The University of Toronto patted itself on the back last week, as once again the Maclean’s magazine annual ranking of Canadian universities listed it as the big winner.
U of T placed first overall in the Medical/Doctoral category, which rated the quality of universities with PhD programs, research and medical schools.
But critics point out that most other Ontario institutions, such as York University, the University of Western Ontario and McMaster, have fallen in the Maclean’s ratings.
“Of all 10 provinces, the Ontario government spends the least per person on education. Since the other provinces spend more, their universities have risen [in the rankings],” said Henry Jacek, president of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA).
Jacek says the decline in most Ontario school’s rankings come from years of Ontario government funding cuts, while U of T’s success is mainly due to private funding.
Jacek praised Maclean’s for highlighting some of the problems threatening the quality of education in Canadian universities. The article points out that Canada is facing the largest university enrolment in 30 years, but faculty numbers are at “dismal” levels.
The Ryerson student newspaper the Eyeopener had plans to print an alternative university ranking based on student input, but the project was scrapped when they got little response from Canadian campuses.
Eyeopener editor Shane Dingman said focusing on factors such as the number of PhD-holding professors and the size of libraries detracts from quality of life issues such as accessibility and the transit system.
