UNT faces $45 million budget shortfall amid state funding cuts and drop in international students

The University of North Texas is facing a $45 million deficit, which is much higher than previously projected. 

University leaders say this shortfall is due to multiple factors, but the main two are a loss in state funding and a decline in international master's student enrollment.

"Over these next few months, we're going to be relying heavily on our values, our creative and our scrappy spirit, as we navigate serious budget challenges," said UNT President Dr. Harrison Keller.

Last August, the board approved a $31.2 million deficit, but it has since grown by about $14 million.

In a meeting Thursday, Keller said the university lost $32 million in state funding for the upcoming school year. He also pointed to a drop in the number of international students.

"We've experienced declines in our international master student enrollments, and we failed to project how sharply those international enrolments would decline due to visa challenges and federal policy changes," said Keller.

It wasn't long ago that UNT was celebrating its ranking among the top 25 universities in the country, with more than 8,000 international students enrolled. An annual report showed a steady increase from 2020 to 2023. The report also found that most of the university's international students came from India.

"If you go back to FY 24 in the fall, we had about 6,200 international grad students; in the fall of '25, that's just below 3,400. So you can see the drop there, what that's done to us," said Greg Anderson, Deputy Chancellor for Finance and Operations, UNT

While the problem has been addressed, what's not clear is the solution.

CBS Texas reached out to UNT but has not heard back. In Thursday's meeting, officials said they will move with transparency as they deal with this.