FINANCIAL AUTONOMY OF LITHUANIAN UNIVERSITIES

Abstract

The analysis of legislative support of higher education of Lithuania was carried out. It was found out that the right to higher education in Lithuania is guaranteed by the Constitution of Lithuania. It was revealed that higher education is based on the principles of academic freedom and autonomy, openness and responsibility to society, competition between higher education institutions and students in accordance with the Law on Higher Education and Research 2009. As a result of higher education reform, elements of performance-based funding in the form of performance agreements between universities and the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport were introduced. The indicators of measuring the results for such agreements were determined. They are: accessibility and usefulness of education; quality of research (art and education); internationalization of research and education, integrity of research and education. The sources of funding for higher education in Lithuania have been identified. They include: state budget financial resources for study and research, for maintenance and administration of university, funds of state investment in the infrastructure program, tuition fees, income received from international research and development programs and from orders of legal entities. The main features of the voucher system in higher education of Lithuania were revealed. In particular, the government sets a standardized study price is the cost of a voucher; students have the right to choose study programs and to raise funds for the selected higher education institution; a voucher given for a university student is valid for two years; vouchers can be provided to private universities; the government has allocated funds for six main areas: social sciences, humanities, physical sciences, biomedical sciences, art studies and technological sciences. The indicators of financial autonomy of Lithuanian universities were analysed.