Background
The Proponent shall assist the Auditor General as his Agent in opining on the financial statements of the University of Alberta in accordance with Canadian generally accepted auditing standards. The Proponent may also be asked to assist the Auditor General in reporting on other matters described in s.19 of the Auditor General Act, including non-compliance with law.
The University of Alberta is a board governed, publicly funded comprehensive academic and research institution that operates under the Post-secondary Learning Act of Alberta. The University of Alberta is one of the top teaching and research universities in Canada, with an international reputation for excellence across the humanities, sciences, creative arts, business, engineering, and health sciences.
The financial results of the University of Alberta are consolidated into the financial reporting of the Ministry of Advanced Education and the consolidated financial statements of the Government of Alberta. As a result, the annual audit of the University of Alberta must be completed by mid-May for inclusion in the Government of Alberta’s annual financial reporting issued in June.
Entities consolidated in the accounts of the University of Alberta may require separate audit opinions. The Auditor General is not the statutory auditor of these entities, and the university appoints any auditor required. Any separate audit opinions on these entities are not included in the scope of the services of this RFP.
Additional information about the university operations and annual reports can be found on its website www.ualberta.ca.
Key timelines
The Agent will need to be available to provide services as outlined:
• For the next four fiscal years ending March 31, 2024; March 31, 2025; March 31, 2026, and March 31, 2027:
Preparation and presentation of the audit plan with the Oversight Leader to the audit committee – October or November.
Interim audit work – between October and March.
Year-end fieldwork must be completed by mid-May.
Audit exit conference document must be prepared for discussion with management in mid-May, with the audit committee meeting taking plan at the end of May.
Issues an auditor’s report to the Auditor General on the university board of governor’s approval of the consolidated financial statements. The Auditor General with subsequently issue his Auditor’s Report to university along with management letter comments typically by end of June.
Examination of the university’s annual report for consistency with the audited consolidated financial statements – before September 30.
Work required
The Auditor General requires the assistance of the service provider – an Agent - to perform audit work to enable the Auditor General to issue an auditor’s report on the financial statements of the University of Alberta.
Post-secondary institutions (PSIs) must prepare their financial reporting in accordance with Canadian public sector accounting standards. In addition, as the financial results of PSIs are included in the consolidated financial statements of the Government of Alberta, the Controller of the Government of Alberta issues a pro-forma financial statement template for all PSIs to follow. This template ensures consistency of reporting and disclosures by all PSIs and adherence to any specific Government of Alberta financial reporting requirements, such as salary and benefit disclosures. We strongly encourage proponents to examine the financial statements in the university’s annual report to understand the required reporting and disclosure.
Proponents shall familiarize themselves with the accounting policies in the financial statements of the University of Alberta and identify in their response any areas where they disagree with such accounting policies.
The Agent must complete the audit of the financial statements in accordance with Canadian generally accepted auditing standards. The Agent’s audit opinion to the Auditor General of Alberta cannot be provided to or discussed with the auditee or in any way made public.
While the Auditor General permits the Proponent to follow the proponent’s own methodology and apply the proponent’s own interpretations of accounting and auditing standards for purposes of the Proponent’s own audit report, the Proponent must perform any and all additional work necessary - in accordance with the Auditor General’s direction - to support the auditor’s report to be issued by the Auditor General according to the Auditor General’s interpretations of accounting and auditing standards.
