Private company

University of Prince Edward Island

Logo: University of Prince Edward Island, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons4

University in Prince Edward Island, Canada

The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) is a public university in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the only university in the province. Founded in 1969, the enabling legislation is the University Act, R.S.P.E.I 2000.2 It employed 1,250 people in 2024.1 Its revenue was C$210 million in 2024.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1969Founded1
  • HeadquartersCharlottetown1
  • Websiteupei.ca
  • Slogan“Faith, Knowledge, Service”1
  • Legal formcorporation created by an Act of the Legislature3
  • LEI549300ISLMXB1Y0QKG213
  • StatusActive3
  • LEI statusIssued and current3
  • Registered address550 University Ave, C1A 4P3 Charlottetown, Canada3
UPEI (2633716968)
Photo: Martin Cathrae from Charlottetown, PE, Canada, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons6

The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) is a public university in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the only university in the province. Founded in 1969, the enabling legislation is the University Act, R.S.P.E.I 2000.2

The story

The university traces its roots back to 1804, when Lt. Governor Edmund Fanning and the Legislative Council of Prince Edward Island called for the establishment of Kent College. By 1820, the first Kent College building, known as "the National School", or James Breading's School, was erected. It was later succeeded by Central Academy, which received a Royal Charter in 1834.

The Colleges were renamed for the Prince of Wales in honour of the future King Edward VII in 1860. The University of Prince Edward Island also traces its roots back to its two earlier predecessor organizations, St. Dunstan's University and Prince of Wales College, founded in 1855 and 1860 respectively. The two institutions were merged in 1969 by the government of Alex Campbell as part of a campaign to integrate the Island's Roman Catholic and Protestant communities, which had previously maintained the two separate institutions of higher learning. Holland College was later created to fill the void left by the merger of Prince of Wales College into the university.

The University of Prince Edward Island is a non-denominational university established in 1969 by the amalgamation of Prince of Wales College (PWC) founded in 1834, and St. Dunstan's University (SDU) founded in 1855. The first student to enrol was Elizabeth Rollins Epperly, who would later become the university president. Its predecessor institutions ceased to operate although St. Dunstan's still retains its charter and the lands that were home to Prince of Wales became the campus for Holland College. UPEI is located on the former St. Dunstan's campus.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, UPEI received a $500,000 grant from the Public Health Agency of Canada's Immunization Partnership Fund to develop and implement the Island Vaccine Education Program, intended to increase uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among vulnerable families.

From Wikipedia’s article on University of Prince Edward Island, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Products and brands

Research

UPEI manages over $17 million in annual research expenditures. The on-campus biosciences and health research facility is used by researchers from UPEI, National Research Council (Canada), and Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada.

UPEI houses the L.M. Montgomery Institute, founded in 1993, which promotes scholarly inquiry into the life, works, culture, and influence of the Canadian writer, L.M. Montgomery. The collection consists of novels, manuscripts, texts, letters, photographs, sound recordings and other Montgomery artifacts and ephemera.

UPEI joined with Dalhousie University and Memorial University of Newfoundland to form the Ocean Frontier Institute, a collaborative research initiative aimed at harnessing the vast potential of the world's oceans.

UArctic Membership

The university is an active member of the University of the Arctic. UArctic is an international cooperative network based in the Circumpolar Arctic region, consisting of more than 200 universities, colleges, and other organizations with an interest in promoting education and research in the Arctic region.

Read the full text

The university participates in UArctic’s mobility program north2north. The aim of that program is to enable students of member institutions to study in different parts of the North.

Business

Frank Zakem - LLD, B.A., B.Ed., B.Com., OPEI. businessman, politician, educator, author

Brenton St. John - Businessman, fish factory director, farm commodity exporter; Speaker of PEI Legislative Assembly

Henry Callbeck - Ship Builder, Businessman, Sheriff of Queens County, Governor of Prince of Wales College

Don McDougall (baseball) - President of Labatt Brewing Company; principal in establishment of Toronto Blue Jays

From Wikipedia’s article on University of Prince Edward Island, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Employees over time

University of Prince Edward Island employees by year11.2K in 2024+66% since 2015
05001.0K1.5K2015: 75575520152016: 6966962016−8%2017: 8778772017+26%2018: 9129122018+4%2019: 9719712019+6%2020: 9299292020−4%2021: 1.1K1.1K2021+20%2022: 1.3K1.3K2022+14%2023: 1.4K1.4K2023+6%2024: 1.2K1.2K2024−7%
  • 20241,2501
  • 20231,3501
  • 20221,2741
  • 20211,1161
  • 20209291
  • 20199711
  • 20189121
  • 20178771

Revenue over time

As stated on Wikidata, in the currency reported.

Revenue

University of Prince Edward Island revenue by year1210.2M CAD in 2024+61% since 2015
0100.0M CAD200.0M CAD300.0M CAD2015: 130.9M CAD130.9M CAD20152016: 133.3M CAD133.3M CAD2016+2%2017: 140.7M CAD140.7M CAD2017+6%2018: 140.9M CAD140.9M CAD2018+0%2019: 152.2M CAD152.2M CAD2019+8%2020: 154.8M CAD154.8M CAD2020+2%2021: 161.8M CAD161.8M CAD2021+5%2022: 174.5M CAD174.5M CAD2022+8%2023: 181.8M CAD181.8M CAD2023+4%2024: 210.2M CAD210.2M CAD2024+16%
  • 2024210.2M CAD1
  • 2023181.8M CAD1
  • 2022174.5M CAD1
  • 2021161.8M CAD1
  • 2020154.8M CAD1
  • 2019152.2M CAD1

Timeline

  1. 1969Founded Founded1