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)
According to the UIS 2000 database, the gross enrolment ratio for tertiary education for both sexes is 13.36%. No information is available regarding the initial government funding per tertiary student as a percentage of GDP per capita, and the initial household funding per tertiary student as a percentage of GDP per capita.
Tuition-free status
Public tertiary education in the FSM is not tuition-free. The national public institution - the College of Micronesia-FSM (COM-FSM) - charges tuition on a per-credit basis.
Governance
Higher education is anchored in a decentralised education system set out in Education Title 40 of the FSM Code; the national college is governed by its Board of Regents, with budgets appropriated by the FSM Congress. The National Department of Education oversees national scholarship programs, while COM-FSM’s Board of Regents governs the college’s operations and policies. Congressional appropriations laws explicitly include line items for the COM-FSM Board of Regents, reflecting national-level financing responsibility and oversight.
1. Education resources to subnational governments
Subnational funding mechanisms
FSM education is legally decentralised across the four states, but for public higher education, the principal flow is national appropriations to COM-FSM, not formulaic transfers from the national government to state governments for higher-education provision. States commonly participate through state scholarship programmes for their residents rather than direct operating transfers to the college.
2. Education resources to institutions
Funding for private universities in the absence of public institutions
The government does not fund private universities.
Allocation and equity
Government subsidies to the public higher-education are appropriated by Congress and directed to COM-FSM via its Board of Regents. There are institutional (block) appropriations rather than performance-based or formula-driven allocations; equity targeting is realised primarily through student-level aid (e.g., national scholarship) rather than earmarked institutional sub-grants for specific groups.
3. Education resources to students
Admission for vulnerable groups
COM-FSM applies standard academic admissions (e.g., placement/entrance testing and regular admissions procedures). Neither Education Title 40 of the FSM Code nor COM-FSM’s admissions pages show specific admission quotas or preferential criteria for designated vulnerable groups.
Scholarships, grants and loans for vulnerable groups
Scholarships are available nationally and at state level. The National Department of Education’s national scholarship supports eligible FSM students (undergraduate and some graduate), and COM-FSM’s Financial Aid Office packages U.S. federal Pell Grants, FSM national aid, state scholarships, and institutional work-study according to need and eligibility. Education Title 40 of the FSM Code also establishes a student loan revolving fund to provide long-term, low-interest loans to qualified students “in need of such financial assistance,” setting the legal basis for how such loans are provided.
According to the student loan revolving fund, a student may receive no more than USD 4,000 in loans from the fund for any single academic year or its equivalent. Over the course of an undergraduate program, the maximum cumulative amount a student can borrow is USD 16,000. For individuals pursuing graduate or professional studies, the combined lifetime limit on all loans from the fund is USD 32,000.
While the official documents emphasise need and eligibility, they do not explicitly mention the vulnerable-group set; targeting occurs through financial-need assessment and program rules. The head of the National Department of Education is the responsible minister for the national scholarship program.
4. Support for students’ living costs
Transportation
There is no national policy that directly pays for universal student transport for higher education. However, COM-FSM’s cost of education tables explicitly include transportation as an allowable component of student cost of attendance, meaning scholarships and grants packaged by the Financial Aid Office can be used toward travel/transport costs within the overall aid award.
Accommodation
There is no national accommodation stipend programme; housing support is provided institutionally by COM-FSM as a service with published fees.
Textbooks
COM-FSM runs a bookstore that procures required textbooks using the College’s general fund and sells them to students; it also runs a limited buy-back program and has published procedures. There is no separate national textbook stipend for higher education, but textbooks are part of student expenses that may be covered within an aid package.
