Ulster University to cut 450 jobs as funding reform stuck

Ulster University has announced plans to axe 450 jobs, warning that the failure to reform higher education funding in Northern Ireland meant that cuts were “unavoidable”.

The announcement represents one of the biggest rounds of job cuts announced by a UK university this year. Ulster’s University and College Union (UCU) branch branded the announcement “shocking” and said that it would “challenge all unjustified job losses”.

A university spokesperson insisted that the proposed scheme was voluntary and noted that more than 100 institutions across the UK have downsized their workforce in recent times.

Ulster said that it has “sought to hold off on making redundancies while continuing to work with the Department for the Economy, through their reviews, on possible changes to the HE funding model in Northern Ireland”.

However, they added: “It has recently been made clear to us that a sustainable funding model is not going to be forthcoming, and regretfully we must now act to reduce our costs.”

Tuition fees in Northern Ireland are capped at £4,750, well below the new maximum of £9,535 in England and Wales. University leaders have called for fees to be increased and also the lifting of student number caps, which force thousands of young people to cross the Irish Sea to study every year.

The Department for the Economy is expected to conduct a review, but has already ruled out increasing fees to match levels seen elsewhere in the UK.

Ulster University reported a £20.2 million deficit for 2024-25, while its Russell Group neighbour, Queen’s University Belfast, lost £12.7 million.

Norman Hagan, Ulster’s UCU branch chair, said: “You cannot cut your way to excellence. Removing 450 jobs risks hollowing out the very foundations that make this university viable, credible, and capable of serving its students and the broader society.”

He said the significance of the job losses extended beyond Ulster, and “is about protecting the integrity of higher education in Northern Ireland”, arguing that the announcement “indicates a complete lack of a clear strategic vision for sustainable growth and development”.

“Ulster University plays a critical civic role, and decisions of this magnitude if forced through would have far-reaching detrimental consequences for students, local communities, and the wider regional economy,” Hagan said. 

“At a time when universities should be expanding opportunity, investing in innovation, and strengthening their regional impact, large-scale redundancies signal regression, rather than progression.”

Several university unions have announced strike action in recent months in response to disputes over pay, pensions and job cuts, including Goldsmiths, University of London, the University of Essex, the University of Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam University, and Northumbria University.

juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com