Formula Funding of Higher Education in the Czech Republic: Creating an open system

This article examines the funding of higher education in the Czech Republic in the summer of 1992. The Czech government had introduced a system of formula funding, whereby the funds provided to institutions would be related to the number of students enrolled and their subject specialisms. The details of that new funding system are presented, and some of its features elaborated. Direct comparison with the funding formula systems employed in the UK makes it clear that the Czech system is incomplete, in that it does not address the issue of allocating student numbers to institution. The policy issues related to this feature of the system are examined in some detail. The analysis includes ways in which the funding system might be developed in the future, and the likely effect of those developments.