2022-2023
Annual Report
Renewing and Reconnecting
Returning to Lakehead University as President and Vice-Chancellor has been an exhilarating experience. I took on my new role in July 2023 after spending much of my earlier career at Lakehead—including as the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities—and I’ve been inspired by how the University has changed in the years I’ve been away, as well as by how it has held true to its founding vision.
During the 2022-23 academic year covered by the annual report, Lakehead and the rest of the world were contending with the tail end of the pandemic. Despite the upheaval, Lakehead adapted by finding new ways to teach, learn, and connect with the students who have remained at the heart of our mission.
Overcoming inequality by making postsecondary education possible for more Canadians continues to be one of Lakehead’s strengths—41% of our students come from families where neither parent has a university degree and 55% of our domestic undergraduate students come from rural or northern communities. Lakehead’s position as a leader in Indigenous programs also remains unchanged, but this has now been enriched by our commitment to fostering reconciliation.
One of the highlights of the year was our progress in advancing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, which led Times Higher Education to rank Lakehead the number one university in the world with fewer than 9,000 students for social impact.
Much of Lakehead’s success stems from our research excellence and the willingness of our Orillia and Thunder Bay campuses to build diverse partnerships. In March 2023, for example, the Lakehead signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital to improve health care in Simcoe County and the Government of Ontario announced it would invest in the Thunder Bay campus’s new Collaborative Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Program.
This ability to combine education with innovation was evident in the $4.2 billion economic impact that Lakehead had on Ontario’s GDP in 2022-23. It was a year that revealed what students, staff, faculty, and partners can achieve when we work together to create a better future for everyone.
Dr. Gillian Siddall President & Vice-Chancellor Lakehead University
Global Rankings
| Times Higher Education World University Rankings |
Every year, the definitive list of the world’s best universities is released by Times Higher Education (THE). It is the only global ranking to evaluate research-intensive universities across their core missions of teaching, research, international outlook, research citations, and industry income. The rankings are calculated using 18 carefully calibrated performance indicators that measure an institution’s performance across five areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry, and international outlook. This year’s rankings included 1,906 universities across 108 countries and regions. For the fifth year in a row, Lakehead University has been included in the top half of the THE’s 2024 list of the best universities from around the world—ranking in the 801-1,000 category. Lakehead continues to be recognized in the top 50% of universities globally. |
| Times Higher Education Impact Rankings |
Lakehead University's achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally. This includes being ranked the #1 University in the World with fewer than 9,000 students in the Times Higher Education 2023 Impact Rankings. The Impact Rankings measure the societal impact of universities by evaluating an institution's success in delivering the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. This is the fourth year in a row that Lakehead has been included among the top 10 per cent of all the world's ranked universities in terms of its social impact and its contributions to clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, elimination of hunger, reduced inequalities, good health and wellbeing, sustainable life on land, and below water. The 2023 overall ranking includes 1,705 universities from 115 countries and regions. The rankings use carefully calibrated indicators to provide a comprehensive and balanced comparison across four broad areas: research, stewardship, outreach, and teaching. |
Transforming Communities
In 2022-23, the total impact of Lakehead University on Ontario's GDP was $4.2 Billion.
In 2022-23, Lakehead Orillia had a total impact of $295 Million on Ontario's GDP.
In 2022-23, Lakehead Thunder Bay had a total impact of $1.9 Billion on Ontario's GDP.
Lakehead's Annual Economic Impact on Northwestern Ontario was $2.4 Billion.
Financials
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Student Stats
In 2022-23, Lakehead had the 10th highest 7-year graduation rate among all Ontario universities.
41% first-generation students
(neither parent has a degree)
55% of domestic undergraduate students
are from rural/northern communities
12.5% of domestic students
identify as Indigenous
47% of full-time undergraduate students on the
Thunder Bay campus are from Northwestern Ontario
42% of full-time undergraduate students on the
Orillia campus are from Simcoe County
2,221 international students from 87 unique countries—an increase of 9.7%
(including English Language Program & Exchange Students)
94% of Lakehead senior-year students
have been engaged in a course with applied research
100% of senior-year students participated in experiential learning
(such as community-based learning or co-op)
44% of domestic undergraduate students
receive OSAP based on student need
4% of domestic students with potential
are admitted with lower entering averages
8.5% of domestic students were enrolled
in Lakehead's unique access programs in 2022-23
Entry programs help students raise their academic average so that they can enter Lakehead degree programs. These include Gateway, the Indigenous Nurses Entry Program, and the Indigenous Transition Year Program.
Lakehead is ranked 10th nationally among Canada's 19 primarily undergraduate universities in the Maclean's Ranking of Canadian Universities released in 2022.
Career Path
A Lakehead alum’s annual salary 2 years after graduating is $ 60.6K.
87.8% Employment Rate
six months after graduation
97.4% Employment Rate
two years after graduation
85% of Lakehead grads are
working in jobs related to their undergraduate degree
90% of Lakehead grads are doing work
using skills developed through their undergraduate education
Research Excellence
Research Infosource ranked Lakehead the #3 University in Canada (undergraduate category) in its 2023 Research University of the Year assessment.
Lakehead was ranked in the top spot from 2015 to 2019 — the first time an institution in Research Infosource’s undergraduate category was ever ranked Research University of the Year five years in a row.
Lakehead’s placement with the top of the country’s undergraduate universities category is based on the university standing out on a balanced scorecard of research inputs and outputs, according to the annual ranking of Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities by Research Infosource, Canada’s source of research and development intelligence.
Research Infosource’s calculation of its Research Universities of the Year involves examining several factors, including the total amount of sponsored research funding received by each university, research intensity per faculty (total research income per faculty member), research intensity per graduate student (total research income per graduate student), total number of publications, publication intensity, and publication impact.
Visit the Research Infosource website for more information.
Lakehead received $27 Million in External Research Funding in 2022-23, an increase of 17% over the previous year.
Over the past 10 years, the number of full-time graduate students increased by 83.6%
Lakehead had 157 unique research partnerships in 2022-2023
(includes municipal, not-for-profit, business/industry, and Indigenous groups)
Lakehead University is proud to lead important research initiatives that result in groundbreaking discoveries and developments.
Our highly skilled and dedicated team of experts includes:
11 Canada Research Chairs
4 Lakehead Research Chairs
2 Industrial Research Chairs
2 SES Faculty-based Research Chairs
1 Ontario Research Chair
1 Finnish Studies Research Chair
1 Fulbright Research Chair
5 Lakehead University/Thunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute Research (TBRHRI) Chairs
Alumni Stats
Lakehead has 71,071 Alumni living and working in 108 countries around the world.
Country of Origin
Lakehead students—and by extension, Alumni—originated from 144 countries across the globe. This means that Lakehead’s global footprint touches almost 75% of the world’s 195 countries.
76.7% of Alumni live in Ontario
40.1% of Alumni live in Thunder Bay and Northern Ontario
20.8% of Alumni live within a 100 km radius of Toronto