Higher Education Expenditure in OECD Countries. Intergovernmental Conference on Policies for Higher Education in the 80s (Paris, France, October 12-14, 1981).

Overview & Synopsis

Cost and expenditure developments in countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development are considered. The time evolution of overall educational expenditure without reference to a particular school level is examined, using National Account statistics. This analysis involves: examining the education share in the country's national income or overall state budget; comparing education's share in the state budget or national income to the share of other sectors like health and defense; and accounting for the changes in the share of education in the national resources by considering demographic, enrollment, and cost factors. Another analysis, which involves the distribution of public expenditure by level of education, addresses the following: the higher education share in overall educational expenditures; factors accounting for the changing share of higher education in the state budget; the allocation of resources within the tertiary education sector; and the allocation of resources within the university sector by field of study. Data are provided by country for 1965, 1970, 1975, and 1977. Additionally, aggregate expenditure and enrollment data are combined to derive unit costs per student, unit costs per graduate, unit costs by type of higher education institution, and unit costs by field of study. Nonpublic sources of university finance and the evolution of student support schemes also are addressed. It is predicted that governments will exert increased pressure on students to finance their education. This change might be approached by giving student loans rather than grants. (SW)