Students are no longer the only people who drop out of university due to frustration with the effects of financial cutbacks. Now a Canadian vice-chancellor can be added to the list.

Paule Leduc announced she will step down one year early as head of the Universite du Quebec a Montreal, one of two French-language Montreal universities, citing an "untenable" financial situation.

"UQAM's chronic underfunding, coupled with the unprecedented budget cuts have taken me to the breaking point," said Ms Leduc in a statement announcing she would leave her post one year before her contract was due for renewal.

The 37,000-student university is running a C$19.5 million (Pounds 8.4 million) deficit and is forced to make another C$2.5 million cut to its operating budget in May.

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In the past five years, Quebec universities have seen their collective operating budget cut by one-quarter. While some are weathering the storm better than others, Ms Leduc had been stymied by an academic union refusal to back a plan that would have raised student-teacher ratios.

The province's rectors and principals have stated the provincial system needs C$500-$800 million a year more to be run properly.

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Last June, there was some optimism after education minister Francois Legault asked for three reports on funding and academic priorities. He has since failed to respond despite a commitment to do so before Christmas 1999.