Budget Process
Last Updated: September 30, 2026 10:06:39 AM PDT
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How UC San Diego's annual budget is planned, reviewed, approved, and implemented — plus the current planning guidelines and rates, approved core budget, and where to follow budget communications.
On this page
- The Budget Cycle
- Budget Planning Guidelines
- Central Compensation Assumptions
- Approved Core Budget
- Communications
The Budget Cycle
Six stages from kick-off through implementation. See Dates & Deadlines for the current year's specific dates.
| Stage | When | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kick-off | January | The cycle formally opens: the calendar and deadlines are published and institutional priorities are confirmed for the coming year. |
| 2. Guidance | Jan–Feb | Planning guidelines, including rate and cost assumptions and written instructions, go to every unit so all budgets are built on the same basis. |
| 3. Budget development | Feb–Apr | Units enter their budget-year plans in UCSDPLAN, completing core and non-core planning. |
| 4. Unit budget meetings | Mar–May | Three formal meeting series: recharge, service enterprise, and auxiliary rates in March; tactical reviews in April; strategic reviews in May. |
| 5. Approval | June | The Chancellor's Cabinet and Academic Senate committee approve the final budget. Allocations are confirmed and adjustments recorded for the upcoming fiscal year. |
| 6. Implementation | August | Approved budgets are loaded into the financial system, and core budget and resource allocations are distributed to units for the fiscal year. |
Budget Planning Guidelines
- 2027-28 Campus Budget Guidelines — coming February 2027
- 2026-27 Campus Budget Guidelines
Central Compensation Assumptions
Coming Soon! A reference for the compensation increases by union and whether each has been applied to the budget plan in UCSDPLAN. For which increases are funded centrally and how allocations are calculated, see Centrally Funded Compensation.
Approved Core Budget
Communications
- Budget & Planning Community of Practice (COP) — Teams channel for the budget preparers designated by each Vice Chancellor office to build Financial Unit budgets in UCSDPLAN.
- Budget & Finance Weekly Digest — past issues
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