The combined sponsored research income of the colleges and cégeps on Canada’s Top 50 Research Colleges reached $354.6 million in Fiscal 2023, a gain of 6.1% over Fiscal 2022. Research income was in the form of research grants, contracts and contributions (cash and in-kind) from third parties. In Fiscal 2023, Government funding accounted for $215.3 million or 60.7% of the total. Federal Government sources accounted for 38.2% of total funding ($135.4 million), while Provincial Governments contributed 21.9% ($77.7 million). Industry funding was responsible for 32.3% ($114.7 million) of all funding.
Niagara College maintained first place and led the national Top 50 Research Colleges ranking, reporting sponsored research income in Fiscal 2023 of $40.5 million, up 26.5% over Fiscal 2022.
Lambton College moved into second spot ($21.0 million, up 30.6%). NAIT - Northern Alberta Institute of Technology jumped into third with $17.5 million, up 46.7%, followed closely by Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) ($17.48, up 37.6%). Humber Polytechnic in fifth spot ($16.9 million, up 139.8%), rounded out the Top 5.
College research spending tiers
The top colleges by size (Large, Medium and Small) were: NAIT - Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (Large tier, $17.5 million, 3rd place overall), Niagara College (Medium tier, $40.5 million, 1st overall) and Cégep de Trois-Rivières ($16.8 million, 6th overall).
Research income growth
In Fiscal 2023, the national research income growth was 6.1% overall. Twenty seven (27) colleges posted research income growth, compared to 23 where research income decreased. Top research income growth leaders in the Large tier were: Humber Polytechnic (up 139.8%), NAIT - Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (up 46.7%), Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) (up 37.6%). The Medium tier winners included: Langara College (up 143.1%), College of the North Atlantic (up 93.6%) and NorQuest College (up 38.4%). Small category growth leaders were: Cégep de Lévis (up 138.9%), Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (up 64.9%) and Cégep de La Pocatière (up 30.6%).
Research intensity
Research intensity at the national level in Fiscal 2023 increased by 10.4% to an average of $84,900 of research income per researcher. Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) reported $198,600 of income per researcher as the Large tier leader, Niagara College was the most research intensive college in the Medium tier ($711,000 per researcher) and Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick led the Small tier ($169,800 per researcher).
Research partnerships and projects
Measuring a college’s or cégep’s volume of research partnerships and completed research projects provides a good indication of its levels of activity and output. In Fiscal 2023, the Top 50 Research Colleges engaged in a total of 5,751 research partnerships and 4,062 completed research projects. A number of institutions stood out on these measures. Among Large institutions, Saskatchewan Polytechnic led, reporting 249 research partnerships. Lambton
College (319) was the leader in the Medium category, while Cégep de Victoriaville headed the Small tier with 569 partnerships.
In terms of completed research projects the leaders were: Saskatchewan Polytechnic in the Large tier, with 498 completed projects, RRC Polytech in the Medium tier completed 222 projects and Cégep de Trois-Rivières in the Small tier completed 418 projects
Students provide a large element of the college research workforce and receive experience and payment in return. A total of 4,391 students engaged in some kind of paid applied research projects. The top institutions were: Centennial College in the Large tier employed a total of 599 students on its research projects, while Lambton College in the Medium tier employed 293 and Cégep de Trois-Rivières in the Small category hired 88 students.
Provincial performance
Top 50 – Leading Provinces
Province
% of Total
Ontario (16)
42
Quebec (15)
24
Alberta (8)
18
British Columbia (3)
4
In Fiscal 2023, 16 Ontario colleges accounted for 42% of the Top 50 total ($149.6 million, up 18.7%) and 15 Quebec colleges and cégeps accounted for 24% ($84.4 million, down -7.5%). Alberta’s eight colleges were responsible for 18% of the national total ($65.2 million, up 9.5%) and British Columbia’s three institutions contributed 4% ($14.8 million, down -19.9%).
Average per-college provincial research income was highest in Newfoundland, where College of the North Atlantic reported $12.3 million of sponsored research income. Ontario colleges garnered an average of $9.4 million and Alberta’s colleges averaged $8.1 million. In Manitoba, RRC Polytech received $6.7 million and Saskatchewan Polytechnic received $6.5 million in Fiscal 2023. Quebec’s colleges and cégeps attracted $5.6 million per institution on average, while British Columbia colleges attracted $4.9 million per institution on average.
This year and next
A 6.1% total gain in college research income appears to indicate a healthy college research ecosystem overall. That said, nearly half of all colleges (23) reported declines in research income in Fiscal 2023 versus 27 where research income expanded. (Last year nearly three quarters of colleges reported gains.) The top-line increase is encouraging, but the distribution of resources appears to be uneven. Interestingly, colleges and cégeps reported a small -3.9% decline in the number of researchers in Fiscal 2023 (4,176 from 4,345 the prior year). These two data points raise the question of how widespread were the apparent gains, despite the excellent performance of some institutions.
While government support is vital (and consistent), an important challenge for the college research community is how institutions can work together to move to the next level in terms of industry engagement. This would mean engaging more new firms and expanding relationships with existing industry partners.
Spotlight on College Research Activity FY2023
Research Income
Rank
Large
$000
1
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
$17,504
2
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
$17,479
3
Humber Polytechnic
$16,897
Rank
Medium
$000
1
Niagara College
$40,526
2
Lambton College
$21,019
3
College of the North Atlantic
$12,308
Rank
Small
$000
1
Cégep de Trois-Rivières
$16,788
2
Cégep de La Pocatière
$10,161
3
Cégep de Thetford
$9,288
Research Income Growth (% Change FY2022-FY2023)
Rank
Large
%
1
Humber Polytechnic
139.8
2
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
46.7
3
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
37.6
Rank
Medium
%
1
Langara College
143.1
2
College of the North Atlantic
93.6
3
NorQuest College
38.4
Rank
Small
%
1
Cégep de Lévis
138.9
2
Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick
64.9
3
Cégep de La Pocatière
30.6
Research Intensity ($ per Researcher)
Rank
Large
$000
1
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
$198.6
2
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
$186.2
3
Humber Polytechnic
$164.0
Rank
Medium
$000
1
Niagara College
$711.0
2
College of the North Atlantic
$256.4
3
Lethbridge Polytechnic
$183.4
Rank
Small
$000
1
Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick
$169.8
2
Cégep de Sept-Îles
$163.3
3
Selkirk College
$155.5
Research Partnerships*
Rank
Large
#
1
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
249
2
Sheridan College
216
3
Mohawk College
175
Rank
Medium
#
1
Lambton College
319
2
New Brunswick Community College
176
3
RRC Polytech
146
Rank
Small
#
1
Cégep de Victoriaville
569
2
Cégep de Trois-Rivières
319
3
Cégep de La Pocatière
274
Completed Research Projects*
Rank
Large
#
1
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
498
2
Georgian College
186
3
Mohawk College
119
Rank
Medium
#
1
RRC Polytech
222
2
Niagara College
178
3
Lambton College
149
Rank
Small
#
1
Cégep de Trois-Rivières
418
2
Cégep de La Pocatière
171
3
Cégep de Saint-Laurent
109
3
Cégep de Thetford
109
Paid Student Researchers**
Rank
Large
#
1
Centennial College
599
2
Sheridan College
364
3
Mohawk College
215
Rank
Medium
#
1
Lambton College
293
2
Durham College
225
3
Cambrian College
150
Rank
Small
#
1
Cégep de Trois-Rivières
88
2
Cégep de Victoriaville
62
3
Selkirk College
60
Industry Research Income
Rank
Large
$000
1
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
$9,472
2
Humber Polytechnic
$6,383
3
Mohawk College
$4,921
Rank
Medium
$000
1
Niagara College
$35,916
2
Lambton College
$3,371
3
La Cité
$2,489
Rank
Small
$000
1
Cégep de La Pocatière
$6,144
2
Cégep de Victoriaville
$2,415
3
Cégep de Thetford
$2,385
Industry Research Income as % of Total College Research Income
Rank
Large
%
1
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
54.2
2
British Columbia Institute of Technology
52.4
3
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
40.0
Rank
Medium
%
1
Niagara College
88.6
2
La Cité
55.0
3
Durham College
40.8
Rank
Small
%
1
Cégep de La Pocatière
60.5
2
Cégep de Victoriaville
39.8
3
Collège d'Alma
39.2
Industry Research Income Growth (% Change FY2022-FY2023)
Rank
Large
%
1
Centennial College
167.0
2
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
130.0
3
Humber Polytechnic
80.6
Rank
Medium
%
1
Langara College
155.8
2
RRC Polytech
93.6
3
New Brunswick Community College
80.0
Rank
Small
%
1
Selkirk College
179.5
2
Cégep de Thetford
86.6
3
Collège d'Alma
60.6
Notes:
College size tiers are based on a rolling average of the past five years of total college income:
Large = $250 million or more; Medium = $75 million to less than $250 million; Small = less than $75 million.
* Research partnerships and completed research projects with external organizations governed by formal written agreements.
Excludes technical services agreements.
** Students that were involved in applied research projects that were paid for their work.
Spotlight on Total Granting Council Research Income 2019-2023
Research Infosource shines the spotlight on total granting council research income, as measured by grants received from NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR and CFI between FY2019-FY2023
Total Granting Council Research Income
Rank
Large
$000
1
NAIT - Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
$23,822
2
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT)
$18,724
3
Sheridan College
$15,997
4
Centennial College
$13,571
5
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
$11,978
Rank
Medium
$000
1
Lambton College
$26,206
2
RRC Polytech
$15,528
3
Niagara College
$11,188
4
Lethbridge Polytechnic
$9,196
5
Nova Scotia Community College
$8,852
Rank
Small
$000
1
Cégep de Trois-Rivières
$40,152
2
Cégep de Thetford
$11,869
3
Cégep de Shawinigan
$9,801
4
Cégep de La Pocatière
$9,111
5
Selkirk College
$7,865
Granting Council Research Income as % of Total College Research Income
Rank
Large
%
1
Centennial College
51.9
2
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
38.6
3
NAIT - Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
37.7
4
Sheridan College
37.6
5
George Brown College
31.5
Rank
Medium
%
1
Nova Scotia Community College
52.2
2
La Cité
48.4
3
Fleming College
45.5
4
RRC Polytech
41.1
5
Durham College
39.1
Rank
Small
%
1
Selkirk College
49.1
2
Collège d'Alma
44.2
3
Cégep de Trois-Rivières
40.9
4
Holland College
38.5
5
Cégep de Shawinigan
37.1
Granting Council Research Income Growth (% Change FY2019-FY2023)
Rank
Large
%
1
Humber Polytechnic
839.8
2
British Columbia Institute of Technology
220.9
3
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
132.7
4
Seneca Polytechnic
107.7
5
Mohawk College
100.9
Rank
Medium
%
1
College of the North Atlantic
1,440.5
2
Fleming College
267.9
3
La Cité
165.2
4
Durham College
126.4
5
Loyalist College
68.8
Rank
Small
%
1
Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick
244.8
2
Selkirk College
166.2
3
Cégep de Rimouski
146.5
4
Cégep de La Pocatière
32.1
5
Cégep de Shawinigan
26.9
Notes:
Based on colleges on the Top 50 Research Colleges list for all five years; and reported any grants received from NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR and CFI between FY2019-FY2023.
College size tiers are based on a rolling average of the past five years of total college income: Large = $250 million or more; Medium = $75 million to less than $250 million; Small = less than $75 million.
