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PART Issues and Perspectives ofHigher Education

Total public expenditure on higher education expressed as a proportion of the national income is 0.8% in Japan (in 1986), 1.5% in the United States (in 1985), 1.6%in the United Kingdom (in 1986), 0.9% in France (in 1984) and 1.8% in West Germany (in 1985).

In the United Kingdom, France, West Germany and the U.S.S.R., where there are practically no private universities, the costs of all institutions of higher education are primarily paid by the national (or state) government. Private resources are negligible. In the United Kingdom while all universities are maintained by non-governmental bodies, most of the costs of these institutions are paid by the central and local governments in the form of grants. Accordingly, from the financial point of view, British universities are similar to public universities in other countries.

On the other hand, institutions of higher education in Japan and the United States are supported not only by national (Federal and State) and local governments, but by tuition and other student's fees, donations, sales and services and other private resources. Of these resources, student's fees account for 34% (in 1986) of all institutional expenditures in Japan and 22% (in 1986) in the United States.

While British universities have their income from tuition fees, no British students pay their tuition fees by themselves, because all their tuition fees are supported by scholarships. In France, while all students every year pay about 10 to20 thousand yen to their universities, these payments are not definitely identified as tuition fees. In West Germany and the U.S.S.R., higher education is free. No tuition is charged to students.