Financing higher education in Pakistan

A recent shift in the allocation of public expenditure towards higher education prompts several questions: Is this allocation economically justified? Are these resources well utilized? Is there significant cost recovery of these expenditures? If not, who benefits from the subsidy these expenditures represent? Are there alternative means of financing higher education? This paper attempts to provide answers to these questions, which can be briefly summarized as follows: Estimates of social rates of returns do not support the reallocation of public expenditures away from primary towards higher education; low retention rates and high failure rates suggest that the internal efficiency in the utilization of these expenditures is low; currently, almost all public expenditures on higher education represent a subsidy; given the tax burden and enrollment ratios by income group, the lower income groups seem to be gaining most from these subsidies; a start has been made at private sector higher education with the opening of two professional universities, but the prospects of general universities currently opening appears to be dim. Pakistan has a well designed loan program in operation although its quantitative impact is currently limited.     

Financing higher education in Colombia

All countries and particularly the less developed face serious difficulties in the financing of higher education. This has also been true of Colombia, where private higher education has grown more rapidly than the official sector to the point of accounting for 60% of total enrollment due to the State's inability to increase the number of its institutions and to provide them with growing budgets.Given the greater efficiency in expenditure demonstrated by private institutions, a comparison is made of their income and expenditure structure with that of public institutions and differences are established in order to define those areas in which greater internal efficiency can be achieved.In spite of the total cost of higher education in Colombia it is relatively low due to the prevalence of low salaries and lack of equipment or sophisticated facilities and due also to the fact that research is still in an incipient stage.Faced with problems of fairness toward lower income families that must pay more than they can afford, or on the other hand, those who could pay more but are receiving free state education, a state subsidy is proposed to carry out a direct transfer to the student, while all state universities would charge tuition that would cover the cost of instruction. This subsidy should be channelled through ICETEX, a pioneer institution in the world in the field of student financing through credit. Several sources of student financing are examined that reflect a more realistic way of responsibly subsidizing study.     

Financing higher education in India

This paper is an attempt to analyse the present pattern of funding higher education in India and to discuss the desirability and feasibility of various alternative methods of funding the same. Higher education in India is basically a state funded sector. But as higher education benefits not only society at large, but also individuals specifically, and as it attracts relatively more privileged sections of the society, there is a rationale for shifting the financial burden to the individual domain from the social domain.It is argued here that given the resource constraints and equity considerations, financing higher education mostly from the general tax revenue may not be a desirable policy in the long run. Accordingly some of the alternative policy choices are discussed, including financing higher education from the public exchequer, student loans, graduate tax, student fees, and the role of the private sector. Among the available alternatives, it is argued that a discriminatory pricing mechanism would be relatively more efficient and equitable. While given the socioeconomic and political realities, the government has to continue to bear a large responsibility for funding higher education, instead of relying on a single form of funding, efforts should be made to evolve a model of funding that provides a mix of the various methods. It is also argued that fee and subsidy policies need to make distinctions across various layers and forms of higher education.     

Financing higher education in Botswana

The paper describes the current system of university finance in Botswana, and considers alternative options, including the introduction of student loans. A student loan scheme was first recommended in Botswana in 1966, but has never been implemented. At present all students at the University of Botswana receive bursaries, and in return undertake to work in Botswana after graduation and to pay 5% of their annual gross salary for five years as a form of reimbursement. The author concludes that in effect this represents a combined grant and loan. A Presidential Commission in 1990 recommended that the present Bursary system be reorganized into a grant/loan system, and the Government of Botswana accepts this in principle although the modalities of such a scheme are yet to be finalized.     

Financing public higher education in developing countries

The financing of education has emerged as a major topic of discussion among policy makers in recent years. There is evidence that in many developing countries, governments can no longer continue to increase spending on education at the high rates characteristic in the 1960s and 1970s. The macroeconomic environment has worsened, and there is keen intersectoral competition for public funds. Thus unless educational development moves away from its present heavy dependence on public funds, the expansion of education would be frustrated. One policy option is to increase the private financing of education. In this paper, we evaluate the potential effectiveness of loans schemes as a cost recovery instrument in higher education. Essentially, loans permit students to finance the cost of their education from future income. So the effectiveness of loans would depend on the relation between costs and students' future income. It also depends on the incidence of repetition, dropout, and default, as well as on whether or not a grace period is incorporated in the loan scheme. Our simulations show that in Asia and Latin America, the potential rate of cost recovery is substantial under what appears to be bearable terms of repayment. In Francophone Africa and Anglophone Africa, however, loans schemes are unlikely to perform as well, but they would still permit a shift toward greater private financing of higher education.     

Financing higher education in an imperfect world

This paper explains why under laissez-faire the financing of higher education is both inefficient and inequitable. It is argued that a government-run scheme of income contingent loans (ICLs) for higher education would achieve superior outcomes. We advocate a refinement of existing ICLs schemes. Following Apps, Long and Rees (2014), the paper proposes a piecewise-linear repayment schedule that serves both equity and efficiency objectives.     

Financing higher education: lessons from China

In China, debates about higher education finance led to the introduction of a cost-sharing model, whereby students were required to pay tuition fees, over a decade ago. However, there is still significant resistance towards such a system within the broader society. In order to share insights into the development of the cost-sharing policy in China with international readers and scholars, this paper thoroughly reviews the origins, impact and challenges of the cost-sharing system in Chinese higher education. Based on systematic analysis, the paper recommends reforms to the cost-sharing system in order to contribute to a stronger financial foundation for the development of the Chinese higher education system.     

Financing higher education in Canada: a study in fiscal federalism

Higher Education - Drawing boundaries in federal systems is often a practical and constitutional challenge for public finance and the delivery of higher education. This paper studies arrangements...     

Financing and political economy of higher education: The case of Lebanon

This paper assesses the adequacy, efficiency, and equity of higher education in Lebanon in both the public and private sectors, while highlighting challenges that are specific to Lebanon. It concludes by discussing various approaches and strategies to remedy the challenges facing higher education in Lebanon.     

Financing higher education in India: principles,practice, and policy issues

Financing higher education in India has been a complicated problem due to theoretical and practical problems. It has been largely a state funded activity with about three-quarters of the total expenditure being borne by government. The shares of non-governmental sources such as fees and voluntary contributions have been declining. At the same time the needs of the higher education system have been growing rapidly. It is being increasingly realized that public budgets cannot adequately fund higher education, particularly when sectors of mass education are starved of even bare needs. Hence of late several policy proposals are made, including privatization. This article critically reviews these proposals, and argues that the Indian higher education system is not yet ready for privatization. At the same time the need for experimentation with several alternatives, including student fees, students loans, graduate tax, and privatization in general is emphasized.     

Motivations for participation in higher education: narratives of non-traditional students at Makerere University in Uganda

The objective of this qualitative study was to establish motivations for participation of non-traditional students (NTS) in university education. The findings are drawn from empirical data collected from 15 unstructured in-depth interviews with NTS of the School of Computing and Informatics Technology at Makerere University, and analysed with the aid of qualitative data analysis software ATLAS.ti. Three major findings were established: (1) motivations were found to be multiple, multifaceted and varied for each individual; (2) the sociocultural context of the African society including societal perceptions of university education were found to be the major factor shaping motivations of NTS to upgrade their educational qualifications; and (3) most motivations were found to be extrinsic in nature rather than intrinsic and based more on push rather than pull factors. Yet, although the demand for university education is increasing, life beyond university can no longer guarantee some of the anticipated rewards such as employment and its related benefits. It therefore becomes important that the purpose of education within universities in Africa is directed towards achieving development of the whole human being. In this way, a graduate’s capacity to function will not be seen only in the economic and professional life, but also in other spheres of life.     

The role of private universities in the provision of higher education in Uganda: Growth and challenges

Abstract

Although the first private university in Uganda was founded in 1988 and the private university sector has since grown rapidly to become one of the most prominent features of higher education (HE) in Uganda, the contribution of private universities (PUs) to the provision of HE has remained largely unexplored and as such, less understood. The purpose of this paper, then, is to analyse the contribution of PUs to the provision of HE in Uganda, using theories of the non-profit organisations and Geiger's conceptual framework about rationales for growth of the PUs. The paper is based on data that were collected through qualitative interviews conducted in 2008 with six faculty deans from Uganda Christian University (UCU); reviews of paper and web-based documents from the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) and the PUs in Uganda; and reviews of national and internal literature about private higher education (PHE). Data analysis reveals that excess demand for HE, per se, was not responsible for the growth of the PUs in Uganda; instead, it created opportunities for individuals and organisations to establish PUs. Because of their diverse backgrounds and the policy environment in which they exist, PUs undertake various roles in the provision of HE.     

Financing institutions of higher education in India: The need for a realistic fee policy

The contribution of tuition fees to the income of higher education institutions in India is reviewed against a background of inadequate financial support. A differential system of tuition fees is proposed under which students not deemed suitable for higher education would be admitted to universities or colleges subject to payment of tuition fees which reflected the full costs of their higher education.The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/policies of the Planning Commission.     

我国近代高等教育学制与高等教育现代化

中国近代学制的建立与发展极大地推动了高等教育的现代化进程,并在此期间受到了许多西方包括日本等国影响,但学术界对其发展过程是依附还是借鉴分别持不同观点。通过分析中国近代高等教育学制的嬗变来反思中国高等教育的现代化进程,势必对高等教育未来的发展有所帮助。     

高教大众化与高教结构调整

文章论述了我国高等教育大众化的根本目的，指出，企图仅依赖普通高校的扩招来实现我国高教大众化不仅不现实，也不能适应社会对多层次、多类型人才的需要。面对国际竞争，结合我国实际，应当发展多种形式的高等教育，高等职业技术教育就是其中重要的一种。