University Tuition Fees: “To be or not to be?”

The In Focus section of the magazine IAU Horizons (Vol. 19 No.3) includes 10 papers focusing on the theme: Student Tuition Fees – perspectives from around the world.
University Tuition Fees: “To be or not to be?”, by Eric Charbonnier, Analyst, Education and Competences Directorate, OECD, Paris, France (Eric.Charbonnier@oecd.org)
Today, the French University must continue its transformation and deal with three major challenges: increase the number of university students and staff while maintaining the quality of the training provided; participate in the increased competition between countries to attract the best qualified students; and find a fair balance between public funding and private funding (contributions of businesses and students).
 Funding for higher education is at the heart of the higher education debate in the OECD countries. It is also one of the major topics of concern of the French University Presidents Conference (Conférence des Présidents d’Universités – CPU) or even the Conférence des Grandes Écoles. Since 1995, 14 of the 25 OECD countries, for which data are available, have changed their tuition fee system. Most of the reforms have resulted in an increase in average tuition fees and went hand in hand with a revision of the level of State aid to students (see indicator B5 of Education at a Glance 2012).
Read more in the magazine IAU Horizons (Vol. 19 No.3).