
| 80% - less than 85% | 23.0% | 24.0% | 22.3% | 24.0% | 23.6% | |
| 85% - less than 90% | 16.7% | 19.5% | 19.5% | 20.7% | 19.4% | |
| 90% - less than 95% | 7.0% | 12.4% | 13.9% | 13.6% | 10.0% | |
| 95% or higher | 2.4% | 5.0% | 5.7% | 4.6% | 3.8% | |
| Undergraduate Class Sizes ** | ||||||
| ** For Fall 2020 and 2021 the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted normal delivery of classes and class size data were not collected. | ||||||
| First-Year and Second-Year Classes | Fall 2017 | Fall 2018 | Fall 2019 | Fall 2022 | Fall 2023 | |
| Course registrants in first-year and second-year classes | 17052 | 16768 | 17365 | 13090 | 14827 | |
| Total number of first-year and second-year classes | 371 | 376 | 377 | 324 | 340 | |
| First-year and second-year average class size | 46.0 | 44.6 | 46.1 | 40.4 | 43.6 | |
| Third-Year and Fourth-Year Classes | Fall 2017 | Fall 2018 | Fall 2019 | Fall 2022 | Fall 2023 | |
| Course registrants in third-year and fourth-year classes | 10414 | 10521 | 10300 | 7569 | 7641 | |
| Total number of third-year and fourth-year classes | 430 | 448 | 442 | 361 | 368 | |
| Third and fourth year average class size | 24.2 | 23.5 | 23.3 | 21.0 | 20.8 | |
The Problem with Comparing University Entering Grade Averages Across Canada
The figures set out above make sense in the Alberta context if restricted to comparisons for very similar academic programs. But they don't make sense across different programs, and they are not usefully comparable with entering grade averages for universities outside the province. Valid comparisons to the decimal point across Canada are impossible given the lack of detailed data for every province that would allow adjustments for the many inter-provincial variables. Major variations in high school education practices (e.g., different course packages) and in grading systems, practices and standards lead to notable differences in university specifications of what should count for university entrance and how.
By way of illustration, consider the impact of two significant inter-provincial differences: age group university participation rates, and student preparedness as measured in the international PISA survey by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Adjustments to university entering grade averages for these factors would add 1.4% to the Alberta entering grade averages and elevate Alberta proportions in the higher grade ranges accordingly. The equivalent provincial adjustments for universities in the rest of Canada would produce a variety of changes, some up and some down, greatly changing their relative levels, and these two adjustments alone admittedly do not cover many more anomalies.
Furthermore, entering grade components and standards are applied differently across different programs, and the mix of programs is different for every university, even within the same province. The logical conclusion is that ranking precise entering grade averages at universities across Canada at face value is overly simplistic and distorts reality. It should not be done.