Expenditure in tertiary education

Educational institutions in OECD countries are mainly publicly funded, although there are substantial and growing levels of private funding at the tertiary level. At this level, the contribution to the costs of education by individuals and other private entities is more and more considered an effective way to ensure funding is available to students regardless of their economic backgrounds.

Definition

Covered are public and private expenditure on schools, universities and other private institutions delivering or supporting educational services. Other private entities include private businesses and non-profit organisations, e.g. religious organisations, charitable organisations and business and labour associations. Expenditure by private companies on the work-based element of school- and work-based training of apprentices and students is also taken into account.

Private expenditure is recorded net of public subsidies to educational institutions; it also includes expenditures made outside educational institutions.

Comparability

The data on expenditure were obtained by a survey conducted in 2011 which applied consistent methods and definitions. Expenditure data are based on the definitions and coverage for the UNESCO-OECD-Eurostat data collection programme on education; they have been adjusted to 2012 prices using the GDP price deflator. The use of a common survey and definitions ensures good comparability of results across countries.

Educational expenditure in national currency for 2012 is converted into equivalent USD by dividing the national currency figure by the purchasing power parity (PPP) index for GDP. PPPs are used because market exchange rates are affected by many factors that are unrelated to the purchasing power of currencies in different countries.