Memorial University has ended or paused more than a dozen academic programs over the past year, blaming poor enrolment as a factor in many of the cuts.
Several faculties are affected, including business, nursing, humanities and social sciences, and programs at the Marine Institute and Grenfell Campus in Corner Brook.
MUN is grappling with major financial problems, and recently announced it would sell several properties, while slashing vice-president positions. Meanwhile, the province has reinstated a tuition freeze until the university gets its finances in order.
A spokesperson for the university, Chad Pelley, said this was not due to budget cuts, or associated with recent cost-saving measures. Pelley said MUN considered enrolment, learning outcomes, and whether programs can be completed in a reasonable time, given faculty and course offerings.
The dean of humanities and social sciences did point to tightening budgets as a factor in her decision to cut programs.
“We just can’t keep doing all the same numbers of things that we’ve been doing while having fewer and fewer resources in the form of faculty members, dollars, etcetera to support those programs,” said Natasha Hurley.
N.L. studies certificate among cuts
Six diploma and certificate programs were cut in that faculty, including Newfoundland and Labrador studies, ancient languages, ancient worlds, food studies, the humanities diploma and the diploma in environmental humanities.
Hurley said enrolment was low in those programs, with each of them graduating between zero and four students every year since 2021.
Students will still be able to take courses in those subjects, Hurley said. However, her faculty has had to cut courses each year due to shrinking budgets — about 96 this year across the faculty, she said.
Nathan Gillingham, with MUN’s undergraduate students’ union, was specifically concerned about losing the Newfoundland and Labrador studies certificate.
“What other universities would (offer) that, if not MUN?” he said.
Hurley said the faculty was still committed to offering courses in N.L. studies, and doing research on the subject.
“That is an area that we are not going to abandon,” she said.
Students at Memorial University. (CBC)Faculty association says more programs at risk
MUN’s faculty association said many more programs are at risk, linking the changes to the university’s financial situation.
“Our members are struggling to contain the damage, and doing their best to limit the impacts on students,” said president Lisa Moores in a statement.
“But program cancellations mean less choice and less opportunity, and that should be of concern to everyone.”
LISTEN | St. John’s Morning Show breaks down MUN program cuts:
St John’s Morning Show8:00MUN has halted more than a dozen academic programs over the past year. We found out what’s cut — and why
Memorial University has cut some of its academic programs — in part, because of low enrolment. The CBC’s Laura Howells told us what’s getting the axe and what it means for MUN.3-year bachelor of nursing paused
MUN also suspended the accelerated three-year bachelor of nursing, saying it needed “significant resources yet is rarely filled to capacity.” Pelley said students often decided to move to the four-year option or leave the program.
Yvette Coffey, president of the nurses’ union, raised concerns due to the province’s nursing shortage.
“If a program is not reaching capacity or students are struggling, the first question should be how to fix that,” said Coffey in a press release. “We should be looking at recruitment, student supports, and long-term workforce needs before removing an education pathway altogether.”
Registered Nurses’ Union President Yvette Coffey is concerned about MUN’s decision to suspend the accelerated bachelor of nursing program. (Nathan Wells/CBC)Former student disappointed with MBA cut
In the business faculty, the master of business administration with a focus on social enterprise and entrepreneurship was cut in 2024 due to low enrolment.
Kristen Murray graduated from that program in 2022. She said she was disappointed that it was cut. Losing the program, which specializes in mission-driven organizations, “is not serving our business community (or) our communities in general,” she said.
MUN says it now has social enterprise and sustainable entrepreneurship courses that all MBA students can take.
Low enrolment was also behind the decision to end the master of arts in religion and culture, and the post-graduate certificate in quality management at the Marine Institute.
Other programs ended due to faculty issues. Pelley said the master of philosophy in humanities relied on a director who didn’t have a permanent contract, and no other faculty were interested in taking on the role.
MUN redeveloping some programs
In some cases, programs changed into something new. The bachelor of special education, for example, was redeveloped into a new master of education. Pelley said this better aligns with other universities, and trends in credentialing.
At Grenfell Campus, the master of fine arts was suspended last year to “re-evaluate the program and make some minor adjustments,” but students will be accepted for spring 2026. Similarly, the applied literary arts program was paused for fall 2026 to make adjustments, with a plan to accept students again next year.
Other affected programs include the doctor of pharmacy for working professionals, which Pelley said typically runs for a limited time; the English major with a theatre/drama specialization, suspended due to a faculty retirement; and the certificate in public policy, which changed to a diploma program. Grenfell’s multidisciplinary humanities major is also paused because no students are currently enrolled.
Pelley said all students already in an affected program will be supported to finish the program.