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 74.71% (UIS 2024 estimates). The initial government funding per tertiary student as a percentage of GDP per capita is 38.16 (UIS 2023 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 2014 Education Code, public tertiary education is not tuition-free. It provides that higher education studies may be carried out on the basis of a study contract that specifies the tuition fee for the entire cycle of studies, allows higher education institutions to offer fee-based educational services with clearly defined tuition amounts, and limits full public financing to places covered by the state admission plan, while permitting the charging of tuition fees for study programs and services that are not financed from the state budget.
Governance
The Ministry of Education and Research is the primary body responsible for planning, allocating, and overseeing the use of public funds for higher education (including the state admission plan and institutional funding), while the Ministry of Finance has a supporting, budgetary role rather than sectoral oversight.
1. Education resources to subnational governments
Subnational Funding Mechanisms
Public higher education is financed primarily by the central (state) budget, and funds are transferred directly to public higher education institutions.
2. Education resources to institutions
Funding for private universities in the absence of public institutions
According to the 2014 Education Code, state funding for higher education is allocated only to public institutions within the government-approved admission plan. It provides that private universities are financed from founders’ sources and tuition fees, with no legal provision for state funding, even in the absence of public universities.
Allocation and equity
Based on the methodology approved by the Government and ministerial regulations, budget financing for public higher education institutions is distributed from the state budget through a structured allocation model. Of the total budgetary allocations, 75% is distributed as direct institutional funding calculated using a formula based on the number of state-funded students and adjustment coefficients reflecting the form and complexity of bachelor’s and master’s programmes accredited or provisionally authorised. Student numbers used for the calculation are reported annually, and the allocated funds cover core institutional expenditures related to teaching, research, staff remuneration, and operational and capital needs.
The remaining allocations are distributed as 20% performance-based funding and at least 5% complementary funding for institutional development. Performance-based funding is allocated according to annually approved indicators covering areas such as teaching and learning, research, internationalisation, and social engagement. Complementary funding supports infrastructure modernisation, dormitories, and specific development needs, including those of regional institutions, and is allocated based on student numbers following a competitive application process that may require co-financing.
Overall, these three funding streams are primarily institution-centred; equity-related support is addressed separately through distinct policy instruments such as scholarships (see Section 3).
3. Education resources to students
Admission for vulnerable groups
For bachelor’s degree admissions, 15% of state-funded (budget) places in each programme are reserved for applicants aged up to 23 who belong to socially protected or special categories, including individuals without parental care, with severe disabilities, from large families, with dependent children (especially with disabilities), with parents involved in military conflicts or national service missions, from specific regions such as the left bank of the Dniester and Bender, from Roma families, or who have completed military service.
Scholarships, grants and loans for vulnerable groups
According to the 2006 Government Decision Regarding the Amounts of Scholarships, Monthly Balances of Other Forms of Social Assistance for Students (modified in 2024), students are explicitly supported through a structured system of state-funded scholarships, including merit-based scholarships and social scholarships. The decision clearly provides for social scholarships targeted at students from socially vulnerable or low socioeconomic backgrounds, such as those from low-income families, single-parent households, families with many dependent children, persons with disabilities, or those lacking parental care.
4. Support for students’ living costs
Transportation
According to the 2006 Government Decision Regarding the Amounts of Scholarships, Monthly Balances of Other Forms of Social Assistance for Students (modified in 2024), students enrolled in higher education institutions who do not permanently reside in the locality of their institution are entitled to two domestic round trips per year. For these trips, 50% of the ticket cost for interurban road and rail transport is reimbursed by the educational institution: a) from state budget funds for students studying in state-funded places, and b) from tuition fees for students enrolled on a contract (fee-paying) basis.
Accommodation
Under the 2007 Government Decision on Accommodation Fees in Dormitories of State Institutions Providing Secondary Vocational, Post-secondary Vocational, Higher Education, and Science and Innovation Programs (modified in 2020), students enrolled in public higher education institutions - whether funded by the state budget or studying on a contract basis - are required to pay 40% of the accommodation cost, while master’s students, doctoral students, residents, and doctors admitted for clinical training immediately after graduation who are funded by the state budget must pay 50% of the accommodation cost. Students with orphan status or those left without parental care are fully exempt from paying accommodation fees in the dormitories of public higher education institutions. The specific accommodation fee is determined in accordance with the Government-approved methodology for calculating dormitory accommodation fees and is approved at the institutional level.
Textbooks
No state support is available for purchasing textbooks.
