The University of Oxford’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Irene Tracey, received a total pay package of £666,000 this year, the University’s latest accounts reveal. This represents a 2.5% increase in her base salary, placing her as one of the highest paid Vice-Chancellors across Russell Group universities.
Tracey’s pay package also included £188,000 for accommodation, and £51,000 in lieu of pension contributions. The Vice-Chancellor currently lives in accommodation provided by the University valued at £3.5 million, and therefore does not pay rent.
Cherwell understands that the Vice-Chancellor is required to reside in a property “appropriate for undertaking University duties”, but that she decided to purchase her own property upon taking the role. She has been living in temporary University-owned accommodation since accepting the role, but will move into her new property in January 2026.
The University told Cherwell: “The Vice-Chancellor’s total remuneration for 2024/25 includes an unusually high payment of £91,460, as part reimbursement for tax liabilities.” It said the charge arose while Tracey was living in temporary accommodation, which constituted a taxable benefit, including a £49,762 payment relating to the previous financial year which will not apply after January 2026.
The £666,000 total package makes Tracey one of the highest paid Vice-Chancellors in the country. Her Cambridge counterpart, who was previously the highest paid in the Russell Group, received £507,000 in 2025, while the Vice-Chancellor of LSE was paid £530,000.
Only the Dean of London Business School, which is not part of the Russell Group, received a bigger package of £707,000. Many Vice-Chancellors across the country also received exceptional bonuses, ranging between £5,000 and £50,000.
Jo Grady, general secretary of the University and College Union, told The Times Higher Education: “Vice-chancellor salaries are already eye-wateringly high; this Christmas they should do the charitable thing and donate their bonuses to the food banks that will be supporting far too many students.”
In Oxford, eight other senior figures were paid £300,000 or more in 2025 – over £655,000 for the highest paid. In total, 470 employees were on annual salaries of £100,000 or more, including 113 clinical staff.
When taking up the post in January 2023, Tracey declined a proposed 8.4% increase in her base salary “in light of the financial situation”, a University spokesperson told Cherwell. According to the University, before this 2.5% raise, “the base salary for the role had not increased since 2009”.
The pay of the Vice-Chancellor and of other senior University figures is decided by the Senior Remmuneration Committee, which includes external members and makes recommendations regarding salaries every two years. The University emphasised to Cherwell that Tracey “does not participate in any Council discussion regarding her own remuneration”.
A University spokesperson emphasised to Cherwell that “in leading the world’s highest-ranked university, the role of the Oxford Vice-Chancellor is complex, demanding and multi-faceted”, and that the increase in her pay package was granted “in light of these responsibilities and taking into account the current Vice-Chancellor’s performance and experience, as well as the market rate in UK universities for jobs of comparable scale”.
