Toronto - October 29, 2003 - British Columbia's four universities posted $304.6 million in sponsored research income in fiscal 2002 according to Canada's Top 50 Research Universities List 2003, published by Research Infosource Inc. The list ranks Canada's leading universities by sponsored research income from both government and non-government sources. The University of British Columbia ($216.3 million) is in 5th place, University of Victoria ($48.4 million) is in 20th, Simon Fraser University ($34.3 million) is 23rd, and University of Northern British Columbia ($5.6 million) is 42nd.

Looking at the regional picture, the largest provinces accounted for the lion's share of research income. Ontario's 17 institutions accounted for 39% for a total of $1.5 billion. Québec with 13 institutions reported $1.1 billion for 29% of the total, and Alberta's 3 universities brought in $474.1 million, representing 12%. British Columbia with 4 universities recorded $304.6 million (8%), Saskatchewan's 2 universities posted $140.3 million (4%), Manitoba, also with 2 universities, reported $104.8 million (3%) and Nova Scotia with 5 institutions had $93.3 million (2%). New Brunswick ($31.3 million) with two universities, and Newfoundland ($34.9 million) with one accounted for 1% each. Prince Edward Island, with one university, posted $5.2 million, which was less than 0.5% of the total. Together, Canada's top 50 research universities posted $3.8 billion in sponsored research income for fiscal 2002, up from $3.4 billion in 2001.

Overall, Canada's top 50 research universities increased their sponsored research income by 12.1% in fiscal 2002 with five provinces posting above average growth rates. Saskatchewan led the rankings with a 22.4% increase. New Brunswick is 2nd with 19%, British Columbia is 3rd posting a 15% increase, Québec is 4th with a 14.3% increase and Alberta is 5th with a 13.4% growth. The remaining five provinces reported research income growth below the national figure of 12.1%: Ontario (9.9%), Nova Scotia (8.5%), Newfoundland (1.9%), Manitoba (0.9%) and Prince Edward Island (0.3%).

Looking at year-on-year research income growth finds Simon Fraser University in the top 10. Acadia University takes first place with a 72.3% jump, and Trent University is 2nd with a 69.3% increase. Posting a 68% growth, Brock University is 3rd and Lakehead University is 4th with a 67.6% increase. The University of Lethbridge rounds out the top 5, reporting a 65.2% growth in sponsored research income. York University (51.5%) is 6th, Queen's University (48.7%) is 7th, University of Regina (46.1%) is 8th, Université du Québec à Montréal (37.9%) is 9th and Simon Fraser University (34.9%) completes the top 10.

Two of the three other B.C. universities, University of Victoria (16.3%) and University of Northern British Columbia (25%) reported excellent growth in sponsored research income for fiscal 2002. The University of British Columbia posted a 11.8% growth in sponsored research income, comparable to the national average.

"British Columbia's universities are doing better", says Ron Freedman, CEO of Research Infosource. "UBC is in the top 5 overall for sponsored research income, Simon Fraser University ranks among the top 10 in research income growth, and three of the four universities reported research income growth above the national average."

The complete Canada's Top 50 Research Universities List 2003 is available on the Research Infosource website, www.researchinfosource.com. The data are drawn from Statistics Canada, Conférence des recteurs et des principaux des universités du Québec (CREPUQ) and Research Infosource's own Canadian University R&D Database.

An in-depth Report profiling 68 institutions is slated for publication in November 2003. Research Infosource Inc., a division of The Impact Group, is Canada's source of R&D intelligence. Drawing from an extensive database, Research Infosource Inc. publishes Canada's Top 100 Corporate R&D Spenders List and Report, Canada's Top 50 Research Universities List and Report, and other specialized reports.

Information: Ron Freedman, CEO, Research Infosource Inc. (416) 481-7070 ext. 31
Janet Sandor, Director of Communications (416) 481-7070 ext. 25