NA TURE 



727 



THURSDAY, AUGUST ii, 1921, 



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University Finance. 



THE problem of university finance is not a 

 simple one, and the solution is not yet. 

 Apart from endowments, which in this country 

 •are relatively small, the three main sources of 

 income are students' fees, Parliamentary grants, 

 -and grants from local authorities, and these three 

 •bear no fixed relation to one another. Students' 

 fees vary according to time and place ; the Par- 

 liamentary grant, administered by the University 

 Grants Committee, seems to be allocated accord- 

 ing to no definite principle; and the local authori- 

 ties may or may not contribute to the maintenance 

 of the universities, and where they do contribute 

 their subventions from the rates are by no means 

 uniform in amount. Even in normal years the 

 fluctuating character of the income makes the task 

 •of financing a university not a light one, while in 

 abnormal times the task becomes one of difficulty 

 .and embarrassment. Under such conditions the 

 xnarvel is that so many able business men have 

 heen found ready and willing in an honorary 

 capacity to give their time and energy to help in 

 directing the financial affairs of our universities. 

 That they do so speaks much for the hold which 

 higher learning has upon a valued and important 

 section of the community, but such interest ought 

 not to be looked upon as a justification of the 

 system, or rather lack of system, of finance which 

 exists at present. 



NO. 2702, VOL. 107] 



One of the main principles which should govern 

 university finance is that the income should be 

 stable. There should be sufficient for necessary 

 needs, and something over for development and 

 expansion. Now it is no exaggeration to say 

 that in most, if not all, of the universities at 

 present this fundamental principle is more 

 honoured in the breach than in the observance. 

 Very few can budget with reasonable certainty 

 for several years ahead, yet they most certainly 

 ought to be able to do so if they are to fulfil the 

 function for which they were founded. For one 

 thing there should be reasonable assurance of 

 reasonable salaries. But since in general the 

 salary bill of the teachers is rather more than 

 half the total expenditure, it is obvious that a 

 fluctuating income makes it extremely difficult to 

 give that assurance. The teachers may lament 

 their hard lot, and it has been extremely hard 

 with many, but if there is no certainty as to in- 

 come from year to year there is little hope for a 

 reasonable and proper amelioration. In view of 

 such facts, it was well that university finance 

 should be discussed at the Congress of the Uni- 

 versities of the Empire held recently at Oxford. 



The subject was opened by Sir J. A. Ewing 

 and Dr. Adami in two interesting and able papers. 

 The former gave a comparative statistical survey 

 of the larger universities, arriving at the conclusion 

 that the average cost "per head," in the fourteen 

 university institutions selected by him, amounted 

 to approximately 65L, and that of this sum 34/. 

 was spent on salaries and superannuation, and 

 about 61. on administration. These figures, 

 though they must be taken with some reserve, are 

 interesting, but do not "cut much ice." Perhaps 

 it is more helpful to learn that 25Z. of the 65Z. is 

 paid by the student, and 20I. comes from Parlia- 

 mentary grants, for then we gather that the 

 student pays rather more than one-third of the 

 cost of his education, while the Government pays 

 rather less than one-third. But what further in- 

 ferences we are to draw from these statements 

 the learned principal of Edinburgh Univctsity 

 omits to say. Incidentally, however, there emerge 

 two facts which some of our more observing 

 readers might have anticipated. The first is that 

 among universities the economic advantage of 

 large-scale working holds just as in ordinary busi- 

 ness concerns ; and the second, that the group ot 

 three Scottish universities is run at a lower cost 

 per head than any of the other groups. In view 

 of this it would have been interesting, and no 



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