Financing for equity in higher education
1. Education resources to subnational governments
2. Education resources to institutions
3. Education resources to students
4. Support for students' living costs
Introduction
Key financing indicators (UIS Data)
The gross enrolment ratio for tertiary education for both sexes is 67.62% (UIS 2023 estimates). The initial government funding per tertiary student as a percentage of GDP per capita is 29.42 (UIS 2022 estimates). No data is found regarding the initial household funding per tertiary student as a percentage of GDP per capita.
Tuition-free status
According to the 2019 Higher Education Act, public tertiary education is not universally tuition-free. Tuition is waived only for full-time students in Estonian-language programmes who meet cumulative credit requirements each semester, as prescribed in the Act. Fees may be charged if these requirements are not met, and full tuition may be charged to part-time students, students in non-Estonian programmes, or in other cases.
Governance
The main body responsible for financing higher education is the Ministry of Education and Research, which plans higher-education policy and manages the sector’s public funding, including allocating state-budget activity support and other targeted financing to higher education institutions and administering study-support related budget lines. The Ministry of Finance plays a central role in the overall state budget process, approved by the Government of the Republic and the Parliament.
In addition, programme implementation for certain grants and scholarships is handled by sector agencies such as the Education and Youth Board (HARNO), which runs scholarship and grant schemes on behalf of the state, and the National Audit Office provides external oversight by auditing how public money is used.
1. Education resources to subnational governments
Subnational funding mechanisms
Public higher education is directly financed from the state budget.
2. Education resources to institutions
Funding for private universities in the absence of public institutions
According to the 2019 Higher Education Act, a private higher education institution may receive activity support and/or targeted support only if the state deems the allocation necessary in light of the strategic goals of the state and the expected labour-market need for highly educated specialists, and the support is formalised by contract with the private institution’s owner.
Allocation and equity
According to the 2019 Higher Education Act, government support from the state budget to public universities and state-owned professional higher education institutions is provided as activity support and targeted support, allocated through the Ministry’s budget; activity support is divided into baseline funding (at least 80%) and performance-based funding (up to 20%), where baseline funding is calculated from the allocations of the previous three years and performance-based funding is allocated based on performance indicators (quality, effectiveness, and society-development indicators).
Support to a public university is allocated under an administrative contract for three to five years with a funding agreement annexed each year, and the contract sets, among other things, the bases for calculating the doctoral student support fund and the bases for allocating the student scholarship fund (and conditions for allocating other funds). Targeted support is additional support for activities arising from the strategic goals of the state and for allocating doctoral studies’ performance pay, and the Act does not state that these subsidies are earmarked as equity-targeted funds for specific social groups.
3. Education resources to students
Admission for vulnerable groups
The 2019 Higher Education Act does not establish specific admission criteria for defined vulnerable groups; it provides that the higher education institution itself establishes and publishes admission criteria and may, where justified by the characteristics of the study programme and apply different grounds for assessing compliance with the admission criteria for different groups, while expressly prohibiting grouping based on whether tuition may be charged. The cited admission provisions do not contain any rules on financial support linked to admission.
Scholarships, grants and loans for vulnerable groups
According to the 2019 Higher Education Act, students have the right to receive state scholarships. The type of support and conditions are determined by the 2003 Study Grants and Students Loans Act. It provides financial support for higher education through a need-based study grant and a special needs-based support (both defined as support, based on financial situation, to cover expenses associated with acquiring higher education), and it explicitly excludes doctoral students. Eligible persons are Estonian citizens or persons residing in Estonia on specified residence/right-of-residence bases, who are studying full-time (and must have completed at least 75% of the required study volume in prior semesters, or be full-time in the first semester) and whose average monthly income does not exceed the ceiling set in the state budget; special needs-based support is for those whose need-based application was rejected on the income-condition ground but who meet the Act’s special-support conditions.
The 2003 Study Grants and Students Loans Act also provides a state-guaranteed student loan for persons meeting its listed criteria (including the relevant citizenship or residence conditions and being a student in the required study form at eligible institutions in Estonia or studying abroad in an equivalent form), and requires that the loan be issued via a credit institution that has an agreement with the state concluded by “the minister responsible for the area.” The Act does not name that minister by title; it only uses that formulation, and it states that allocation is organised by the Ministry of Education and Research (or an authorised body and foundation).
Furthermore, a monthly study allowance ranging from EUR 6.39 to EUR 25.57 is available for non-working students with disabilities enrolled in grades 10-12, vocational education, higher education, or state-managed full-time continuing education. The allowance helps cover additional study-related expenses, including special learning or communication tools, and is paid throughout the academic year except during July and August.
4. Support for students’ living costs
Transportation
There is no centralised transportation support available for higher-education students. Discounted (or in some cases free) local public transport is typically provided by city transport authorities.
Accommodation
There is no centralised accommodation support available for higher-education students.
Textbooks
There is no centralised textbook support available for higher-education students. Some targeted programmes (for example, the Academic Studies of Estonian Language and Culture Abroad (EKKAV) programme) may fund study materials for specific groups/fields, but that’s not a universal nationwide textbook benefit.
This profile has been reviewed by Hasso Kukemelk.
