Australian Financial Review 23 April 2012
Despite posting a combined surplus of $185.5m, on the back of increases in Commonwealth grants, The University of Melbourne ($88.9m) and Monash University ($96.6m) say that the the government’s contribution is still inadequate. Monash’s chief financial officer David Pitt points out that Monash’s operating margin of 6% (Melbourne’s margin was about 5%) is “conservative by any industry standard. Every cent gets ploughed back into infrastructure, and that’s still not enough”.
It’s a pretty strong point.
The Medical School Building at Melbourne is approaching the end of its economic life and it’s estimated that the cost of a new building will be in excess of $500m. That’s a pretty lumpy investment and just one of a number that the university has to consider to maintain the quality of its provision. Monash faces the same challenge – as do all universities.