Posted on Dec. 4: McMaster gets high marks for public accountability

McMaster placed second in an annual survey designed to measure the public accountability of Canadian universities.

Ranked first in this survey in 2000, McMaster scored 73.2 points this year, placing behind Queen's University (with 73.6 points).

The survey uses an index that considers such public documents as mission statements, performance targets, detailed financial statements and research summaries.

Click here for the 2001 results.

The yearly surveys, which have been conducted since 1988 and are the only ones to study university accountability in Canada, look at information from roughly 40 universities and grade each on a modified accountability disclosure (MAD) index of 1 to 100, with 100 being the top score. Universities are awarded points based on the depth, clarity and quality of the information provided in 26 categories. Everything from a university's mission statement and performance targets to detailed financial statements and research summaries are taken into account.

The annual university accountability surveys, which have been funded by the Society of Management Accountants of Ontario, are conducted by professors in the Laurier School of Business and Economics.

Measuring accountability is important, because accountability by universities has historically not been very good, says Morton Nelson, one of the researchers of the study and an accounting professor with the Laurier School of Business and Economics.

Nelson is impressed by how fast Canadian universities have improved, namely McMaster, he says. In fact, he feels other universities should follow McMaster's lead.

“I'd like to see the rest of the schools where Mac is,” he says. “And it is possible for them to get there. A lot of this information is needed anyway to manage a university properly.”

McMaster has taken great strides in increasing its accountability, according to the survey. In fact, last year, McMaster climbed to first place from 35th a year before. But there is always room for improvement, says Nelson. He cites New Zealand and Austalian universities, which typically score in the low 90s.